< PreviousA Greener Tomorrow “Don’t hide my building with your trees!” Working as a landscape architect in Dubai for the last 18 years, I’ve heard this countless times. In many ways, it’s understandable. Buildings are the result of a huge investment of time and effort, so it’s natural that their creators wish them to sit proudly on our streets unadorned and fully visible to all. I’d like to request that in 2020 and the decade beyond, architects reconsider this position and I’ll explain why. We are all familiar with the statistics surrounding ever- increasing urbanising population. Rapid urbanisation is happening everywhere and indeed, many environmentalists point to well-planned cities as one of the best ways to manage our environmental footprint. Incorporating trees into our urban environments delivers a raft of solutions to challenges stemming from rapid urbanisation and those of us designing cities should be familiar with these. Let’s start with the obvious benefit; trees make humans feel well. We have an innate connection with trees and omitting them from urban areas or corralling them into parks alone leaves urbanites mentally and physically unwell. Trees are highly efficient machines for filtering pollutants from air and water, converting harmful compounds into useful ones while making our stressful urban lives healthier. If these reasons are insufficient, then consider that studies indicate a 20% increase in real estate value on streets featuring mature urban trees. Our forefathers, planning prestigious streets like those found in Paris, London, New York and Barcelona knew something which seems to have been forgotten in recent times. Trees need lots of uncompacted soil. They designed huge soil pits into their engineered street sections, which encouraged the trees they planted to grow into the majestic specimens now synonymous with these cities. Soil being roughly 50% air, these soil pits provided natural soak- aways and a moisture retention element, reducing floods, moderating temperatures and allowing urban trees to be more resilient. These city streets remain naturally shaded and cool in summer, while deciduous trees allow winter sun to penetrate to warm the bodies and spirits of the population beneath. Trees humanise and naturalise streets, bridging the gap between towering buildings and the humans below, while introducing seasonal change to an otherwise uncomfortably static built environment. In this coming decade, let us not only plant more trees in urban areas, but also provide them with the uncompacted soil volumes they need to grow into the flourishing specimens which we all depict in our renderings. There are multiple structural soil cell systems available to us which allow for our paved surfaces to float over the uncompacted soil which trees need to thrive, so let’s use them. If we coordinate this with our engineer friends, we can even eliminate much of the expensive typical urban drainage infrastructure by doubling soil cells as soak-aways. I sincerely hope that the next decade will see architects employing urban trees as an integral part of development, not merely a challenge to the visibility of the magnificent structures that they create. Duncan Denley, managing director, desert INK Landscape Architects hopes for a future where trees are seen as an integral part of development MIDDLE EAST ARCHITECT / 01.20 / WWW.MIDDLEEASTARCHITECT.COM 40 / 2020 AND BEYONDUrban Innovations As 2019 draws to a close and a new decade begins, Dubai positions itself at the centre of the world’s stage as the host of the upcoming 2020 Expo. The expo, acting as a microcosm of the global community, provides a platform for addressing some of the most significant challenges currently facing the international community. With a focus on collaboration, innovation and sustainability the Expo presents a salient parallel to Dubai as the city redefines itself in response to the economic challenges faced during the closing decade. With its characteristic optimism, Dubai is in the throes of realigning its economic reliance away from fossil fuels and towards a strong focus on hospitality and tourism and the 2020 Expo acting as a catalyst, Dubai is defining itself not only as a regional gateway, but as global destination in and of itself. While this has seen a surge in development in the private hospitality sector, the Dubai government has also undertaken a significant suite of public works to enhance the urban landscape and make the city more hospitable to visitors and tourists. In April of this year, the RTA announced a series of public works projects aimed at transforming existing overlooked public spaces into hubs of activity. One such scheme is Sunset Promenade, a new beachfront destination featuring a unique range of activities that will cover an area of 80,000 sq m connected to Jumeirah Beach Walk and is specially designed to cater for family entertainment. Designed by LWK + Partners, the development responds to site constraints and a narrow beach depth by creating a string of floating activity platforms across the beach front, which are to be partially reclaimed and floating pontoons/platforms. Organically shaped, the platforms will provide additional seafront facilities and host a wide range of activities, increasing the total beach area to 107,000 sq m. The floating portion has been sensitively designed to not disturb the seabed and the surrounding marine life, using this unique opportunity to pursue ecologically sensitive development. The Promenade is envisioned as a series of hills and dunes covered in grass and sand, a set of seemingly natural formations containing urban programme. Leisure, activity and dining spaces are situated within the hills and open onto sheltered activity spaces. Above, beach users can take an elevated position from which to enjoy the beach. Between the hills, open zones are uniquely programmed to encourage all day and evening entertainment activities, in a more sustainable way. Dubai will be redefining itself with new public works to cement its place as global destination, says Kerem Cengiz, director of LWK+PARTNERS MENA MIDDLE EAST ARCHITECT / 01.20 / WWW.MIDDLEEASTARCHITECT.COM 2020 AND BEYOND / 41Time for Change 2020 is the year of change. The change that everybody is asking and searching for. After the tough market in 2019, we are looking forward for 2020 and what it will bring. Will it be the year of better cash flow? Will it be the year of positivity? Or, will it be the year of healthier global economy? We believe 2020 will remain a tough market for some businesses and it will be better for others, especially the ones related to Dubai Expo 2020. Accordingly, we have to think differently and search for new markets where we can add value at social and urban level. Architects do not have to be limited to one location, country or region. They have to work beyond their surroundings. Architects have a mission which is fading with time. This mission is to create an urban fabric that is socially sustainable. So, going beyond and discovering new territories is the approach. This mission is the vision that led to the success of JT & Partners. As an international architectural and engineering firm, JT & Partners managed to deliver projects around the world, in GCC, MENA and Europe regions and global destinations from Morocco to Seychelles, Lebanon, India, Sri Lanka, Angola, Cameroon, Zanzibar, Egypt, Portugal, Greece, KSA and UAE. What is really needed to be changed in 2020 onwards is our mentality and behaviour. Therefore, it is not about being busy, it is more about how all of us can team up to avoid previous mistakes at the urban and social level. We need to share knowledge so that the competition becomes healthier. We need to create proper committees for architects and urban planners to come up with proper strategies that will cater for the future social needs and technological innovations. It is time for change −changing the mentality, the way we work, the way we work together, the spirit and the attitude. What is really needed to be changed in 2020 onwards is our mentality and behaviour, says Joe Tabet, managing director, JT & Partners MIDDLE EAST ARCHITECT / 01.20 / WWW.MIDDLEEASTARCHITECT.COM 42 / 2020 AND BEYONDCOMMERCIALINTERIORDESIGN.COMPOWERFUL TECHNOLOGY BEHIND THE WALL GEBERIT CONCEALED CISTERNS More than 55 years experience with concealed cisterns www.geberit.ae 55 years Geberit has more than 55 years of experience in the field of concealed cisterns 25 years 25 years guarantee for spare parts availability More than 70 million concealed cisterns sold and installed worldwide 70 Mio Geberit is the European leader in sanitary technologyNext >