Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine social sustainability effectiveness of eco-cities through the case of Masdar City’s strategy for urban sustainability in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a case study approach, the paper is an exploratory, qualitative analysis, which investigates the social, environmental and economic performance of Masdar City, a purported carbon-neutral, zero-waste urban development.
Findings
Though Masdar City substantively contributes to innovation in sustainable urban development within environmental and economic contexts and has been effective in capital circulation in green technology markets, the impetus as a commercially driven enterprise is most evident. Successful sustainable urban development requires greater consideration for the social imperative.
Practical implications
Eco-city mega-projects such as Masdar City have the potential to fuse achievements in innovation, technology and economic enterprise with the social imperative of functional urban habitats.
Originality/value
Eco-cities are of increasing interest given the growing need for sustainable, energy-efficient living. This paper contributes through a novel case study, exploring how the concept of the eco-city has been developed and understood in the Masdar City context and discusses successes and deficits in its strategic implementation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 138-149 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Smart and Sustainable Built Environment |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Early online date | 21 Jul 2018 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 7 May 2019 |
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Bibliographical note
Special Issue Paper: Sustainable planning, urban design & architecture in the Middle East & North Africa regionThis article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial & non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors.
Keywords
- Abu Dhabi
- Eco-city
- Masdar City
- Sustainability
- United Arab Emirates
- Urban development
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Human Factors and Ergonomics
- Civil and Structural Engineering
- Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
- Building and Construction
- Urban Studies
- Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
Cite this
The Social Imperative in Sustainable Urban Development: The Case of Masdar City in the United Arab Emirates. / Randeree, Kasim; Ahmed, Nadeem.
In: Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, Vol. 8, No. 2, 07.05.2019, p. 138-149.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - The Social Imperative in Sustainable Urban Development: The Case of Masdar City in the United Arab Emirates
AU - Randeree, Kasim
AU - Ahmed, Nadeem
N1 - Special Issue Paper: Sustainable planning, urban design & architecture in the Middle East & North Africa region This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial & non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors.
PY - 2019/5/7
Y1 - 2019/5/7
N2 - PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine social sustainability effectiveness of eco-cities through the case of Masdar City’s strategy for urban sustainability in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.Design/methodology/approachUsing a case study approach, the paper is an exploratory, qualitative analysis, which investigates the social, environmental and economic performance of Masdar City, a purported carbon-neutral, zero-waste urban development.FindingsThough Masdar City substantively contributes to innovation in sustainable urban development within environmental and economic contexts and has been effective in capital circulation in green technology markets, the impetus as a commercially driven enterprise is most evident. Successful sustainable urban development requires greater consideration for the social imperative.Practical implicationsEco-city mega-projects such as Masdar City have the potential to fuse achievements in innovation, technology and economic enterprise with the social imperative of functional urban habitats.Originality/valueEco-cities are of increasing interest given the growing need for sustainable, energy-efficient living. This paper contributes through a novel case study, exploring how the concept of the eco-city has been developed and understood in the Masdar City context and discusses successes and deficits in its strategic implementation.
AB - PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine social sustainability effectiveness of eco-cities through the case of Masdar City’s strategy for urban sustainability in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.Design/methodology/approachUsing a case study approach, the paper is an exploratory, qualitative analysis, which investigates the social, environmental and economic performance of Masdar City, a purported carbon-neutral, zero-waste urban development.FindingsThough Masdar City substantively contributes to innovation in sustainable urban development within environmental and economic contexts and has been effective in capital circulation in green technology markets, the impetus as a commercially driven enterprise is most evident. Successful sustainable urban development requires greater consideration for the social imperative.Practical implicationsEco-city mega-projects such as Masdar City have the potential to fuse achievements in innovation, technology and economic enterprise with the social imperative of functional urban habitats.Originality/valueEco-cities are of increasing interest given the growing need for sustainable, energy-efficient living. This paper contributes through a novel case study, exploring how the concept of the eco-city has been developed and understood in the Masdar City context and discusses successes and deficits in its strategic implementation.
KW - Abu Dhabi
KW - Eco-city
KW - Masdar City
KW - Sustainability
KW - United Arab Emirates
KW - Urban development
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85054361816&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1108/SASBE-11-2017-0064
DO - 10.1108/SASBE-11-2017-0064
M3 - Article
VL - 8
SP - 138
EP - 149
JO - Smart and Sustainable Built Environment
JF - Smart and Sustainable Built Environment
SN - 2046-6099
IS - 2
ER -