Masdar city in Abu Dhabi / UAE was designed to be a manifested dream of the first sustainable city in the world with its zero-carbon, zero-waste ecology, renewable energy resources, public mass transit, personal rapid transit systems, shaded walkways, and the lowest environmental footprint. When one visits this city and wanders around its buildings and facilities, does one feel that this dream is still possible? This lecture, by Dr. Maha Salman, will discuss the ambition of Masdar city, what has been accomplished till now, and what are the lessons that can be learned from this project as an approach toward sustainable citifies worldwide.

 

About Maha Salman, PhD, M.Sc., B.Sc. Arch, LEED AP (BC+D)

 

Dr. Maha Salman is a LEED Accredited Professional architect. She received her PhD in Sustainable Architecture from the University of Huddersfield-UK, where she got The Vice Chancellor's Award for an Outstanding Research Degree Thesis for a dissertation titled "Sustainability Potential of Traditional Architecture in the Arab World." Dr. Salman gained her professional experience as a researcher and a professor through studying and working in a number of institutions in UK, Canada, and The Middle East. Maha has worked at the University of Toronto as a sessional lecturer for “Contemporary Architecture” and “Postcolonial Studies in Architecture” and as a professor at The Academy of Design where she supervised a number of theses and independent studies.

 

In addition to her work as an academic, Dr. Salman has worked as an architect and LEED AP consultant for different projects in the Middle East, particularly in Dubai She has several publications and papers in the aspects sustainability, ecological design, environmental assessment methods, and vernacular architecture in the Arab World.