H2O=Life exhibition encourages water conservation

The New York show Water: H2O=Life is being staged by Adach with special emphasis on the desert.

Christopher Lord

September 20, 2011

In Tamashek, the language of the Tuareg nomads who wander the Sahara, aman iman means "water is life". The two words sound so similar, a sign of just how much survival rests on finding water in this hot, harsh environment.

A new exhibition at Qasr Al Hosn Cultural Quarter Hall in Abu Dhabi, opening tonight, attempts to underscore that fragile relationship through more than 90 hands-on exhibits and inspiring, interactive models.

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Water: H2O=Life was originally conceived in New York's American Museum of Natural History. The objective of the exhibition is to show how water connects everyone on the planet, and how use and overuse have effects and reactions elsewhere in that system. As Eleanor Sterling, the curator of the original show in the US, put it: "We are all downstream from somebody."

The exhibition has been brought to the UAE by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage. To emphasise the local relevance of the show, the exhibition includes a significant section on how desert settlements evolve and develop around their search for a steady water supply. Al Ain was added to the Unesco World Heritage list in July, and the growth of this oasis town is a prime example of this process. Sami El Masri, the deputy director general for arts, culture and heritage in the UAE, made the link, and suggested that a renewed care and regard for water is something that visitors can take away from this show.

"Abu Dhabi city has one of the highest rates of personal consumption in the world," he said, adding: "Water has always played a significant role in the emergence and prosperity of civilisations in the region."

Entering through a shimmering fog screen, which creates an atmosphere of sacred regard for the wet stuff, visitors are guided through eight different sections. H20=Life kicks off with a look at how water fosters life, with real fish and mudskippers on hand to show how they overcome the difficulties of their aquatic habitat.

The exhibition then delves into how water was carried and channelled through history, including a 1,500 year old pipe from Central America. There's also a section examining how land is sculpted by the passage of water and time. A case study of California's Mono Lake is centre stage, looking at how demand from the city of Los Angeles drained the lake to near-depletion by the late 1970s. In a historic overturn, after environmentalists took the county to court over the matter, the lake is now returning to glory - a sign that failing water tables can, with some considered thinking, be nudged back on to the right path.

The exhibition was a huge success when it opened in the US, and one of the main reasons for this is its interactive element. There's plenty to get your hands on: touchable sculptures that incorporate the three states of water at room temperature and video microscopes that present the volume of microbial life in a single drop. More than simply button-pressing, look out for the 68-inch interactive globe showing satellite imagery of the planet to illustrate the vast surface area covered by oceans, rivers and lakes.

These inspiring exhibits succeed where facts and horror stories fail. Through interaction, viewers discover for themselves the fragile state of the world's water systems. The hope is that reverence for what comes out of the tap can be reinstated - with an emphasis on individual action, on the historical hardship once so close to home, and on recognising those whose lives are overtaken by the daily toil of getting a clean glassful.

For all its high-tech showmanship, a sobering message underpins Water: H20=Life. It is a reminder that this part of the world, in the not-too-distant past, was defined by scarcity. Fortunately, that story is told with plenty of technology and visual panache. Warning: You may get wet.

Water: H20=Life is at Qasr Al Hosn Cultural Quarter Hall, Hamdan Street, Abu Dhabi, from September 19 to January 5. Hours are: Saturday to Thursday, 10am-10pm; Friday 4pm to 10pm. For more information, visit waterexhibitionadach.ae

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”