Middle East tipped to play critical role in how cities adapt to rising temperatures

Region declared a 'strategic location' as cities old and new look to cope with climate change

Cities around the world are having to deal with rising temperatures and January 2025 was the hottest on record, according to Europe's climate monitoring programme, Copernicus, which showed temperatures at 1.75°C above pre-industrial levels.

The announcement comes hot on the heels of a report by the World Meteorological Organisation that confirmed 2024 as the hottest year on record. This is a sign that the planet is on track for further warming of 2°C and cities need to adapt, Winston Chow, a co-chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, told The National.

Sandwiched between Asia and Africa, the Middle East and its strategic location is expected to play a critical role in supporting the development of resilient cities in the two continents, Mr Chow said. "Most of the newest cities in the world that will house future populations in Africa and Asia are yet to be built," he said.

Mr Chow highlighted that over the next two to three decades there will be a significant focus on urbanisation in these regions. "Sectors, agencies, stakeholders, practitioners, academics in this part of the world have a big role to play, not just in the age of AI but also in the age of climate disruption. So look out for those opportunities and take advantage of this strategic location."

Desertification

Speaking to The National on the sidelines of the Cities in Action Forum held at Expo City Dubai on Thursday, Dr Anas Almughairy, director general of the Arab Urban Development Institute, said a concern for the region is desertification.

Desertification linked to climate change is on the rise and land degradation affects about 40 per cent of the planet and the lives of more than 3.2 billion people. With more than two thirds of the world's population expected to live in cities by 2050, transforming urban areas into greener spaces could help prevent desertification.

"Some cities are trying to deal with this by adopting collaborative efforts – engaging their communities with the private sector, with governments and NGOs to get innovative solutions to the problem," Dr Almughairy said.

Desertification linked to climate change is on the rise and land degradation affects nearly 40 per cent of the planet and the lives of more than 3.2 billion people. EPA

Prioritising water

Another concern is water, said Ahmed Al Khatib, chief development and delivery officer at Expo City Dubai. "We are blessed with all types of natural resources of energy, whether from fossil fuels or solar energy," said Mr Al Khatib. "However, water is always scarce and always a global problem, specifically in our region."

To combat this, a number of water-saving and water-generating projects have been introduced at Expo City. For example, the Terra Pavilion can produce more than 20,000 litres of water a day by extracting it from surrounding humidity. Appliances and infrastructure have also been factored in to reduce water usage, a model which could be replicated out of the compound.

"In our design of the buildings, we always monitor the water," said Mr Al Khatib. "Our consumption of water is about 30 per cent less than water consumption outside Expo City."

Expo City Dubai recently announced that the pavilions that housed exhibitions of dozens of countries during Expo 2020 Dubai are being developed into high-end apartments. This plan has attained two pre-certifications of globally recognised social and environmental sustainability systems. The LEED recognition, attained from the US Green Building Council, is in recognition of the team’s efforts at early design stage of the project.