Masdar City
Passive-Cooling Desert Urbanism (Foster + Partners)
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Highlight
Reimagines desert city design so the urban form itself reduces heat and cooling energy demand.
Extended description
Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, master-planned by Foster + Partners with Masdar, applies passive-cooling and climate-responsive urban design to desert conditions. Compact streets, shading, orientation, a wind tower and materials are arranged so the city's form reduces temperatures and cooling-energy demand rather than relying only on air conditioning. It is an influential experiment in shaping urban design around climate adaptation in extreme heat.