Residents of Dubai or Abu Dhabi - congratulations. According to a lecture given at a futurology conference in London last week, the cities have already been earmarked as the winners of the decades to come because of one all-important feature, and it's not oil.
According to the urban designer Christopher Choa, who was behind the master plan for Saadiyat Island, among many other international projects, cities of the future will live or die by their airports.
It's lucky for Emiratis, then, that the UAE has some of the world's best-connected cities by air - and its airports are still growing.
Abu Dhabi has one of the fastest-expanding airports in the world, with a new terminal slated to open in 2017 that promises to almost triple its capacity to about 30 million passengers per year. But it's dwarfed by Dubai International, already the world's fourth busiest airport by international passenger traffic, which is planning to up its capacity from 50 million annual passengers to 90 million by 2018. At the other edge of the city, the new Al Maktoum International is open for cargo, with a passenger terminal to follow.
All this feverish expansion may be cause for celebration among business types, but what about the rest of us? Isn't there something a little dystopian about a vision of the future in which we all live under flight paths, and it's more common to hop over to Frankfurt or Shanghai than to take a trip to Ajman or Umm Al Qaiwain?
Choa's answer is a resounding "no". In an interview after his speech at the Intelligence Squared If Conference in Kensington, he pointed out that New Yorkers weren't fond of Grand Central Station when it opened in 1871, and that no one wanted to live on the Manhattan waterfront in the great age of the New York City port, but we have since happily integrated trains and ships into our lives and our cities.
Rather than being shoved to the hinterland of a city, Choa says, airports can be integrated into business and shopping districts in much the same way as train stations, and as with train stations, we'd soon get used to the hubbub. The only reason we might imagine an aerotropolis-filled future as dystopian is that right now we only have two extreme experiences: being in a terminal, waiting to get on a plane, and being in the "wasteland" outside. In the future, the city and the airport will merge, with the most time-sensitive industries vying for space nearest the runways.
"You can have things that are very pedestrian-scaled that bring people very close together," Choa said "You can have neo-traditional planning, you can rediscover interesting vernacular forms from the Gulf and put them right next to the airport. It would be a very exciting thing to do."
Besides, he said, "all cities are predicated on the dominant transportation of their age." Jerusalem is designed to be compact and walkable due to the transport tech of its first settlers. Sailing ships had a hand in forming Venice and Lisbon, inland waterways gave the world Amsterdam, and cars have shaped Los Angeles.
Now air travel is becoming the dominant type of travel; even given the recent economic downturn in many countries, global air traffic has been continuing to grow by five per cent year on year. Rising oil prices and environmental concerns haven't slowed the trend; China is planning to build 100 new airports in the next 10 to 12 years.
"In a global age, cities pull away from nations," Choa says. "And in this globalising age of cities linked up over long distances with other cities, in general the best-connected cities will win."
Welcome to the era of the aerotropolis, the term popularised by the aviation expert John Kasarda, who co-wrote a book published this year called Aerotropolis: The Way We'll Live Next. Choa describes himself as a "close reader" of aerotropolis theory, and one of the few experts who focus on applying it in practice. The vice-president of global consulting firm and Fortune 500 company AECOM, he has been busy creating blueprints for aerotropoli in Hyderabad, Cairo and Brisbane, as well as designing new towns across China and India.
If there's one city that's geared up for this age, it's Dubai, dubbed by Kasarda "the world's first aerotropolis nation". Not only has its air traffic tripled over the past decade, but it is set for another explosion.
If Al Maktoum International Airport goes ahead as planned, its capacity could double the planes in the sky over the UAE, and it will be surrounded by the shops, houses and businesses of Dubai World Central in true aerotropolis style.
When Kasarda first started writing about the "industrial aviation complex for the future" two decades ago, the concept was far easier to ignore. Whether or not people living in the Emirates share his enthusiasm for the idea, there's little doubt now that the aerotropolis has landed.
artslife@thenational.ae
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
more from Janine di Giovanni
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Russia v Scotland, Thursday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
How to help
Donate towards food and a flight by transferring money to this registered charity's account.
Account name: Dar Al Ber Society
Account Number: 11 530 734
IBAN: AE 9805 000 000 000 11 530 734
Bank Name: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank
To ensure that your contribution reaches these people, please send the copy of deposit/transfer receipt to: juhi.khan@daralber.ae
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The biog
Most memorable achievement: Leading my first city-wide charity campaign in Toronto holds a special place in my heart. It was for Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women program and showed me the power of how communities can come together in the smallest ways to have such wide impact.
Favourite film: Childhood favourite would be Disney’s Jungle Book and classic favourite Gone With The Wind.
Favourite book: To Kill A Mockingbird for a timeless story on justice and courage and Harry Potters for my love of all things magical.
Favourite quote: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” — Winston Churchill
Favourite food: Dim sum
Favourite place to travel to: Anywhere with natural beauty, wildlife and awe-inspiring sunsets.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
A%20QUIET%20PLACE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Lupita%20Nyong'o%2C%20Joseph%20Quinn%2C%20Djimon%20Hounsou%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMichael%20Sarnoski%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Saturday (All UAE kick-off times)
Valencia v Atletico Madrid (midnight)
Mallorca v Alaves (4pm)
Barcelona v Getafe (7pm)
Villarreal v Levante (9.30pm)
Sunday
Granada v Real Volladolid (midnight)
Sevilla v Espanyol (3pm)
Leganes v Real Betis (5pm)
Eibar v Real Sociedad (7pm)
Athletic Bilbao v Osasuna (9.30pm)
Monday
Real Madrid v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
