NEW YORK, NY.- Dubai is full of futuristic, glazed skyscrapers. That’s problematic, from a sustainability perspective, in a city where temperatures regularly climb past 100 degrees Fahrenheit for several months each year. Air conditioning can be so strong in the summer that some people wear jackets and scarves inside.

But a growing number of architects in the city in the United Arab Emirates, which is currently hosting the United Nations climate summit, are now designing buildings in more sustainable ways, using the latest technology but also reintroducing age-old construction techniques that made buildings livable long before air conditioning existed.

Those methods include orienting buildings away from the sun, building in accordance with wind patterns to increase natural ventilation, minimizing the use of glass, and incorporating traditional Islamic architecture to create shade, according to several architects who are based in Dubai or who have worked in the region.

“There used to be this obsession with glass skyscrapers in the last 15 years, which makes our city look like all of the other cities,” said AlZaina Lootah, an architect and researcher based in Dubai. Now, more new projects are incorporating traditional architecture. They use courtyards, terraces and narrow alleyways for shading and wind towers, pioneered by ancient Persians, to draw cool air to street level, she said.

Other methods include building with thicker walls, which absorb heat during the day and release it at night, using double facades and using more energy-efficient building materials that reflect heat.

Air conditioning became widely available in the UAE in the 1970s, not long after oil was discovered. The discovery of oil revolutionized life in the region and led to a construction boom within just a few decades, including the creation of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, which is twice the height of the Empire State Building.

Developers commissioned buildings that were designed with little thought for the climate, using steel, concrete and glazed facades. Air conditioning use surged: In 2022, the UAE had the sixth-highest electricity consumption per capita worldwide, according to Statista, a market research company.

Increased reliance on energy-guzzling air conditioners will only contribute to a cycle of mounting energy demand and worsening global warming, according to a U.N. report issued Tuesday. That is especially true in the Middle East, one of the regions most affected by global warming.

There is a growing awareness of rising temperatures in Dubai, the first city in the Middle East to receive platinum certification from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Cities program, which is run by the U.S. Green Building Council and rates buildings on their design, carbon dioxide emissions and energy efficiency. The city has 367 projects that are certified as LEED, according to the building council.

One example of a low-tech, age-old sustainable construction technique is the use of shaded spaces and narrow alleyways, which can be seen in the walkways around the Dubai International Financial Center. The center’s Grand Mosque, which opened in 2020, has perforated panels to emulate mashrabiyas, the traditional screens with latticework that have been used in Egypt for centuries to protect buildings from sunlight.




Another example in the UAE is in Masdar City, on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, which is home to a university, apartments and office buildings. British architectural firm Foster + Partners blended high-tech design and ancient construction practices, positioning buildings in a way that allows for strong breezes to keep pedestrians cool, even in high temperatures. Parts of the city are elevated, using higher ground to take advantage of stronger winds, a practice that was used in other countries in the region for centuries.

Masdar City has two net-zero buildings (meaning the greenhouse gases they produce are offset by other activities) and is constructing three more. It has a population of about 5,000 people, far fewer than it was designed for, and, on Thursday morning, it was quiet except for tour groups and some students.

Sustainable building can only go so far in a city dominated by large highways, heavy traffic and air pollution levels that exceed healthy limits. And as the temperatures in Dubai continue to rise because of global warming, there is a limit to the effectiveness of age-old practices.

“It was a different time, but also a different place,” said Todd Reisz, an architect and the author of the book “Showpiece City: How Architecture Made Dubai.”

“Temperatures are higher,” Reisz said. “Wind patterns are changing, water currents are changing. So we can’t really talk about a total return, but maybe we can talk about how humans relate to the environment around them.”

Rob Cooke, the sustainability director at Buro Happold, an engineering consultancy with clients in the Middle East, said that there was more awareness about the benefits of using architectural techniques to keep spaces cool, and that nearly all clients want sustainable designs.

But sustainability is not always prioritized, he said, and for every new sustainable building in Dubai, there are many designs that largely disregard the climate. “I see that as a fundamental problem,” Cooke said. Dubai’s glazed skyscrapers offer views of the city, but people will often draw the window blinds anyway because of the heat and direct sunlight.

Dubai has benefited from easy access to oil, which has helped the city overcome heat through the use of heavy air conditioning, Cooke said. As temperatures continue to rise, buildings that are not based on traditional, passive cooling architecture will become more expensive to run. “That’s surely going to become a problem, when those shiny assets become liabilities,” he said.

Ultimately, however, what is more important than building more high-tech sustainable skyscrapers is creating sustainable, walkable cities, Reisz said.

“How much can we do with technology, and how much do we need to look at changing the way we live?” he said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.