Masdar: City of the Future

Masdar City, located on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, will exemplify green living of the future. The city will be supplied with renewable energy and produce neither carbon dioxide nor waste.

On June 21, the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Company and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company signed a cooperative agreement for a strategic partnership. The overarching goal of the project is to establish a close cooperation in sustainable urban development and building planning.

Masdar City is the most ambitious sustainable development in the world today - it will be the world's first zero carbon, zero waste city. Photo: Hurricanecandice.wordpress.com

Spanning an estimated six square kilometers, the city will support about 50,000 residents and will be nearly waste-free and have significantly reduced water consumption.

The most innovative aspect? The entire city will be car-free. It may sound like a sci-fi movie, but underground transportation systems will make this possible, drastically lowering the city’s carbon footprint.

Masdar will also be a carbon-neutral city that will run entirely off of renewable energy using systematic recycling techniques.

“To initiate rapid change from our present energy supply system to one based on renewable energies, we need ambitious examples,” says Prof. Eicke R. Weber, Institute Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE.

“The construction of a world-wide exemplary concept for sustainable urban planning within this initiative will have global impact, and we are looking forward to make a substantial contribution to this project.”

Cities in the U.S., such as Atlanta and Miami, are taking steps to reduce their overall consumption and waste, as the “zero waste” trend continues to gain popularity. Additionally, Obama’s economic stimulus plan allocates tax rebates for individuals who make green investments.