The Sustainable City, Dubai
A building that argues for itself.
Developed by SEE Holding, the institute's headquarters combines passive and active design to produce three times the energy it needs from renewables, at zero operational emissions. It is the region's first net-zero carbon building, and it is also our largest teaching aid.
Designed to generate a surplus, not just to break even.
Net zero is a balance. A surplus is a demonstration. Producing 300% of its own demand means the building is not simply defensible on paper, it is a working argument that low-carbon operation in a Gulf climate is achievable today.
Host an event hereHow it does it
Four decisions carry most of the performance.
- Passive before active
- Orientation, shading and envelope performance cut the demand first. Every kilowatt the building never needs is one the plant never has to generate, which is the cheapest energy there is.
- Generation on site
- Renewables sized past self-sufficiency, so the building produces three times what it consumes and exports the surplus back to the grid.
- Zero operational emissions
- No operational greenhouse gas emissions, which is the standard the region's building stock will eventually be held to and almost none of it currently meets.
- Built as a teaching instrument
- The systems are legible on purpose. Visitors, students and delegations can see how the building performs rather than read about it in a brochure.
Open to look at, on purpose.
The building sits inside The Sustainable City, so a visit takes in the district as well: the residential blocks, the biodomes, the waste and water systems. Delegations, school groups and research partners come through regularly, and the institute would rather show the numbers than describe them.
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The first of its kind in the region.
Net-zero carbon buildings are still rare in this climate, which is exactly why the institute operates from one. The performance data is the argument, and it is available to anyone who asks for it.
The performance is in the details.
Shading geometry, envelope construction and orientation do the work before any generation is counted. They are also the parts a visitor can see and photograph, which makes them useful teaching material.
Come and see whether it works.
The building, the living lab and the classrooms are all one site. Visits, partnerships and research collaborations start with a conversation.
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