Emirati families across the UAE will soon receive upgraded villas in line with the country’s strategy for sustainability.
An agreement signed between Masdar and the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme will implement Masdar’s EcoVilla in a new project allowing families to live in the smartest and most sustainable manner.
From the design of the house to its cooling and energy consumption, the villa is said to be a net zero energy building.
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Read more:
Masdar City’s new Eco-Villa: Abu Dhabi’s residential future?
A look around Masdar EcoVilla, the Emirati home of the future - in pictures
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"We were given a challenge to develop a sustainable, economically-viable solution as part of our piloting for villas in the UAE," said Chris Wan, head of design management at Masdar. "Starting from the long historical past, there's always been an evolution of how villas are being built in the UAE and there's always been a journey to find ways to keep improving them. We combine that with the sustainability knowledge we developed at Masdar [to] answer the question of how to build a people-friendly community-based villa design with resource efficiency."
The power produced by the solar panels installed on the villa's roof is sufficient over a 12-month cycle to offset all the energy requirements from the villa itself. "It's a holistic design so it includes planning, shape and choice of materials," Mr Wan said. "The building itself respects the environment, takes into consideration the direction of the sun and wind and how to direct the building to help cool the external spaces around it. From this, it tells you what's the best shape, the best direction for windows to avoid direct sunlight coming in which will heat up the house and need more energy consumption for air conditioning, it has highly insulated wall and its shape is compact to reduce the amount of heat coming in."
So far, more than five projects were approved in Abu Dhabi encompassing 1,051 villas as part of Estidama, a sustainability programme spearheaded by the emirate's Urban Planning Council. "We are trying to find out what kind of materials and techniques we can use in our projects to make housing more efficient and more sustainable," said Basem Al Namer, director of engineering services at the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme. "It's a small development but we hope in the future to expand the idea to the rest of the UAE."
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
England World Cup squad
Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wkt), Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
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
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
