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Dubai: An Emerging Urbanity

Yasser Elsheshtawy, UAE University, Al Ain

As the Burj Dubai passes the 700-metre mark on its way to a final height of more than 800 metres, plans for yet another even taller building are announced as part of a tower and harbour project which will take more than 10 years to complete. Indeed ‘Dubai stories’ are never far from the world’s press.  But where is Dubai going – and where did it come from?

Yasser Elsheshtawy looks beyond the glitter of Dubai’s mega-projects to reveal the city’s inner life, and asks:

What are the economic factors and policies driving Dubai’s urban growth? To what extent do these relate to the globalization of the world economy, and the flow of capital?

Where is Dubai situated within the global network of cities?

What sorts of urbanity are emerging in the city? Are conventional notions of place, identity, history and heritage challenged and re-constituted to respond to local as well as global conditions?