scholarly journals City Branding, Sustainable Urban Development and the Rentier State. How Do Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai Present Themselves in the Age of Post Oil and Global Warming?

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin De Jong ◽  
Thomas Hoppe ◽  
Negar Noori

In the past three decades Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have realised a meteoric economic rise. Whereas the former two can be considered ‘rentier states’ heavily depending on oil (and gas) revenues, the latter only leans on oil for a mere 6% of its gross domestic product (GDP). Although the economic rise has brought considerable welfare, it has also led these emirates to attain the world’s highest per capita carbon footprint. To address this problem Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai seem to have formulated policies with regard to sustainable urbanisation and adopted strong branding strategies to promote them internally and externally. In this paper we examine which steps have been taken to substantiate their claims to sustainable urbanisation, in branding as well as in actions taken towards implementation. We find that all three have been very active in branding their sustainable urbanisation policies, through visions and policy frameworks as well as prestigious development projects, but that the former is substantially more impressive than the latter. Results also show there is a difference between Abu Dhabi and Qatar on the one hand, and Dubai on the other. Dubai has large number of small ‘free economic zones’, academic institutions for developing a knowledge economy, and smart and/or sustainable urban neighbourhoods, while Qatar and Abu Dhabi have a small number of very large ones. From the three, it is currently Dubai which has taken the lead in this development, largely completing its industrial transition with vast economic diversification and urban expansion. However, across the board this has had little effect on its ecological footprint.

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah Kaya ◽  
Evren Tok ◽  
Muammer Koc ◽  
Toufic Mezher ◽  
I-Tsung Tsai

This paper develops a theoretical model to analyze whether a rentier state can diversify its economy away from the rent revenue and hence sustain the economic development and preserve the status-quo. Considering the decarbonization process of the global economy and rapidly fall in economic value of hydrocarbons in the face of the supply glut, rentier states depending on oil and gas revenues urgently need to diversify their economies to avoid social backlash and political upheaval. There are three intertwining factors that determine an effective economic diversification away from the rent revenue: The profitability of non-rentier sectors, the size of the domestic economy to induce a “Big Push” for industrialization to non-rentier sectors, and the level of economic inclusivity. For an optimal level of economic diversification in a rentier state: (1) Non-rentier sectors should be attractive to private agents without the entry barriers; (2) domestic economy should be large enough to induce investment into non-rentier sectors; (3) the ruler(s) should have sufficient tolerance (inclusivity) for private agents investing into non-rentier sectors. Our findings indicate that a rentier state can achieve an optimal level of economic diversification provided that the conditions above are met even without any political change.


2013 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 20-29
Author(s):  
Andrzej Guzowski

Many Middle Eastern countries, especially the ones in Arabian Peninsula, are well-known for being rich with oil and gas. While it could be considered a blessing by many, it is becoming more and more apparent that the abundance of natural resources in the region is a double-edged sword and a form of a natural resource trap. Many countries have become so-called “rentier states”, funding their operations and their very structures by renting their resources to external actors. While it may seem like a profitable political move at first, said overreliance conserved the structure of economies in the Middle Eastern, never forcing the countries to develop effectively, thus making most of the produced goods, other than oil and gas, uncompetitive on the international market. Long term, it may prove disastrous for the Middle East as eventually the resources are going to get exhausted and said countries will be left with nothing but an economic structure unadjusted to the 21stcentury.


2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 210-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

The rentier states of the Middle East face a combination of political and economic challenges as they seek to reduce their reliance on volatile oil and gas revenues and diversify their economies. This article examines how the political economy of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states remains heavily dependent on the hydrocarbon sector and analyses the policy responses to the fall in world oil prices since 2014. Sections in the article examine the definitional aspect of rentier state theory, nature of the redistributive welfare state that developed in the 1970s in each Gulf State, and the political aspect of economic measures that seek to reform aspects of the distinctive political economy that has underpinned socio-political and economic stability for the past five decades.


2009 ◽  
pp. 18-31
Author(s):  
G. Rapoport ◽  
A. Guerts

In the article the global crisis of 2008-2009 is considered as superposition of a few regional crises that occurred simultaneously but for different reasons. However, they have something in common: developed countries tend to maintain a strong level of social security without increasing the real production output. On the one hand, this policy has resulted in trade deficit and partial destruction of market mechanisms. On the other hand, it has clashed with the desire of several oil and gas exporting countries to receive an exclusive price for their energy resources.


Author(s):  
Courtney Freer

This chapter provides a critical background on the country cases by examining their brief political histories as independent states. It also gives critical information about the legal frameworks of such states to highlight where and how Islamist groups can act in these states. By providing such descriptions, this chapter demonstrates the extent to which these states, in regime or popular politics, either adhere or fail to adhere to the government type and political environment normally associated with the rentier state. The chapter also reveals critical commonalities among the super-rentier states—they are governed by powerful ruling families; institutionalized political life is hampered; and civil society and political life remain largely informal—while also indicating their differences, which arose in light of their differing sociocultural and economic backgrounds.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 359
Author(s):  
Zhouqiao Ren ◽  
Jianhua He ◽  
Qiaobing Yue

Landscape connectivity is important for all organisms as it directly affects population dynamics. Yet, rapid urbanization has caused serious landscape fragmentation, which is the primary contributor of species extinctions worldwide. Previous studies have mostly used spatial snap-shots to evaluate the impact of urban expansion on landscape connectivity. However, the interactions among habitats over time in dynamic landscapes have been largely ignored. Here, we demonstrated that overlooking temporal connectivity can lead to the overestimation of the impact of urban expansion. How much greater the overestimation is depends on the amount of net habitat loss. Moreover, we showed that landscape connectivity may have a delayed response to urban expansion. Our analysis shifts the way to understand the ecological consequences of urban expansion. Our framework can guide sustainable urban development and can be inspiring to conservation practices under other contexts (e.g., climate change).


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 58-65
Author(s):  
A. Yu. Shebeko ◽  
Yu. N. Shebeko ◽  
A. V. Zuban

Introduction. GOST R 12.3.047-2012 standard offers a methodology for determination of required fire resistance limits of engineering structures. This methodology is based on a comparison of values of the fire resistance limit and the equivalent fire duration. However, in practice incidents occur when, in absence of regulatory fire resistance requirements, a facility owner, who has relaxed the fire resistance requirements prescribed by GOST R 12.3.047–2012, is ready to accept its potential loss in fire for economic reasons. In this case, one can apply the probability of safe evacuation and rescue to compare distributions of fire resistance limits, on the one hand, and evacuation and rescue time, on the other hand.A methodology for the identification of required fire resistance limits. The probabilistic method for the identification of required fire resistance limits, published in work [1], was tested in this study. This method differs from the one specified in GOST R 12.3.047-2012. The method is based on a comparison of distributions of such random values, as the estimated time of evacuation or rescue in case of fire at a production facility and fire resistance limits for engineering structures.Calculations of required fire resistance limits. This article presents a case of application of the proposed method to the rescue of people using the results of full-scale experiments, involving a real pipe rack at a gas processing plant [2].Conclusions. The required fire resistance limits for pipe rack structures of a gas processing plant were identified. The calculations took account of the time needed to evacuate and rescue the personnel, as well as the pre-set reliability of structures, given that the personnel evacuation and rescue time in case of fire is identified in an experiment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-43
Author(s):  
Elena A. Glukhova ◽  
Pavel I. Safronov ◽  
Lev M. Burshtein

The article presents the one-dimensional basin modeling performed in four wells to reconstruct the thermal history of deposits and reconstruct the effective values of the heat flow density.


2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Sirine Maher Zahran

Background: The increased consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has been found to be an important contributor of calories in the diet. Whether there is an association between the increased consumption of SSBs and the high rates of overweight and obesity is still questionable. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship of weight status and beverages consumed of adults in a residential compound in Abu Dhabi.Methods: Forty nine out of 65 residents form Al Reef Villas in Abu Dhabi agreed to participate in the study. Initial assessments including beverages frequency questionnaire and anthropometry measurements were completed for all participants. Participants who were identified as high beverages consumers were invited to a one-month intervention aiming to limit their beverages consumption. A final assessment was completed for all high consumers of beverages at the end of the one-month intervention.Results: 55% of the subjects were overweight or obese, and 51% had abdominal obesity. 73% consumed 100% fruit juices with no added sugar, 65% consumed soft drinks, and 60 % consumed plain milk and milk products. The majority (69%) consumed tea beverages rather than coffee beverages. There was no association between weight & beverages consumption. The mean energy percentage from beverages was 14.2 (± 11.1) among all participants. 53% were considered high consumers of beverages and 47% (n=23) were considered low consumers of beverages. The one-month intervention showed a significant decrease in % of calories from beverages and weight in the overweight & obese intervention group (p<0.001 and p<0.05) respectively.Conclusion: This study highlighted major health problems in Abu Dhabi including high rates of overweight, obesity, and abdominal obesity. The one-month intervention was effective in reducing the energy percentage from beverages and weight of the overweight and obese participants, but no association was found in this sample between beverages consumption and overweight and obesity.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Pacini ◽  
Stefano Rossini

Abstract In the wake of Eni's strategy to curb fugitive emissions - in particular methane – an innovative control valve (Clarke Shutter Valve) has been deployed and tested in an Italian Eni facility. This shutter type valve is capable of reducing the fugitive emissions by more than 90%, as well as greatly curbing purchase costs, thanks to an innovative design in bonnet and regulating mechanism. In order to assess the real potentiality of the innovation, four Fisher globe valves and one Fisher V-ball were substituted with the Shutter Valves on different hydrocarbon streams of the Trecate facility (Piedmont), in particular on streams containing oil, gas and corrosive fluids. The valves were monitored for more than a year and fugitive emissions tests have been performed to detect and estimate methane leak rates. Since this represented a first deployment of this technology in Europe, a thorough analysis and technology validation of the valves has been performed. A successful installation and start-up were performed in 3 days by Eni's staff at in February of 2020. The valves were fully operational after the installation and to date no issues have been reported. In order to monitor the valves performances of flow control, continuous data collection on each valve has been implemented, and the analysis performed showed that all valves behave correctly as to Eni's standards. A fugitive emission test that has been performed at the end of 2020 with a certified portable FID/PID analyzer displayed that no methane emissions were detected from the valves. Lastly the one year and half long technology validation concluded that the Shutter Valves are a valid technology for curbing methane emissions from the Oil and Gas plants, and that suggested to qualify the company as Eni partner for control valves. This deployment and field tests, as well as the technological assessment performed by Eni's professionals showed the potentiality of this new type of valves in reducing the methane emissions from the petroleum industry. Understanding the potentiality of intrinsically carbon neutral technology is a crucial step for the mitigation of greenhouse gases emissions and towards the creation of a more environmentally friendly industry.


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