WAF 2023: Sarah Fayad - Architecture as an Accelerator of Human Progress 

Architecture as an Accelerator of Human Progress​
There is a clear urgency to redesign cities in the face of fast-growing global urban population, urban sprawl and climate change to prioritise nature conservation, human livability and human progress. In response, the Urban Planning team at NEOM has pioneered Zero Gravity Urbanism - a three-dimensional urban idea underpinning THE LINE - which provides a robust alternative to our currently failing urban models.
Zero Gravity Urbanism, developed around the work of globally recognized architects and urban thinkers, demonstrates its capacity for a radically smaller footprint, a substantially stronger social fabric and robust model for human exchange, establishing the foundation of a new livability. Some of the ideas, innovations and technologies behind Zero Gravity Urbanism are a point of departure for rethinking our prevailing ideas of a city or human habitat. THE LINE in NEOM is an example that begins to put in motion these ideas in an environment powered 100% by renewable energy, with zero cars, zero roads and zero carbon emissions.
Sarah Fayad, Manager in Design, Research, and Innovation, NEOM Urban Planning
Jeremy Melvin, Programme Curator, World Architecture Festival
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