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Helping to Build the First Carbon-Neutral City in the World

Imagine the world’s first carbon-neutral, zero-emission city. A city without cars, powered by the elements, where rainwater is harvested and waste becomes energy. With GE’s help that vision is becoming reality in the desert of Abu Dhabi.

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[[guitar music]]

[[Nabil Habayeb - President and CEO, GE Middle East and Africa] ]

[We have been in this region since the '30s]

[All of this area was a desert.]

[They used to time their trip based on high tide and low tide,]

[and the Dubai-Abu Dubai road was a dual carriage highway.]

[Now when you take a look at the development that this part of the world has gone through,]

[their leaders want to leave legacies for the generations to follow for a long time,]

[and that's part of the whole partnership that we have developed with Abu Dhabi.]

[They decided to invest to create this zero-emission carbon-neutral city ]

[called Masdar City.]

[[Khaled Awad - Director Property Development Unit]]

[This city is going to become the destination for clean technology companies. ]

[GE was one of the partners that were interested in being part of this new initiative,]

[which is leveraging the energy experience that was based on oil and gas,]

[and using the other resources that we have, oil is not needed by cities or buildings.]

[Oil is needed for petrochemicals and plastics and other things.]

[We're trying to show a model of urban development ]

[that is not damaging the environment, that is environmentally responsible.]

[>> Imagine a city that has 50,000 people with no cars, with transportation systems ]

[and a metro system that is powered by solar energy, and buildings have ]

[zero waste discharge, a city that's totally powered by the natural resources]

[that we have. ]

[[Nabil Habayeb] These are the kind of imaginations that we need to put at work.]

[We're going to be one of the first anchor tenants in the city.]

[It will be the first ecomagination center for GE, and along with that, ]

[could develop renewable energy products that we could export on a global basis. ]

[There is a certain know-how which Masdar is really eager to get from other people]

[who have been a pioneer in the business since decades of time,]

[and GE is one of these top-notch leaders in the market.]

[[Nabil Habayeb] Masdar in Arabic means "the source.]

[I hope that the world's scientific community will look at Masdar as a playground ]

[to focus on using the source of energy that we have on this planet.]

[[Khaled Awad] GE I think and Masdar are in the same direction, ]

[as far as where the future lies.]

[There is no reason why, in 10 years from today, cities can still be developed]

[in the old conventional way.]

[If you went to our offices, you would see that there are positive vibes coming from]

[working in a zero-carbon city and being a pioneer here and developing]

[something that the whole world needs.]

[[Nabil Habayeb] Building partnerships in this region is all about building relationships.]

[We are here for a long time. ]

[[GE imagination at work]]