Friday, December 13, 2024

Inside Saudi Arabia’s plan to tame the desert and turn its capital into a cool green oasis

Riyadh aims to reduce the overall average temperature by two degrees celsius with four environmental ‘megaprojects’

The Saudis, it is fair to say, are not known for doing things by halves.

A skyscraper a kilometre tall and a futuristic megacity the size of Belgium complete with its own artificial moon are just some of the megaprojects currently under construction in the country.

The Kingdom has long been synonymous with large-scale building projects, so much so that the crane has become an unofficial national symbol.