Towards new directions for public spaces in the globalising Middle East

While cities are growing, public spaces are shrinking and declining world-wide. Nevertheless, public spaces have enormous potential, strategically supportingcities’ economic, environmental, and social agendas. Research on the impact ofurbanisation in the globalising Middle East is growing. Recent studies have beenbroadly discussing the speed and intensity of urban growth in this geographicalarea, specifically in the Arabian Gulf region where an unprecedented urbanisationprocess has taken place in the last few decades. Nevertheless, while hybrid typolo-gies of public spaces other than the traditional piazza, square, or street are material-ising, their form, use, and social value are still poorly understood. Investigating theseemerging urban directions raises the question of improving the quality of the builtenvironment to facilitate and promote liveable public spaces that, in turn, promotehigher living standards. Accordingly, this work’s fundamental objective is to explore,investigate, and demystify contemporary urban challenges faced by the globalisingMiddle Eastern cities and their urban spaces, discussing theories and design prin-ciples, supported by case studies, that influence and affect the urban growth andtransformations of these cities, and it discusses the social value of their public spaces