we built a space influenced by the past to dream of a greener future
COP28 – Protocol and Strategic Narrative Office
BRIEF
Designing an inspirational and eco-friendly meeting space for 150 heads of state.
The 28th edition of the world’s most important annual economic forum, COP, was hosted by the UAE at Expo City in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023.
We were asked to design the interiors for the head of state experience and to provide creative consistency across all spaces.
APPROACH
We blended Emirati traditions with forward-thinking sustainability.
We took the Bedouin traditional Sadu weaving technique as inspiration for the look and feel of COP28. The resulting look represented the desert nature of the region, the culture of its people and provided a welcoming place for leaders to plan for a cleaner, greener future.
DESIGN AND BUILD
For COP28, ensuring maximum sustainability in design was absolutely vital, and we also wanted the 100,000 visitors to the conference to enjoy an authentic Emirati experience.
Tradition and innovation
The merging of Emirati heritage and innovation in sustainability materials provided a cohesive look and feel to the variety of spaces needed to allow crucial conversations and events.
Discreetly efficient
All spaces featured the highest levels of security and technology necessary for such an event, and designed in such a way that temporary spaces blended in seamlessly with the permanent.
Visionary spaces
We developed more than 40 spaces within Expo City for COP28, including the Leadership Pavilion, VIP Networking Lounge, Al Wasl Plaza, bilateral meeting rooms, and a variety of areas for informal meetings and private conversations.
Public and private
We also created space for media to ensure arrivals, events and group photos could be easily captured for press coverage, while the leaders could then easily move into private areas when needed for discussions away from the spotlight.
Discreetly efficient
All spaces featured the highest levels of security and technology necessary for such an event, and designed in such a way that temporary spaces blended in seamlessly with the permanent.
Experience
Our design offered an authentic Emirati welcome for 150 world leaders and 97,000 delegates.
Thoroughly sustainable
Aligned with the ethos of the event, every aspect of the build was designed through a sustainable lens, from walls and floors, to fixtures and furnishings.
Green from the ground up
The landscaping focused on low-maintenance native species with minimal water needs, befitting the desert location.
Nature-made materials
For the hard surfaces, we utilised locally engineered Dateform and Datecrete, the world’s first date seed-based building materials. And instead of new plastic, we used Seaform, a locally sourced recycled marine plastic
Maximum reuse
Benches were made from fallen date palms, and of the 2,000 pieces of furniture used, all were designed and built locally, and with a full onward life plan to ensure maximum reuse.
Sense of place
All hard and soft surfaces and materials were woven through with authentic Emirati elements, from arching doorways and desert hues to heritage Sadu design details.
IMPACT
Over 100,000 delegates hosted
Secure spaces built for more than 150 heads of state
Hard surfaces made with innovative date-seed materials
All suppliers from the UAE
