September 7, 2007

Africa & Mideast, UAE, Dubai | Asia, India, Mumbai

The Unusual Suspects

By Tiffany Hawk

Living large while keeping your carbon footprint small.

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In the race to go green, Western hotels are facing some surprising competition. Dubai may be known for its Vegas-like decadence (ski slopes in the desert, underwater hotels), but now it’s turning some of that excess to the powers of good. The world’s first green skyscraper, The Lighthouse, will use wind turbines and 4,000 solar panels to actually create more energy than it consumes. The 66-story building will house offices, apartments and yet another one of Dubai’s “six-star” hotels.

And while we may expect an up-and-comer like India to trade ecology for economy, instead, by 2010, Mumbai will have the India Tower, a 60-story green building that harvests rainwater and employs natural ventilation. Designed by FXFOWLE — who recently collaborated with Renzo Piano on the New York Times building — the Tower will look like a series of boxes, each stacked slightly askew. One of those “boxes” will house a Park Hyatt, while the remaining space is reserved for upscale shopping, restaurants and residences. So where will we find the next awe-inspiring eco-friendly tower, you ask? It’s remote. It’s mysterious. It’s Siberia.