Is Dubai getting a real competition?

I've never been to Dubai, but every person I've spoken to about it — and who actually visited it — had some mixed feelings. It leaves, for sure, a very striking impression, but usually with a bitter taste. 

Sure - it’s clean, new, the futuristic architecture amazes, but seems cold and more like an exhibition than a living city. And then there comes the cost of building it all — mostly by the hands of workers living in conditions that are the exact opposite of the 5-star hotels they are surrounded by. Many of them have fallen victim to modern slavery.

Today I came across a project that is the complete opposite of what Dubai offers, and it seems to be a very promising and revolutionary idea — something we really need in current times. An idea to build a modern city that will stay in harmony with nature and offer, first and foremost, a great place to live. Where the highest principle is to bring as much happiness as possible to all of its citizens.

Gelephu Mindfulness City is a special administrative region in Bhutan, located near the Indian border. It is a special economic hub, so it does have business-friendly regulations, but it is crucial that the commercial aspect is not the most important one. The Bhutanese government is aiming to create a sustainable hub connecting culture and Bhutanese spirituality with modern eco-friendly solutions and innovations.

The project plays a very important role in Bhutanese society — it is supposed to help address the big problem of young people leaving the country and the country’s dependency on tourism.

There is going to be an international airport there, similar to the one in Dubai, and the scale will be spectacular — but without slave labor, skyscrapers, excessive energy use, or disastrous effects on the environment. The project was inaugurated in 2023, and this year over 7,000 volunteers helped clean the land for the airport. Volunteer community labor is deeply rooted in Bhutan’s tradition and is one of the keys to this project.

Will it succeed? I'm really rooting for this initiative. I would love it to be a living example that humans can evolve without killing and using one another or completely draining nature. We can use all of our science and knowledge for actual good and not sacrifice economic growth at the same time.

You can learn more about it from the film below.

Sources:

1. https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/07/bhutans-gelephu-mindfulness-city-heres-what-it-may-look-like.html

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelephu_Mindfulness_City

3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPlRmUv7qzo

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