Pioneers Of Green Industrial Design In the UAE

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by Sana Bun

Pioneers Of Green Industrial Design In the UAE

26 Feb 2024

Following the 2023 initiative, the UAE extended the Year of Sustainability for 2024, proving the country’s high commitment to the matter.

We will not go into listing specific environmental issues in this article, as plenty of content is already covering them. One thing is clear: we need to take care of the planet we live on.

Gladly, local talents are ready to accept the challenge by seeking substantive ways to balance the coexistence of humans and nature. They transform accessible green resources into something unexpected.

For instance, a branch of material designers has found inspiration in one of the MENA region’s main symbols — dates. Here, this fruit associated with hospitality and prosperity is grown and consumed in enormous quantities and used not only by itself to be eaten raw but also, together with its seed, in the manufacturing of nutritional, medical, and cosmetic products. The UAE, for reference, produces 14 per cent of the date’s global output, which naturally leaves huge reclamation waste, but apparently can be used for good.

Palmade

Dubai-based Palmade is a family-owned business that offers an alternative to single-use plastic. The co-founders Lamis Al Hashimy and Yousuf Caires developed a new biodegradable material made of discarded date palm leaves and currently produce single-use cutlery that can be composted and turned into fertiliser. In the future, Palmade plans to broaden its assortment and introduce other environmentally friendly replacements for disposable plastic.

Instagram: @palmadebiocutlery

Datecrete

Another married couple, architect and urban planner Sara Abou Farha and chemical engineer Khaled Shalkha, believe in the ability of interdisciplinary design to solve real-life problems. Following this approach, they discovered a method to combat date pit waste by transforming them into the world's first-of-its-kind cementitious material. The duo has already tested Datecrate in the furniture creation process and believes it has the potential to locally replace Portland cement, commonly used in the construction industry.

Instagram: @datecrete

ARDH Collective

ARDH Collective is a sustainable material solutions company that uses waste resources native to the MENA region. At the moment it has brought out three flagship projects: Dateform, Ramel, and Near, applicable for such industries as fashion and interior design, architecture, construction, and automotive.

Under the Dateform brand, the startup launched two different products utilising discarded date seeds from the farming sector. The Dateform is the world’s first date-seed-based solid surface material that can be used to produce construction supplies, furniture, and other items. At the same time, Datebrew is a caffeine-free coffee alternative loaded with fibre, antioxidants, and minerals.

Instagram: @ardh.collective

Ramel is an eco-friendly substitute for concrete blocks and diminishing riverside sand used in cement production. It is made from locally sourced desert sand with lower carbon emissions and is more cost-effective than a riverside one.

Instagram: @ardh.collective

Last but not least, Near is vegan leather. Unlike real and faux ones, it is made from plant-based fibres, is non-toxic, ethical, and suitable for the manufacturing of handbags, accessories, furniture, and usage in the automotive industry.

Leukeather

Leukeather is another brand of vegetal leather. Using dried plant pods, its founder, Nuhayr Zein, developed a material visually similar to exotic leathers. Due to its native pattern, Leukeather is emboss-free, naturally coloured and biodegradable.

The company doesn’t want to imitate the looks of exotic animals’ actual skin. Instead, Leukeather manifests environmental and social solutions and is being made from byproducts of local farming, which creates an additional source of income for the community and minimises the brand’s carbon footprint. The outcome is a cruelty-free, authentic material that is durable, breathable, and water-resistant.

Instagram: @leukeather

Byblos

Byblos works with a well-known natural element — the papyrus plant, historically used to create a paper-like writing surface — but approaches it in a unique manner. It has proven to be an incredibly strong and long-lasting medium as well as one of the most efficient pollution filters and the cheapest method for water waste.

Industrial designer Aya Moug came up with the idea of sourcing papyrus plants located along the Nile shores in Egypt and transforming them into a sustainable biomaterial that has a wide range of applications, from producing furniture to construction elements such as floor and wall tiles or bathroom fixtures.

Instagram: @the_papyri

by Sana Bun