How to Build a Town in 1,000 Days

THUWAL, September 30, 200 -- Less than 1,000 days ago, the site of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) was little more than a few cranes and open desert. Today, that same site is home to the world’s youngest university and its residents of more than 60 nations.

“I had a look during January, and I saw its size. It’s amazing,” said Felix Lao of the student orientation week held earlier this year. “The campus is gorgeous.

The university campus spans nearly 36 million square meters and, besides its core laboratories, research centers and classrooms, is equipped with 48 retail stores, seven restaurants, three schools, a bank, post office and a medical center.

“You want to make sure people have everything they need. You need schools; we have schools. You need recreation facilities; we have recreation facilities,” said KAUST Community Services manager Fuad Gabbani. “It’s just like any other small town.”

Only this town was built in just over two years — a remarkable construction feat for any project, let alone one of KAUST’s proportions. The campus is also built sustainably — with its two solar towers, rooftop solar plants and alternative-energy transportation — and was awarded a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum award by the United States Green Building Council

Members commended the accomplishments in areas such as advanced completions and drilling technologies while expressing the importance of the Operations Services Division’s laboratory support.

“The university is built sustainably to show that it is possible to apply these tools practically in the Middle East,” said HE Ali I. Al-Naimi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, in a press conference.

The campus sport facilities include swimming pools, racquetball courts and soccer fields — to name a few — and they get plenty of use in faculty-vs.-students matches. “The soccer field is very good,” said applied mathematics Ph.D. student Alvaro Morayes. “And of course, we’re very good at playing soccer. We’re Uruguayans.”

For those who are not sports-inclined, there is a theater, and dance and music lessons. “We gather people who want to play chamber music and produce plays,” said Wendy Keyes from Community Recreation. “Western classical music is new here, and we also have a theater specialist.”

There are also recreational activities available that wouldn’t be elsewhere. “We’ve been snorkeling in the Red Sea,” said faculty member Dr. Alyn Rockwood. “It was beautiful and spectacular. We’ll be doing it regularly.”

And there are activities to suit all ages. “There’s a big park right outside of our house, and playgrounds and gyms,” said Dr. David Ketcheson, who came with his wife and two children. “My kids love it here.”

The community must cater to residents from around the world. “We’re creating a community from nothing, so we have houses to match different tastes,” said Gabbani. “We have Italian-style houses, Mediterranean-style. … You want people to feel that they are in a community that is accommodating to different backgrounds.”

And that’s what really makes up the KAUST community: the people. “It’s multicultural here … like I’ve never met anybody from Africa before,” said Adrian N. Reyes, a computer-science student from Mexico. “There’s no big majority in KAUST, and so nobody is part of a minority.”

There is a period of adjustment, but this combination of backgrounds is also an education on its own. “The social construct of people is different than what I’m used to at home,” said Canadian student Bertrand Rioux. “I have to re-educate myself with how to communicate here.”

Salvador R. Velande of Mexico agreed. “There are people from different cultures living in this society,” said the mechanical engineering student who also partook in fasting during Ramadan. “They’re all coming together to create this new, different culture.

“You won’t get this experience again in your life.”