How Saudi Arabia's ancient AlUla region is building for the future.

• Author: Al Madani, Amr

Byline: Amr Al Madani

* The AlUla region is opening up and diversifying its economy in line with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 programme.

* It will build a tourist economy, while improving quality of life for residents.

* AlUla's development principles emphasize respect for landscape, culture and heritage.

AlUla - a little under 300 kilometres north of Medina in Saudi Arabia - is both less and more than a city: Our largest urban area is a town, and the regional population is only a little over 46,000. Yet the AlUla region extends across 22,561km2 of north-west Saudi Arabia, encompassing deserts, rocky mountains and oases. Our human heritage is as expansive: To date, we have identified numerous archaeological sites covering more than 250,000 years of human history. One site, the Nabataean tombs of Hegra, is Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site.

For the past four years, Saudi Arabia has been realising its Vision 2030 reform programme - an ambitious plan to diversify the country's economy, engage local communities, take pride in our heritage, and open up our society to the world. The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) was set up to develop AlUla in line with these goals: establishing it as a global destination for culture, heritage and history, with tourism powering a diversified local economy.

Thanks to our extraordinary natural landscape and heritage, AlUla is well-placed for this kind of development. Yet it is also a place where people live, work and raise families. Traditionally a rural area with limited urban development and associated utilities and services, it is vital that our development empowers the local community and improves quality of life, respects and conserves AlUla's natural and human heritage.

Moving forward therefore, our vision for its development - whether real estate, urban regeneration, utilities, or tourism infrastructure - will begin not with bricks, but with principles. These emphasize sustainability and respect for AlUla's heritage and landscape, and improving the quality of life for our communities through liveable, sustainable and resilient urban regeneration.

Harmonious construction

On the real estate and development front, we take to heart the principle that we are guests of AlUla's landscape and heritage, and as such new constructions must stand in respect, harmony and collaboration with what is already here.

To achieve this, we have established the AlUla Design Studio (UDS) to lay down architectural...