Uploaded on 2020-04-27 by Haifaa AlKhedhari

Prior to discovering oil, Kuwait’s main building material was mud brick, formed using local material. The material was perfect for Kuwait’s climate as the thick walls kept the heat out during hot summers and stored warmth during winter. Post-oil discovery, in an effort to become a modernized society, the construction of Kuwait City heavily depended on external resources. Those included foreign designers as well as foreign materials. With a modernized mindset, Kuwait neglected any use of local materials and rather focused on showing the rest of the world that a small country in the Middle East can become part of a globalized economy. The vast dependency on external resources means that buildings in Kuwait are not sustainable and have a high carbon footprint. In the photo, you can see an old building made of mud brick, framing an ongoing construction of a building nearby, that is using reinforced concrete and glass both imported from different countries around the world. Today, unfortunately, most mud brick houses continue to be demolished as the years go by. The need to present a contemporary and modernized city was and still is more important than considering the alternatives and benefits of using local materials.