MORE than 250 exhibitors will take part in the 13th edition of Cityscape Global this month (September 21 to 23) at the Dubai World Trade Centre in Dubai, UAE.

With contracts worth $5.4 billion awarded for UAE residential projects in the first half of 2014, industry experts say emphasis on design and planning is key to sustaining major property investment.

International design, engineering and project management consultants Atkins will use the Middle East’s largest property showcase to underline why excellent design, with a strong lifestyle emphasis, is vital to keep attracting real estate investors.

“With the restored investor confidence in the real estate market, competition between developers getting fiercer than ever and the emphasis on excellent design couldn’t be higher,” said Rod Stewart, property managing director of Atkins.

With sustainability now a common theme across many new developments, Lebanon-based architects Green Studios, which will be exhibiting its patented hydroponic outdoor green wall for the first time at Cityscape Global, believes green architecture is the future.

The green wall, which can retain three times more water per square metre than any other system, comes equipped with a command and control smart system that allows any installation to adapt to outside weather conditions, ensuring a healthier lifecycle than any other methods.

Green Studios CEO Jamil Corbani says: “Dubai leads the Arab world as a model for future cities and with new regulations focusing on  environmentally friendly procedures, green architecture is becoming an increasingly popular option for developers.”

Co-located with Cityscape Global are three conferences – the Global Real Estate Summit, Future Cities and the Real Estate Brokers Summit – which are expected to bring together more than 1,000 delegates and speakers. Also running in tandem with the exhibition is the Cityscape Awards for Emerging Markets, whose winners will be announced on September 22 in Dubai.

Cityscape Global is supported by the Dubai Land Department.