For an extreme climate as Abu Dhabi’s, the harsh conditions felt across significant months of the year certainly reduce the feasibility of external activities taking place. It restricts peoples’ choices and impacts subsequent health outcomes.

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Infinite Paths achieves outdoor thermal comfort in the harsh desert environment through transforming the traditional into urban science fiction. The foundational idea for the design was transferring life from earth to sky, as significantly cooler air temperatures exist relative to surface temperatures in urban heat island (UHI) environments. The challenge to deliver thermal comfort within the UHI was in maximizing shadow, air movement, and cooling while blurring the boundary between inside and outside. We used passive architecture to accomplish this; evolving the ancient Middle Eastern Badgir (wind-catcher) and courtyard into futuristic forms and implementing smart-materials to provide shade, indirect light, air movement, and evaporative cooling within this public space. There are countless routes to traverse within Infinite Paths. Each platform encountered represents intrinsic choice; the intention is to be free. The users define their own experiences choosing path, elevation, wind, view, cooling, and pause or motion. The sky comes to life as humans discover unknown moments within Infinite Paths.