Nabil Al-Arabi

A Saudi architect who pioneered sustainable design in the Middle East, reshaping urban development through eco-friendly innovations.

Nabil Al-Arabi (b. 1975) is a visionary architect whose work transformed Saudi Arabia’s construction industry. In 1998, he founded Arabi Design Group, focusing on integrating renewable energy into traditional Arabian architecture. His 2003 project, the Khobar Eco-Campus, became the first solar-powered university in the Gulf, reducing energy costs by 40%. Al-Arabi’s designs blend modernist aesthetics with local materials like rammed earth and date palm fibers, exemplified in the Ras Al Khaimah Cultural Center (2008). He co-authored the 2005 Saudi Green Building Code, which mandates 20% renewable energy use in new buildings. His TED Talk "Desert to Green: Reimagining Arabian Architecture" (2012) inspired global architects. Despite resistance from traditional contractors, his firm now operates in UAE, Qatar, and Oman, recently completing the Masdar City Education Hub (2022). Al-Arabi’s work challenges the region’s carbon-intensive construction norms, earning him the Global Green Leadership Award in 2020.