6.22.2007

e-Governance

Dubai e-government seems to be evolving to a new level with the current blogosphere buzz about the SALIK road toll system. Much like the beach controversy a few months ago where online activism against the proposed development of a public beach in Jumeirah precipitated a reversal of plans by Sheikh Mohammed, the SALIK discussion again illustrates the unique and modern potentials of the Dubai government model as it interacts with digital technology and the burgeoning local blogosphere. Yet with SALIK, much of the infrastructure for the toll system has already been rolled out and much of the discussion and debate appears to be coming too late to actually affect policy.

6.14.2007

Full Circle


The feeling of coming full circle in a life experience always facilitates introspection for me. Having lived in a foreign place for an extended period of time, it's hard in a way to synthesize one's feelings about the period of time coming to an end. Perhaps a lack of perspective is to blame for this -- being so close to it, it's hard to absorb what "it" really is until you gain some distance.

In some ways I feel like a character on the ABC drama "Lost." Dubai has been a unreachable island of sorts for me, exisiting in its own time and space and operating according to a reality unlike nowehere else in the world I have visited. Much like Lost, Dubai leaves you conflicted as to how badly you want to be rescued and return home. Your initial certainty about wanting out slowly subsides as you adapt to the alternative reality that is Dubai.

So what makes Dubai "stick" for people besides the obvious ($$)? For me, it sticks because it is just so hard to figure out. After living here for almost a year, I could never really explain Dubai to someone who had never been here. Much like Lost, Dubai maintains its viewership by never revealing a linear storyline. For all of the discipline demonstrated by various government plans and pronouncements, living in Dubai brings you face to face with how totally incongruous life here actually is.

My sadness about leaving my friends here is accompanied by a less familiar sadness of leaving a place that will literally, never be the same place again. Unlike most cities in the world, Dubai won't be recognizable to me the next time I come here. Most of the endless construction and confusion surrounding it will likely have coalesced into an actual city by then. And while that Dubai will probably be a lot more manageable to live in, I suppose it might not be quite as fascinating...

6.13.2007

Dubai Inc. Article

My latest article was published this month by the Carnegie Endowment. The article is titled "Dubai Inc: Development and Governance" by Jeremy Tamanini. It looks at the relationship between the Dubai government and economic growth in the emirate. Click here for the article.

6.09.2007

Arab Media Society

A relatively candid article by Time Out writer Dana El-Baltaji discusses her experience with journalism in Dubai. She discusses the relationship between the local press and Dubai branding, in addition to the subtle and not so subtle ways that news and information about Dubai is regulated.

6.07.2007

Dallas Austin Revisited

The Bollywood version of the Dallas Austin drug scandal from last year is beginning to unfold. The latest news is that Indian DJ Aqeel has tested negative for Ecstacy, despite traces of the drug being found in his luggage while passing through Dubai International Airport.