The End of the World

The World, the artificial islands being constructed off the coast of Dubai in the shape of a global map, has been officially canceled.

1 minute read

September 28, 2009, 1:00 PM PDT

By Nate Berg


One of the ambitious and extravagant developments planned for the region had attracted international attention and celebrity buyers. But as the economic recession set in, the prospect of the development drifted farther and farther from reality.

"[I]t has become the world's most expensive shipping hazard, guarded by private security in fast boats and ringed by warning buoys to keep the curious away. A development that was meant to send Dubai's star into the firmament of First World cities has been left to the mercy of the waves and the baking winds.

Mile after mile of breakwater built from boulders brought hundreds of miles by ship has been laid, but inside its man-made lagoon, work has completely stopped. The expected map of the world of 300 islands is instead a disjointed and desolate collection of sandy blots - a monumental folly just out of sight of Dubai's shore."

Monday, September 28, 2009 in The Times

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

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