Businesses do successfully when they mix diverse trends: The Red Sea Development Company has stitched together a growing interest in luxury tourism, as well as Saudi Arabia as a destination and sustainability.
The firm is based on environment and culture, and it establishes new norms for sustainable growth in order to help Saudi Arabia become a global tourist destination. The company's goal is to move beyond sustainability to solve the looming ecological and climatic crises, as well as rectify some of the harm already done.
Sustainability is making way for regeneration in Saudi Arabia’s new tourism development
With the region's first visitors expected to arrive by the end of the year, John Pagano, Group CEO of The Red Sea Development Company and AMAALA, outlines what he refers to as "a regenerative development approach": "Sustainability is about not destroying the environment." It's frozen in place, whereas regeneration is working to improve the situation. Rather than getting right to work on our plans and construction, we enlisted the help of scientists. We began to consider the project we would be working on. We also collaborated with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, one of the world's finest experts on the Red Sea."
This collaboration resulted in the world's biggest maritime spatial planning simulation, covering over 2,500 square kilometers and featuring a 90-island archipelago divided into 30,000 squares. Developers iterated alternative ideas on where to site projects and traffic corridors after they were given conservation values.
The goals, according to Pagano, are lofty but attainable. "Rather than preserving the status quo, we set a 30-percent increase in net conservation value as our goal." How do we go about doing that? Mangroves and coral are really increasing in number. Our coral, unlike other reefs, appears to be able to endure the higher water temperatures and salt levels seen in the Red Sea."
Will this one stand out among the world's many premium destinations? Pagano is self-assured: "Saudi Arabia is going to be fascinating; it's a culture that hasn't been well known. Our atmosphere is in perfect condition. Celebrating it while also organically conserving and developing it, I believe, will be enthusiastically received.
Saudis are undoubtedly the kindest and most welcoming people on the planet. Tourism serves as a cultural bridge, allowing visitors to gain a better knowledge of Saudi Arabia."