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Design Space AlUla Celebrates Architectural Designs

Design space AlUla celebrates architectural designs. (SPA)
Design space AlUla celebrates architectural designs. (SPA)
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Design Space AlUla Celebrates Architectural Designs

Design space AlUla celebrates architectural designs. (SPA)
Design space AlUla celebrates architectural designs. (SPA)

Design Space AlUla gallery, located in the heart of AlJadidah Arts District, has become a focal point for wide-ranging design initiatives, in line with AlUla's goal to support the Kingdom's thriving arts and culture scene, including students, design experts, and enthusiasts, SPA said on Monday.
Opened on February 15, Design Space AlUla hosts exhibitions in a contemporary building surrounding a luminous courtyard. The building, designed by the Italian studio Gio Forma, and inspired by the ancient, textured brick buildings commonly used in the surrounding buildings in AlJadidah neighborhood, is made of Corten steel (weathering steel), glass, and polished concrete.
Through a series of exhibitions and workshops overseen by Design Space AlUla's curator Eng. Sara Ghani, the gallery aims to get in touch with local and international design experts, and emerging designers, to discuss design principles and the stages of creative design. The space allows for the display of architecture, urban planning, production, and graphic design.
The gallery's opening exhibition, "Mawrid: Celebrating Inspired Design", is accompanied by a busy program of cultural and dialogue events. Mawrid, which will run until June 1, is the first exhibition among a series that will show.
The exhibition also explores the visual identity of Design Space AlUla, which was designed by Clara Sancho Studio and 29Letters design studio, and was inspired by AlUla's unique architecture.
Meanwhile, an exhibition designed by Atelier Brückner, a German architecture firm, takes the visitors on a sensorial trip through designs inspired by AlUla as well, bringing various designers' works in a captivating spatial narration.
The second edition of AlUla Design Award finalists are also participating in the exhibition.
According to Ghani: "Design Space AlUla celebrates AlUla's natural history and cultural heritage and enables a sustainable future rooted deep within the place. Our ambition is to support the design sector and provide resources for designers to explore and experiment. We aim to make this space a place that enables visitors to search, explore, and communicate with the stages of AlUla's design trip.
AlUla is creating an archive for all the creative projects, acting as a source of design inspiration and a compendium of local design initiative

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Landmark Nepal Survey Estimates Nearly 400 Elusive Snow Leopards

A snow leopard walks in its enclosure at the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park near Kincraig Scotland, Britain, February 12, 2016. (Reuters)
A snow leopard walks in its enclosure at the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park near Kincraig Scotland, Britain, February 12, 2016. (Reuters)
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Landmark Nepal Survey Estimates Nearly 400 Elusive Snow Leopards

A snow leopard walks in its enclosure at the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park near Kincraig Scotland, Britain, February 12, 2016. (Reuters)
A snow leopard walks in its enclosure at the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park near Kincraig Scotland, Britain, February 12, 2016. (Reuters)

Nepal's first nationwide survey of the threatened snow leopard estimated nearly 400 of the elusive big cats in the Himalayan nation, wildlife officials said Tuesday.

Habitat loss, climate change and poaching have greatly impacted snow leopard populations across Asia, listed as a "vulnerable" species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

But the survey offers a rare shot of hope, confirming numbers lie at the upper end of the previous estimates.

With thick grey fur dotted with dark spots, and large paws that act as natural snow shoes, the species are difficult to spot and quick to hide, making field research challenging.

"This is a historic step in Nepal's snow leopard conservation journey," Haribhadra Acharya, senior ecologist at the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, told AFP.

"This is the first time we are getting authentic data with the great effort of researchers," he said.

An estimated total of 397 snow leopards were counted, determined through motion-sensor camera and genetic analysis in seven key areas.

It offers the most comprehensive national estimate of snow leopards -- also known as the "ghosts of mountains" -- previously estimated by the IUCN to be in the range of 301-400.

Snow leopards are the least studied of the big cats globally due to their low population density and remote mountain habitats they inhabit.

"Nepal has only two percent of the size of the snow leopard habitats globally, (yet) we host 10 percent of the total estimated population", Ghana S Gurung, country representative of WWF Nepal, told AFP.

"More importantly, we are the second smallest country in terms of snow leopard habitat size after Bhutan, (but) we hold the fourth largest population," he added.

The Snow Leopard Trust, a US-based conservation group, says the exact total number is not known but that "there may be as few as 3,920 and probably no more than 6,390" across 12 countries in Asia.

Although conservationists have welcomed the new population estimate, many remain concerned about the threats posed by climate change and infrastructure development.

"New road construction, installation of transmission lines, and increased human activity in search of herbs are disrupting snow leopards' habitats in the Himalayas," said Acharya, one of the lead researchers.

Experts say the increasing avalanches in the mountains -- where climate change is exacerbating extremes of weather patterns -- are another threat.

Nepal has been praised worldwide for its efforts to protect wildlife which have helped several species, including tigers and rhinos, to return from the brink of local extinction.

The country's conservation efforts have helped to triple its tiger population to 355 since 2010 and to increase one-horned rhinoceros from around 100 in the 1960s to 752 in 2021.