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Design Matters

Securing Bahrain’s Architectural Heritage – In Discussion with Turathi’s Ammar Mohsen – Episode 2

October 30, 2025

Bahrain and the entire Gulf are standing at a turning point. For decades, prosperity was built on oil, but the pace of the change has overtaken this: the climate debate, urban pressures, and growing technological ambitions now demand a new way of thinking about cities.

The age of fossil fuel is about to give way to a new era of economic and energy diversification. This is a moment of transition: from an era of extraction to an era of responsible creation.

This moment poses not only a technological but also a civilisational question for the region: what comes next?

Our CEO, Nicholas Bonaventure, speaks about this transformation in the latest episode of The Perspectives Series podcast with Ammar Mohsen, emphasising the need to educate designers who can think systemically rather reactively and the idea that the future of architecture and engineering is no longer about “damage control.”

The future of cities lies in intelligent façades, solar energy integration, and systems thinking. A region that once thrived on oil will soon be built on vision, courage, and the ability to create value - not merely extract it.

The answer lies in regenerative design: design that enhances economic, social, and cultural conditions rather than merely slowing degradation. 

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