Habitecture in Arid Cities: Teaching Lessons from Dubai and the Gulf

This paper asks how habitecture can be operationalized through studio-based architectural education to support multispecies urbanism in arid Gulf cities, and what teaching lessons are transferable. A qualitative multiple–case design analyzes three studios at Canadian University Dubai through two strands: (S1) design-move and prototype analysis—rated with a concise 0–2 rubric for feasibility, biodiversity potential, and implementation readiness—and (S2) thematic synthesis of student reflections and critiques. The cases range from a metro-edge retrofit at Emirates Towers to small-scale prototypes (birdhouses, insect hotels). Results consolidate a repertoire of moves suited to arid conditions—shade and passive cooling, water capture and slow release, species-specific substrates, and corridor connectivity—and distill teaching lessons on species-first briefs, materials-as-ecology, and corridor-scale framing. Applicability is immediate: a pilot roadmap and policy instruments translate studio outputs into implementable steps along transit rights-of-way and in pocket parks. These interventions are conceived not only as support for urban biodiversity but also as devices that cool, soften, and humanize everyday spaces along metro edges and on campus, making waiting, walking, and gathering more comfortable and meaningful for city residents. The contribution formalizes habitecture as a teachable, auditable framework that links concept to detail and design to policy. Limitations include the speculative, studio-based corpus and the lack of post-occupancy ecological monitoring; transferability beyond arid Gulf contexts remains to be tested through pilots.