Dubai's diversity is its authenticity

Whenever I visit Montreal, a city I consider a second hometown, from Dubai, my current residence, I am almost always inspired. It is a city of enormous spontaneity and joie-de-vivre; the streets are buzzing, the people are eccentric, full of expression and care-free and its French colonial architecture has given the city a unique identity in the vast swathes of North America. I can feel my creative juices flowing as I bubble up with pride. However, what has always puzzled me whenever I go are the questions, and often assertions, I get of a lack of authenticity in Dubai. They insist that culture has played a very minor role in the formation of its evolved identity, and is in fact being overshadowed by less virtuous influences such as consumerism and high profile developments. Interestingly, when I spent six months working in Ethiopia, I heard similar sentiments from Western expatriates, but only praise from the locals.
There is no doubt that the industrial and consumerist breeze has hit the once unknown city in the south-east Arabian Peninsula, but is it really as empty and shallow as it is purported to be by many westerners? And what does authenticity mean anyway?
A look back at history shows a similar, albeit slower, path towards reform of the social and economic fabric of Western nations. It is dubbed the industrial revolution for good reason: the change that was experienced in this era of transformation was not just one dimensional, but stretched across multiple, interconnected sectors. Undoubtedly, the revolution shook the very core of culture, modes of behaviour and societal norms. Work, the role of gender and neighbourhoods, to name a few, took on entirely new meanings. The newly urbanised populace of that period were exposed to a different environment and for a large majority of them, day to day activities changed dramatically with the adoption of this new system.
On a tangible level, livelihoods now depended on waged work, rather than on farming and crop growing. However, to say that these changes made that generation less authentic would be overly simplistic at best, and misguided at worst. You were most likely perplexed by this argument even, as authenticity has rarely been brought to question in this context: modernisation is not viewed as a tool that rids Westerners of their heritage. New York City, the epitome of city life and culture, has rarely been criticised in this way. In fact, many would argue that the city's development encouraged the emergence of a more diverse and sophisticated cultural appetite for the city. The growing popularity of abstract expressionism in the 1950s, a time of remarkable growth and expansion, helped New York overtake Paris as the center of the art world. Yet in applying a misguided judgment of authenticity to Dubai, western commentators fail to realise their own underlying biases. If this definition were applied to the industrialisation period, then they too would have to admit failures in their societal structures; such as the increasing marginalisation of community in favour of a self-interest modus operandi. However, I think that this reasoning is also flawed. Rather, change and disruption are central to society's progression and I welcome it, both in the Middle East and in the West.
Experiences gained from living in both the Middle East and in North America have shown me that it is possible to retain vital societal values all the while living in a new, more technologically and industrially advanced society. Raising the standard of living, improving mortality rates and access to education (equally for women and men) should not be viewed as a compromise to one's culture or tradition. Modern day urban dwellers in the West continue to share some common practices with those of their predecessors (Thanksgiving anyone?), but by the same token their shared identity has expanded to encompass new practices such as their participation in social media.
In the UAE, marriages and other festivities are performed in a very similar manner when compared to earlier generations. Cultural attire and behaviour are prominently displayed to this day in the UAE and other Arab nations. Moreover, Dubai has emerged as one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the world, catering to foreign nationals from almost every country. Dubai's hosting of the Expo 2020 is one of many examples that symbolise these accomplishments - be it in infrastructure or cultural development. I will admit that other facets of Dubai's identity have changed, but it is incorrect to describe these changes as being inauthentic. We should embrace those that have positively impacted us and that have expanded our capacity to innovate across the socio-economic, cultural and legal structures. In fact, I think it is safe to say that there is much that Western countries can learn from our development model in Dubai.
The author specialises in socio-economic development and transformational government interventions in the Middle East and East Africa.