The Implication of HEIs Environmental Possibilism Afflicting Expatriate Professional Career

Figure 01, Doha’s Skyscrapers View at the Corniche (image credit, Qatar Living, n.n)

“The Subject Article pertains to Post Graduate Diploma / Master of Environment, and Natural Resources Management (D/MENRM) subject courses at the University of the Philippines aligning with the "Environmental Natural Resources and Management." Likewise, an approved Doctoral Subject Curriculum Courses towards Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering, a research thesis submitted to the Atlantic International University (AIU USA) in 2011. This article paper is one of the "Most Read" in the LinkedIn Publishing, ResearchGate and Academia platforms that have been provided as a course background based on the implication towards HEIS Environmental Possibilism as a result of human-altered landscape throughout the country’s infrastructure building-built environment. However, all testimonies have been done through observation and hands-on experiences within the country as an expatriate, furthermore, causing global climate change within the ecological aspects.”

HEIS Environmental Possibilism Implications Learned

The implication of environmental possibilism to the ecological aspects and to the author is amazing which will give us the opportunities with great factors, values, and challenges that influence to individual’s professional venue as an HEI’s Actor-Based Model likewise in developing the country, Qatar, engineering-wise. Furthermore, HEI’s means human and environmental interactions within the society we live in (that includes migrating expatriates from around the world to Doha).

Generally, as one of those expatriates in Qatar whereas the author’s whole career has been renewed with all the possibilities and future endeavors not only for his career but for the sake of his family's needs. Moreover, these experiences may vary and can be categorized in the followings;

As an Expatriate Engineer and as an Artist, because of curiosity on how the country’s environment formed, the author was roamed around Qatar and observed how Qatar has been developed from Stone Houses and Villages in the desert land into an Urbanized City as you can see in the photo above (Figure 01).

The author was involved and part of the evolution in the design development as well as an implementation in the construction of buildings, installation of building services for high-rise buildings, villas, urban communities, and infrastructure services for West Bay Financial District during my employment tenure with the known Architectural and Engineering Consultancy in Qatar.

The development continues and embarked due to ASIAN Games whereas Qatar was the host country in 2006 during the author’s employment tenure with Sports City PMC, and up to now for 2022 FIFA world competition event.

The construction experiences of sports facilities; residential buildings, and mixed-use buildings such as hotels, offices, malls, healthcare facilities; roads and infrastructure services everywhere around Doha, Dukhan, Messaied, Al Khor and Al Shamal is amazing at all and with the technological advances have been dealt in the implementation can’t be measured within the building-built environment.

With the scarcity of rainfall and the limited underground water, most of which has such a high mineral content that it is unsuitable for drinking or irrigation, however, restricted the population and the extent of agricultural and industrial development the country could support until Desalination Projects have been completed and distributed throughout the country for potable water use in the villages, commercial buildings, industrial-agricultural concerned and the TSE (Treated Sewage Effluent – Figure 02) for irrigation purposes in the landscapes, parks, gardens, and trees.

Figure 02, Doha West Sewage Treatment Plant Project (image credit, Arcadis/Hyder)

Possibilism Repercussions and Findings

Even the Oil and Gas are now successfully in operation as Qatar’s primary resources of their country's GDP and Economic Booming, their cultures, and traditions are still preserved in modern times in today’s generation that was practicing for decades in their ancient years. They are intact to their belief and passion for their socio-cultural aspects in their environment. This is what the author really appreciates and highlighted the innovative principles present in their cultural aspect and religious faith in the prevention of their national heritage in spite of global climate change happening.

As part of environmental possibilism experiences since 2004 and up to the present, when the author was in Consulting Firm, all design development projects whereas he was involved with and known as the human-altered landscape (Figure 03), the design implications don't care about the energy and water conservation pertaining to Sustainable Development and Green Building Principles and Policies.

Mostly, they do care only on the design more than the required demand and spoils somehow and not knowing that these contribute to the greenhouse gas effect and carbon footprint on the environment.

As a result, the cost impacts are too high without any value engineering for all the projects that sustain and probably help the clients, if ever. However, that was done and had been constructed already especially at West Bay Financial center, those were due to their client’s commitment with limited time and confirmation as well. But in principles, the design should be taken care-of profitably in sustaining green principles and energy savings for the projects as well as to the Mother Earth.

 

Figure 03, Human-Altered Project in Salwa-CRing Road (image credit, rvgomeseria)

Conclusion and Recommendation

But because of the allegedly called climate change that is happening in today’s generation including Qatar as part of this phenomenon, global warming, and the CO₂ emission inherently grows rapidly. Sadly, but Qatar is one of the contributors in the environment with CO₂ emission and these are primarily caused by the Oil & Gas production and exploration, as well as from the commercial and industrial sectors as evolved through growing industrialization in the country.

However, wherein a governmental policy toward Sustainability becomes mandatory in Qatar initiated last 2009 only, which is purposely in sustaining a green environment in reducing these kinds of emission that contributes to mother Earth. Nevertheless, through technological evolution effects and the availability of information worldwide, Qatar’s building-built environment and infrastructure design development within the environmental sectors have been redeveloped and redesign in compliance to Qatar GSAS Authority through Sustainable Development and Green Building Principles application which have been prioritized throughout the country, and international cooperation in mitigating the global phenomenon with the green building and urban greening process.

Write-Up References can be Read from this Links;

Gomeseria, R. V. (2019, June). Implication of HEIs Environmental Possibilism Afflicting Expatriate Professional Career. Retrieved from; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333798845_Implication_of_HEIs_Environmental_Possibilism_Afflicting_Expatriate_Professional_Career

Gomeseria, R. V. (2019, June). Socio-Cultural Perspectives on the Environment. Retrieved from; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333774275_Socio-Cultural_Perspectives_on_the_Environment