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Women's empowerment in the police sector as leaders is an important study that has received little attention in the literature. Understanding the problems and hurdles, as well as solutions to empower women police today as leaders in the police force, was the emphasis of the study. The goal of this research was to investigate the concept of female police empowerment in the Abu Dhabi Police. This study looks at the important elements of empowerment for ADHGHQ women police, as well as the problems they encounter because of their gender in a historically male-dominated industry. The following four research questions served as a guide: 1) To what extent the principles of empowerment are implemented of women police in the ADPGHQ? 2) What is the impact of empowerment implementation on leadership of women police in the ADPGHQ? 3) What is the impact of empowerment implementation on skills of women police in the ADPGHQ? 4) What is the impact of empowerment implementation on the abilities of women police in the ADPGHQ? An in-depth survey and personnel meeting were conducted with women police operating in all ADPGHQ sectors to have a better grasp the issue. The data collection and analysis paradigms used in the research investigation were quantitative. The core data is gathered through questionnaires and personal meetings with a group of 650 female police officers from various sectors who work at the Abu Dhabi Police (ADHGHQ). Data was gathered via e-mail, and personnel were present. This research finishes with practice recommendations for strengthening police leadership in the ADPGHQ and removing real and perceived barriers to women's full involvement in the workforce and leadership. A proposal method was established to improve the position of women's police empowerment in leadership, according to the study. This approach is intended to empower female police officers in positions of leadership at ADPGHQ, but it can also be used as a general conceptual framework to empower women in other police sectors. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that women police require empowerment to achieve the desired leadership position.

This thesis aims to explore the role of sport mega-events (SMEs) in advancing the soft power of emerging states. Unlike previous literature which has focused on Brazil, Russia, India, China or South Africa (the BRICS), this study will focus on the three Gulf states of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain as they have adopted unique hosting strategies which remain relatively under examined throughout scholarship. Worth noting here is that each emirate within the UAE is governed by a separate entity. Thus, this study will examine the sport strategies of Dubai and Abu Dhabi independently, as they have been the primary drivers of the UAE's overall sporting industry. Prior to exploring each of the aforementioned cases, this thesis will begin by clarifying the concept of soft power and proposing a model which illustrates how soft power can be advanced through the use of nation branding and public diplomacy initiatives. Upon doing so, literature linking previous sports mega-events to each of the aforementioned concepts will be examined to exemplify the way in which SMEs have proven to serve as effective soft power tools in the past. Based on these theoretical understandings, a pragmatic approach was adopted to assess the cases of Qatar, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain. First, a document analysis of national visions and sport strategies as well as semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders was used to understand the pre-determined goals and strategies of each nation. Second, an observational analysis was conducted to evaluate the current contexts in which SMEs are being staged, and finally, an online survey was issued to unveil the current perceptions that exist in the minds of foreign audiences. By examining the congruencies between nationalistic goals, current contexts and foreign perceptions, a comprehensive overview of each nation/emirate's soft power strategy is provided. After comparing the strategies adopted by each state, it was found that all four cases have leveraged the use of sport mega-events to varying degrees to fulfil soft power-related ambitions. Qatar is explicitly using SMEs as a nation branding and public diplomacy tool to advance its soft power. Similarly, Abu Dhabi is primarily using SMEs to emerge from the shadows of its local neighbours Dubai and compete with rising neighbours Qatar. Dubai however, has previously used sport mega-events to help position itself on the international front, but after cementing its global reputation, has adopted a more inward-looking strategy. Finally, while Bahrain aspires to extend its influence in a manner similar to that of its neighbours and host large-scale tournaments, its limited economic resources have pushed the nation into adopting an intrinsic sporting strategy. Each of these cases provides a unique lens as to how sport mega-events are used to advance the soft power of emerging states during their transitional stage and are highly reliant on hard power resources.

Due to many adverse consequences of poor decision making in organisations there is a need to focus on the quality of information and knowledge. This research focuses on how to obtain and use, or “harness” knowledge from information in improving organisational decision-making in a civil protection/security organisation to become effective and enter an organisational wide learning spiral. This is necessary in order to gain a high degree of intuitiveness and intelligence and to be effective. The researcher explores how information-knowledge can be processed and converted into deeper level knowledge, while at the same time how to get decision makers to codify knowledge in order to help them to externalise it. In order to achieve this, the “information-space” model was used to show the information-to-knowledge dynamic journey. The research involved using quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative approach is used to obtain computable results from key decision-makers, such as senior workers, and test a model derived from the literature. Seventeen hypotheses were proposed based on theory to evaluate the proposed model. Primary data was collected during the empirical phase of the research from 135 respondents. A structural equation model was used and included exogenous and endogenous latent constructs. On the other hand, a use of qualitative research helped to obtain deeper insights into the use of information and knowledge in decision making. It was underpinned by several propositions and its aim was to expose the role of information-knowledge and the creation of a learning organisation. The results of the quantitative approach revealed that twelve hypotheses are positively significant. Two hypotheses have a significant negative impact on other constructs. Additionally, three hypotheses are non-statistically significant. The results reveal some very interesting insights, such as that demographic factors, such as age, level of education, gender, work experience and level of authority, have a significant impact on problem solving and decision making. In terms of type of information, the proprietary and common sense information types have more significance for solving problem and decision making. But, much to the researcher’s surprise, the public information and personal information played a very minor role. On the other hand, the results of the qualitative data collection show how key decision makers made decisions and gained a certain degree of intuition from it. Therefore, this research has met its objective in helping towards improvement in a civil protection/security organisation to become a learning organisation and help it to enter a learning spiral and make continual improvement. Hence, the researcher succeeds in making suitable recommendations to a number of different stakeholders, in particular the civil protection/security organisations to (i) to develop their management and specialist personnel, and, (ii) to have the necessary information management strategy in place that would harness information and help towards (iii) creating an effective and robust knowledge management strategy.

Individuals in the UAE and Abu Dhabi Emirate, in particular, have become increasingly concerned about their private information. This is mainly due to the use of technology, which makes accessing, transmitting and editing personal information faster and easier. Besides the use of technology, and the awareness and understanding of the privacy of expatriates, working in Abu Dhabi Emirate has had an impact on UAE citizens in terms of their rights to privacy. There is a need for organisations to comply with international bodies in protecting individuals rights to privacy and to increase the exploration of culturally sensitive information in the media. These issues have all led to the importance of and need to explore and identify Abu Dhabi Emirate employees perceptions, and the factors influencing their behaviour, towards privacy. The aim of this research was to investigate and analyse factors influencing employees information privacy behaviour and employees perceptions, awareness and behaviour on the handling of private information in the Abu Dhabi Emirate public sector, ADEC, as well as to provide practical recommendations to improve the privacy. The research methods used in this project are based on a mixed-method approach comprising both quantitative and qualitative strategies. Qualitative data collection in this research included face-to-face interviews and focus groups with Abu Dhabi Education Council. Quantitative surveys for all the Abu Dhabi Education Council were also utilised. The research identified the types of information that were considered private and defined privacy in the context of UAE culture. The main factors influencing privacy in Abu Dhabi Emirate employees were identified and analysed such as national culture, organisation culture and perceived benefits as examples. Following this, practical recommendations for changes to promote and enhance privacy in Abu Dhabi Emirate were offered. A model has been developed and designed based on the factors influencing individual information behaviour regarding private information handling, interrelated and influenced. This is essential to provide a practical model capable of acting as a guideline to help organisations, decision makers, and strategic planners in the Abu Dhabi Emirate public sector decide how best to approach privacy policy.

The notion of Strategic Fit has been and remains to be one of the most important arguements in the fields of business strategy and strategic management. This research study examines the key concept of ‘strategic fit’ and its associated theories and seeks to investigate the causes that have created ‘strategic drift’ in Abu Dhabi’s governmental agencies in the infrastructure sector with the aim of improving their performance. However, for organisations, public or private, it still remains to be the most important notion and one that cannot be ignored because it is about the success of the organisation in its external environment where all competitive activity takes place. Thus, there are many underlying factors such as organisational culture, structure and organisational history that impact, or influence, the level of fit that organisations achieve. Therefore it is imperative that research is further undertaken on a deeper and wider level to fully understand the concept and importance of strategic fit and how it can be achieved. Hence, a research study in this area, especially in developing cities such as Abu Dhabi, is well justified and needed. The lack of strategic fit that has been witnessed in the Abu Dhabi’s infrastructure sector over the past few years continues to be, and it is a clear indication of a developing mismatch between the government and its policies and the agencies that implement them. However, this is clearly a major issue for the government going forward, if polices are developed with no clear understanding of the available resources and capabilities. Similarly, the study also seeks to determine why a strategic fit has not been achievable by the Abu Dhabi government. Though the government has developed policies to better serve its people, it continuously faces issues of policies not being implemented, or being implemented too late and targets not been met according to the original brief. It has been identified that there are numerous deficiencies between the various government agencies in the infrastructure sector in terms of keeping pace with governmental policies - consequently, resulting in strategic gaps with an increasing possibility of a possible strategic drift, if these issues are not addressed effectively and in a timely manner. The study further wishes to explore if strategic gaps have occurred as a result of inherent cultural, historical, political and/or structural aspects of the Abu Dhabi government and its numerous agencies – simply because these issues can be seen as preventative to change and progress which, in turn, can lead to strategic gaps and strategic drift in the long term. The research paradigm selected for this research study is that of the pragmatist approach and subsequently the key methodology employed throughout this research is that of the mixed methods. That mixed methods research is an intellectual and practical synthesis based on qualitative and quantitative research. Also, This research provides a summary of the important findings, proved hypotheses, achieved aim and objectives, and significant contribution to the knowledge of strategic management through the development of the “Community Innovation Scheme”, the “3-Spectrums of Change”, the “4Ms Change Model”; and the resulting framework model; the “Government Strategy Model”.

There has been a good effort made in Abu Dhabi for the last couple of years between government stakeholders to develop a road safety strategy, define rules and responsibilities, and gain a fully coordinated and integrated framework to deal with road safety. According to my point of view, the challenges that might be seen as a problem for the future development of Abu Dhabi can be the management and the usage of traffic safety technologies to reduce serious road traffic accidents. This study focused on the relationship between the use of traffic safety technologies and serious road traffic accidents on Abu Dhabi Highways. The motivation for this research is to implement correctly the traffic safety technologies in Abu Dhabi highways as a part of the need to adopt plans, programmes, and preventive measures to reduce or prevent the occurrence of traffic accidents in order to ensure the safety of individuals and property, in addition to preserving the security of the state and its human and economic components. The overall approach to this study is a mixed methodology, which combines quantitative and qualitative methods. A questionnaire is one method used in this regard, and is designed to be quantitative. In the quantitative method, comparing statistics of fatalities and injuries before and after installation of the speed cameras is used. As a result of this study and by making the connectivity between reviewing the results and findings of the literature review, identifying the questionnaire results, and exploring the before and after statistics led to findings which were used to develop a decision support framework that can be used to advise the regional safety strategy to be sustainable. The design framework was also validated through Abu Dhabi highways by a panel of experts, which was carried out using the focus group method, which was qualitative in nature. It is recommended from this research to invest much in traffic safety technologies, focus more on driver support systems and rapid response systems, improve driver behaviour as a priority in Abu Dhabi highways using traffic safety technologies, and integrate the compatibility of all of the above through an integrated system and specific performance indicators that are measured and followed up on an ongoing basis, and supported by geographic information systems (GIS).

The aim of the research was to evaluate the operational effectiveness and impact of joint leadership in construction projects in Abu Dhabi (AD). The research started with a thorough and critical review of literature on leadership and culture. The research took a quantitative approach and used a questionnaire to collect data. 145 questionnaires were sent to project managers in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and 90 responses (62%) were obtained. The data was analysed by descriptive and inferential statistics and used Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. The results of the research indicated that the majority of participants were leaders, and had different styles. Irrespective of leadership style, most expressed satisfaction with joint leadership of projects and stated that it does improve project success. The study also showed that culture has a significant impact on the types of leaders in UAE construction as well as the operations, durations, costs, and quality of construction projects. Moreover, participants stated that culture has an influence on the design of construction buildings and other facilities. It was however opined that the use of joint leadership in construction projects requires clear clauses in project contracts in respect of roles and responsibilities, as well as providing training for cultural awareness which can improve project efficiency. Most participants agreed that project success in UAE construction is a direct function of the leadership style used. The outcome of the research was used to improve the construction project process framework of Abu Dhabi Police taking into the consideration the findings from the questionnaire. The next step was to test the framework through a focus group. 12 professionals were involved from the original questionnaire survey. The focus group discussion generated additional qualitative descriptions concerning the reasons behind the study participants‘ perceptions on (a) the likelihood of joint leadership of projects in UAE, (b) the impact of the concept of the project managers in UAE construction, and (c) the influences of UAE culture on construction projects. The improved framework developed was validated by a survey which had 12 questions. This was distributed to 10 project managers and leaders. The results showed that the improved framework will: reduce communication time; improve the choice of joint leaders (two project managers) for the same project; help UAE culture to be communicated better in project designs; help project managers with no engineering background through training; increase internal stakeholders‘ understanding of joint leadership in AD police projects; increase the understanding of the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) contract in AD police projects; assist AD police project managers‘ training to address effective and efficient leadership.

This thesis is about risk management in fast-track construction projects. The aim of the study is to identify the risks in the UAE construction industry, understand how they are dealt with, and propose more effective frameworks for risk management in fast-track construction. A mixed method approach was used to fulfil the objectives of the study. 65 questionnaires were distributed to professionals in the construction industry, including contractors, sub-contractors, project managers and private consultants. Their responses were analysed using statistical techniques, and the results taken for discussion to a focus group of eleven experienced construction managers and experts. Secondary data was also collected via literature reviews of print and website articles, and of books and documents from company, government and industry-specific databases. The findings show that risks in construction projects can be internal or external, and that in the UAE, owner- and design-related risks are seen as the most significant. Knowledge about risk management is present, but more needs to be done to eradicate the problems associated with poorly managed fast-track construction projects. Using the suggestion of the focus group, a framework for risk mitigation was developed based on the Alien Eyes’ risk and Qualitative Risk Management models. The study discusses the implications of risk management for practitioners and academicians in the construction industry. Poor risk management, which is usually the consequence of inadequate recognition of and/or responsiveness to risks and uncertainties, can have a devastating impact upon projects. It is hoped that practitioners applying the findings and suggestions in this study will see positive change, improved profitability and greater competitive advantage as a result.

Data quality is an important aspect of an organisation’s strategies for supporting decision makers in reaching the best decisions possible and consequently attaining the organisation’s objectives. In the case of public organisations, decisions ultimately concern the public and hence further diligence is required to make sure that these decisions do, for instance, preserve economic resources, maintain public health, and provide national security. The decision making process requires a wealth of information in order to achieve efficient results. Public organisations typically acquire great amounts of data generated by public services. However, the vast amount of data stored in public organisations’ databases may be one of the main reasons for inefficient decisions made by public organisations. Processing vast amounts of data and extracting accurate information are not easy tasks. Although technology helps in this respect, for example, the use of decision support systems, it is not sufficient for improving decisions to a significant level of assurance. The research proposed using data mining to improve results obtained by decision support systems. However, more considerations are needed than the mere technological aspects. The research argues that a complete data quality framework is needed in order to improve data quality and consequently the decision making process in public organisations. A series of surveys conducted in seven public organisations in Abu Dhabi Emirate of the United Arab Emirates contributed to the design of a data quality framework. The framework comprises elements found necessary to attain the quality of data reaching decision makers. The framework comprises seven elements ranging from technical to human-based found important to attain data quality in public organisations taking Abu Dhabi public organisations as the case. The interaction and integration of these elements contributes to the quality of data reaching decision makers and hence to the efficiency of decisions made by public organisations. The framework suggests that public organisations may need to adopt a methodological basis to support the decision making process. This includes more training courses and supportive bodies of the organisational units, such as decision support centres, information security and strategic management. The framework also underscores the importance of acknowledging human and cultural factors involved in the decision making process. Such factors have implications for how training and raising awareness are implemented to lead to effective methods of system development.

The European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) excellence model is used increasingly in the public sector in the Middle East. This thesis addresses a shortage of empirical research in this field and extends the, so called, dynamic capabilities perspective by investigating how the EFQM model can contribute to developing organisational capabilities. A research model was developed based on the theory of structuration and the dynamic capabilities perspective. A multiple case study design was used in three public sector organisations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The unit of analysis was the activity configuration involved in the deployment of the EFQM model. This research investigates how activity configurations changed over time, their effect on the organisational social structure and their outcomes in developing new capabilities. In-depth data were collected using interviews and archival sources. The thesis suggests that motives for using the EFQM model represent an important factor in defining the type of activities in its deployment and for its success. It was found that external and internal motives can both have positive impact. The findings showed that organisations experienced with the EFQM model tend to follow similar paths of deployment and achieve comparable results. An indicative model is proposed describing the three stages the organisation can go through in the deployment of the EFQM model. Firstly, the organisation develops the capability to understand the benefits of the model and to plan for its successful deployment. Secondly, the organisation focuses on developing operational capabilities, using the EFQM model. Thirdly, the organisation improves existing capabilities and develops new ones in a recurring cycle, referred to as the cycle of dynamic capabilities. This research contributes to the perspective of dynamic capabilities by investigating the sources of capabilities and how they are shaped through the deployment of the EFQM excellence model. The theoretical background and the research methodology used in this research extend the research application of the structuration theory by linking it with the dynamic capabilities perspective. Suggestions for further research include investigation of the learning cycle of dynamic capabilities through the lens of organisational learning. The research methodology can also be extended to consider strategy formation. An investigation of the EFQM model, which is the basis for assessment in the government award scheme, carries inevitable sources of limitations and bias. A significant proportion of the data collected and analysed was confidential in nature and presented challenges in relation to dissemination of the results.

The global water crisis has often been presented as a crisis of governance and attributed to various factors, including the slowness of institutional adjustments to rapid structural challenges such as demographic growth, resource degradation and economic difficulties (UNU-INWEH, 2012). Despite the rapid growth of cities around the world and a fast increase in the use of desalination for freshwater supply (WHO, 2011), the dynamics of institutional change in desalinated urban water governance have never been researched. This thesis investigates the drivers, barriers and counter-forces to a major institutional change - privatisation - in the desalinated water governance of the coastal cities of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. Through the cases of public private partnerships (PPPs) in Abu Dhabi and Doha and the failed attempt to implement similar PPPs in Kuwait City, this research investigates the diverse forces that have led to the implementation of this new institutional arrangement in order to question - both empirically and theoretically - the literature’s general assumption that privatisation reforms in urban water services in the South arise from structural issues, e.g. a water crisis, an economic crisis and/or a governance crisis. The three main schools of comparative studies are used systematically to test hypotheses about causal relationships between selected variables. The structural approach is applied to examine the influences of the redistributive rentier state, oil price fluctuations and regional energy integration over the privatisation process. Adopting a Post-colonial perspective, the political culture approach is used to examine critically the contemporary influences of traditional cultural features, key local institutions and foreign cultural influences over the fluctuating roles of both the State and the markets in the local urban water supply since the late 19th century. Finally, the rational agency theory is used to examine the role in the recent privatisation process of key political figures from the ruling families. This research demonstrates that the privatisation process of desalination units in Abu Dhabi and Doha was not driven by structural factors during the 2000s, a period of high oil prices, but was initiated in the 1990s and driven the following decade by the agency of a reforming elite wanting to privatize the water sector as part of a broader dynamic of construction of a neoliberal post-rentier economy – i.e. an intermediary political economic paradigm that aims to mediate the transition from rentierism to a fully liberalized economy. The political culture approach shows that these privatisations were facilitated by a gradual shift from pure rentierism towards a post-rentier form of neoliberalism in the political philosophy of liberal water technocrats on the one hand, and towards a regional trend of ‘pious neoliberalism’ (Atia, 2011) among practicing Sunni Muslims. Nevertheless, the enduring rentier mentality has constituted a strong counter-force to privatisation dynamics. The PPPs were implemented in Abu Dhabi and Doha because the local ruling elites situated the political bargaining within the tribal institutional milieus that they mastered completely through the control of the rent and related benefits. In Kuwait however, negotiations between the ruling elites and the leading political forces, the tribes and the opposition, were situated in a parliamentary institutional milieu that the ruling elite could not control and where the opposition and tribal MPs have opposed all reforms of the rentier ruling bargain. These findings illustrate that institutional changes in desalinated water governance are not neutrally driven by uncontrollable structural forces, but are the product of political bargaining between and among various rational political actors and their coalitions. This thesis also shows that in non-democratic or semi-democratic settings, the choice of a specific institutional milieu by the authorities is critical to the successful bargaining of institutional reforms, since it determines whether some key actors - along with structural factors (e.g. rent) and cultural factors (e.g. tribal influence) - will support the process or will be able to act against it.

Historically, many higher education institutions have been structurally and culturally compartmentalised and subunits such as continuing education have been marginalised, merged or divested. In response to a variety of external phenomena, some higher education institutions are re-examining their internal and external relationships, including the relationship between their academic and continuing education units. This research examines the efforts of a higher education institution in the United Arab Emirates to improve its overall effectiveness by changing the nature of the relationship between its academic and continuing education units. A review of theory- and practice-based higher education, organisational culture and inter-/intra-organisational relationship literature revealed significant support for each partner's goals for the new relationship and was used to provide the parties with a series of recommendations for successful formulation, actualisation and governance. These results add to the literature and practice of higher education and continuing higher education, particularly in the area of relationship-building among organisational subunits and subcultures.

Abu Dhabi, the Capital City of United Arab Emirates, evolved through various stages since its formation. However, unlike other Golf cities, policy makers, planners, and designers sought to guide its growth and development towards a sustainable responsive city. Sustainability has become a central theme of policy and practice, and the design of the built environment is playing a major role towards this. Abu Dhabi developed the World renowned City of Masdar, as a model of sustainable development and design, and established the Estidama Rating System to enforce specific sustainable applications. This aim of this study is to examine the cost-effectiveness of shifting the development of Abu Dhabi from a conventional approach to a sustainable one. In particular, it sought to determine whether vernacular design and architecture could help to address the quest for a sustainable city. The methodology adopted for this research was based on quantitative and qualitative approaches. Three buildings were selected to determine the cost-effectiveness of the proposed sustainable solutions. 1. Masdar building was studied to represent what is classified as a sustainable prototype. 2. Educational Building of Abu Dhabi Police Academy, which has an open courtyard at the centre of the building, represents a vernacular design. 3. Administrative Building of Abu Dhabi Police Academy, which has a closed atrium in the centre without any skylight, represents a conventional building design. The research involved an environmental investigation of power consumption, carbon dioxide emissions, indoor and outdoor temperature, indoor and outdoor relative humidity, and levels of indoor carbon dioxide. Monitors were installed in the three prototype buildings for a period of time, and the results of the readings were compared and analysed. In addition, a questionnaire survey was used to determine the impact of the three buildings on sustainable lifestyles and attitudes. Ninety users of the three buildings responded to the questionnaire. Their responses were also compared and analysed. The results of the monitoring of the thermal performance, power consumption and carbon dioxide levels indoors confirmed that most indoor temperature readings were similar due to the use of air-conditioning in the three buildings. However, cooler temperatures were recorded in similar rates in the alleyways of Masdar and in the courtyard of the Police Academy Educational building. In some cases, courtyard spaces in the Educational Building in the Police Academy recorded even lower temperatures than those of Masdar. These readings were much higher than those of the outdoor exposed temperature, whether in Masdar or in the Police Academy outdoor spaces. Considering that the cost per square meter of the Masdar prototype was almost the double of the other prototypes, these findings challenged the cost-effectiveness of the prevailing Masdar City approach. The results also highlighted the importance of the architectural heritage of Abu Dhabi to address the sustainability agenda, including its implications on planning and building regulations. The findings of the questionnaire survey revealed that there were no significant differences between user responses of Masdar and the Police Academy buildings. These also questioned the cost effectiveness of the Masdar prototype. However, the results also confirmed that the lack of awareness of the sustainability agenda for the users of the three buildings, thus highlighting the wider implications on the sustainability agenda.

The overarching objective of this research project is to explore and document the urban history of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It is organized as a comparative study of urban planning and design processes in Abu Dhabi during three major periods of the city’s development following the discovery of oil: (1) 1960-1966: Sheikh Shakhbut Bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s rule (2) 1966-2004: Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s rule; and (3) 2004-2013: Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s rule. The intention of this study is to go beyond a typical historical narrative of sleepy village-turned-metropolis, to compare and contrast the different visions of each ruler and his approach to development; to investigate the role and influence of a complex network of actors, including planning institutions, architects, developers, construction companies and various government agencies; to examine the emergence and use of comprehensive development plans and the policies and values underlying them; as well as to understand the decision-making processes and design philosophies informing urban planning, in relation to the political and economic context of each period. The project is informed through archival research, spatial mapping, and key informant interviews. It attempts to uncover the underlying foundations of the development of Abu Dhabi by situating the city within a theoretical framework that engages the debates and writings of several theorists on globalization, oil economies in the Arab Gulf, urban governance and planning institutions, and urban design.

Since the inception of the Masdar Initiative in 2006, the Emirate of Abu Dhabi has invested a considerable amount of resources to promote renewable sources of energy like solar and wind. With an aim of achieving 7% of its electricity from renewable sources by the year 2020, there is much that the emirate needs to do in order to reduce its reliance on hydrocarbons while still planning capacity for future electricity demand. This report explores the effectiveness of a smart grid infrastructure as a mechanism to afford the flexibility and functionality required to incorporate renewable energy sources into the electric grid, as well as leveraging a real-time data network to attain reductions in peak demand consumption. Specific regulatory structures that exist in Abu Dhabi's electric and telecommunications markets are evaluated to understand the role they will play in dealing with interoperability standards, privacy concerns, and consumer participation issues that influence the effective integration of smart grid into Abu Dhabi's energy future.

This dissertation project investigates the production of renewable energy and clean technology infrastructures in an oil-rich country, as the era of abundant oil supplies is slowly coming to an end. Its centerpiece is Masdar, a multifaceted renewable energy and clean technology company in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, where I conducted nine months of ethnographic research between September 2010 and June 2011. I also pursued five months of fieldwork at the Technology and Development Program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology between January 2010 and May 2010, and conducted research with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) office in Bonn in August 2011 and March and April 2012. Across these various sites, I interrogate the ways in which imaginaries of renewable energy and clean technology infrastructures are articulated and experienced both at a personal level and at the level of project management. By studying how emergent technology, knowledge, and governance on renewable energy and clean technology afford a potential reorganization of sociotechnical relations in an oil-rich country, I contribute to literature on oil and climate change, and to studies of energy transitions, sustainable urbanism,   iii technological imaginaries and knowledge production, as explored in fields of anthropology, science and technology studies and environmental studies. In my dissertation, I track five projects undertaken by Masdar: (1) the construction of an eco-city, (2) the establishment of a clean technology and renewable energy research institute, (3) the creation of a new energy currency, (4) the implementation of a driverless electric personal rapid transport network, and (5) the production of a carbon capture and storage (CCS) policy proposal. I argue that these projects articulate an aspiration for the manageability of ecological problems, wherein business models are thought to contain and resolve climate change without surrendering hopes for increasing productivity and technological complexity. Yet such projects also reveal unresolved tensions between different infrastructures of technology, knowledge, and governance, resulting in a growing accommodation of contradictions within the renewable energy and clean technology sector-viz: a carfree eco-city surrounded by a parking lot of SUVs. Through a close ethnographic investigation of these projects, I present a framework for analyzing how emergent technology, knowledge, and governance on renewable energy and clean technology come together to propose a reorganization of sociotechnical relations in an oil-rich landscape.   iv

The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify the communication channels six Emirati females concurrently employed in organizations in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates in which they had supervisory responsibilities; formal, legitimate authority; and positional leadership roles recalled using with their direct reports to enact leadership. In particular, the study attempted to ascertain the reasons for the selection of communication channels when engaged in downward communication with organizational subordinates. Data were collected via three interviews with each participant over a four week period. Interviews were conducted both face-to-face and via telephone. Data were analyzed via thematic content analysis to identify themes, patterns, and/or trends in communication channels selected and the reasons for selection of these channels when engaged in downward communication with direct reports. Findings indicated the participants’ preferred channel of communication when engaged in downward communication with their direct reports was face-to-face. Frequently face-to-face communication was reinforced via written follow-up. Encoding negative messages via written channels was found to be vigorously avoided except in the most extreme cases. Cultural factors were indicated to be influential in the participants‘ selection of communication channel. The findings of this study have workplace preparation and training applications for private sector organizations, government, and state-owned enterprises in Abu Dhabi—in particular, those organizations in which expatriates have supervisory responsibilities; formal, legitimate authority; and positional leadership responsibilities in relation to Emirati direct reports. The electronic version of this dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu.etd.

Harold Wilson, the British Prime Minister, announced in January 1968 that the British government would withdraw from the Persian Gulf by the end of 1971. For Britain, the decision indicated a re-prioritization of British global defense obligations. For the rulers of the Arab emirates of the Persian Gulf, Wilson‘s announcement signaled an end of British military protection, and the beginning of a process of negotiations that culminated in the establishment of the United Arab Emirates on December 3, 1971. An examination of the process by which the individual Persian Gulf states became a sovereign federation presents an opportunity to examine the roles of nationalism and anti-imperialism played in the establishment of the Union. This work demonstrates that Arab rulers in the Persian Gulf strove to establish their new state with close ties to Great Britain, which provided technical, military, and administrative assistance to the emirates, while also publicly embracing the popular ideologies of anti-imperialism and Arab socialism, which dominated the political discourse in the Arab world through most of the twentieth century. viii This dissertation draws on primary source materials from British and American government archives, speeches and government publications from the Arab Emirates, memoirs and a wide variety of secondary sources. These materials provide the basis for understanding the state-building process of the United Arab Emirates in the areas of pre-withdrawal development, the decision to withdraw, the problems of establishing a federal constitution, and the problems posed by the need for security in the post-withdrawal Persian Gulf.

The goal of this thesis is to identify the main political and economic implications of Dubai’s debt crisis and subsequent bailout by her wealthier and more powerful sister emirate Abu Dhabi. This paper examines the implications of the bailout of Dubai on two levels: Dubai’s relationship with Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s relationship with the international investment community. The paper first provides a brief background on Dubai, one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and discusses Dubai’s key characteristics that helped give Dubai her nickname Dubai Inc. – an opportune location, the Al-Maktoum ruling family, and state-led entrepreneurship. It then discusses Dubai’s historically competitive relationship with Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s push to diversify economically away from oil. The paper outlines two key economic developments – the rise of Dubai’s real estate and tourism sectors and the creation of Dubai’s government-related enterprises (GREs), which helped finance the real estate bubble. This thesis suggests that Abu Dhabi now holds unquestionable power over Dubai and can control Dubai’s GREs and their subsidiaries such as Dubai World. This paper also argues that the international investment community will demand increased transparency and higher standards of corporate governance of Dubai’s businesses in light of the entrenched poor practices that the bailout exposed within the tiny-city state's GREs and companies.

Emirate of Abu Dhabi is located in an arid region, where the main source of fresh water is desalination plants. The vulnerability of desalination plants renders planning for an alternative source of freshwater essential. In this study the feasibility of aquifer storage and recovery in the Liwa area, in Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates was investigated. Based on operational data collected from the pilot project, the model was set up and calibrated. The calibrated model was used to study the affect of various operational parameters, namely storage duration, pumping rate, screen location, multiple cycle operation and periodic recharge, as well as some aquifer characteristics factors: dispersion and salinity profile. This study can be utilized to optimize the operation of the Liwa ASR project.