Baharash Bagherian, the former design director of the UAE-based Diamond Developers, has set up his new venture, URB, a boutique planning and design consultancy at Dubai Design District. The new company aims to design the next generation of net-zero sustainable cities.

Bagherian had led the designs of several sustainable cities across the globe.

His decision to start the new venture was driven by a sense of purpose to accelerate the transition towards sustainable developments, says URB.

It stems from Bagherian’s ambition to share his expertise on a larger scale and work with as many governments as well as developers from around the world.

“URB will shape the future by creating the next generation of net-zero sustainable cities. Our projects will have significant impacts on the social, environmental and economic sustainability of cities,” remarks Bagherian.“Our sustainability DNA will cover all aspects to ensure our designs are holistic, resilient and smart.”

Bagherian points out that the previous international experience, knowledge and know-how of designing sustainable cities of various scales in different parts of the world is what makes URB unique.

“Yet we will raise the bar. Our goal is to be the global leader in developing the next generation of sustainable cities, whilst educating people that such cities are commercially viable to construct and operate,” he adds.

Bagherian had previously worked in various senior roles for international architectural practices and was also the founder of the award-winning studio Baharash Architecture.