King Abdullah Economic City has released the “Building New Cities” report for the King Abdullah Economic City - City Quest Forum, the most important forum that brings together leaders of modern cities held in the economic city, drawing out the main findings and recommendations that emerged from the forum in its second session, which was held in December 2014 and attended by more than 227 participants from 28 countries, including representatives of 10 new cities, and complemented by a section dedicated to research published by the Modern Cities Foundation. The report is complemented by a section dedicated to research published by the Modern Cities Foundation, and is a response to the challenges of urban growth, and that KAEC and the Modern Cities Foundation established the KAEC-City Quest Forum in 2013 to exchange views, ideas, best practices and future visions among the pioneers of these projects.

The new report is the result of the insights of CityQuest participants, who represent a wealth of thought and experience in the development and construction of cities such as Benjamin Barber, author of “If Mayors Ruled the World”, Charles Montgomery, author of “The Happy City”, distinguished academic Paul Romer from York University, Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman of Emaar, one of the leading companies in developing cities in a distinctive living environment, and a number of leaders in the field of infrastructure development such as: Lutz Bertling, President and COO of Bombardier, Wim Elfrink, Chief International Strategy Officer of Cisco, as well as innovators such as: Dan Roosegaarde, founder of Roosegaarde Studios, and George Vaculik, inventor of the flying carAeromobil.

Fahad Al-Rasheed, Managing Director and CEO of King Abdullah Economic City, considered the report a true indicator of the success of last year's CityQuest Forum and the importance of sharing experience and knowledge and discussing the opportunities and challenges faced by thought leaders and officials involved in building future cities.