More than eight thousand years ago, many areas in the Arabian Peninsula, including the Sultanate of Oman were green and lush wadis which are now dry riverbeds, according to several archeological studies. This is evident in historic rock paintings that depict vibrant flora and fauna around Oman.
As climate changed, migrations ensued, and populations settled and thrived in a new power center — in Mesopotamia and the more Fertile Crescent. Today, with climate change happening before our eyes it is also likely to alter the balance of power not only in our region but also around the world. Deserts, oceans and mountains and their enormous wealth guarantees that our world’s attention stays focused on Arabia, for the foreseeable future.
The power of deserts
Contrary to a common belief deserts are anything but empty. Deserts are full of people, animals and plants that have not only mastered living in hot and arid conditions, but also fell in love with the poetic souls, soft sands, clear skies and bright stars. The opportunities today are endless, not the least being the rising silicon economy, that refers to our increasing reliance on microchips in easing and digitizing our lives, there is an increasing demand for rediscovering what precious metals the desert sand can offer.
Ocean and wadis
Ecotourism matches the rising demand of present and future generations for more sustainable travel. In addition to ecotourism, the slower and simpler pace of life in nature is helping us maintain our social and mental balance that were impacted by city life and social media. As people around the world seek a healthier disconnection our oceans and wadis can be excellent slow life attractions.
Mountains
Muscat is the only Arabian Gulf capital with mountains and wadis. All over Oman, Mountains have preserved their pristine landscape in the face of over development. Rediscovering the geology of mountains is not only refreshing, it can share with us valuable secrets about the universe and how they survived millions of years of earth evolution.
Oman In Focus
Stories are soft power in a time when power means safety, security and wealth. Nature tells so many untold, authentic stories. For example, a recently released natural history documentary, titled Oman in Focus, shows the insatiable beauty of the biodiversity of Arabia’s wonder. This documentary masterpiece, produced by Maisa Al Huti and aired recently on Al Jazeera Documentary, brings to life the interwinding stories of how drops of rain and Indian Ocean water seep into shiny sand dunes and rugged rocks of Al Hajar and Samhan mountains. In our times that are filled with human made tragic visuals of conflicts, this natural history documentary is the perfect invitation to focus on the bigger picture and accumulate this gift of natural history visuals to present and future generations.
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