102 Riyadh Metro in Saudi Arabia

Team 35 Poster

Team Reflection

In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia the Riyadh Metro is a leading example of a revolutionary strategy for sustainable urban transportation. This expansive project tackles urgent urban problems like air pollution, traffic congestion and carbon emissions while promoting investment and economic growth in the city. In line with Saudi vision 2030, Riyadh Metro offers a cleaner, more effective and more accessible public transportation option thanks to cutting-edge technologies like driverless trains and sophisticated control systems. Ultimately, this vision-driven project helps to transform Riyadh into a contemporary, ecologically conscious urban hub by supporting important United Nations Sustainable Development Goals particularly sustainable cities and climate action.

We believe that the Riyadh Metro is making a positive impact on Saudi Arabian society and the economy by providing innovative technology and addressing the challenges of congested traffic. In addition to its environmental objectives, the metro draws in investment and generates many jobs in the fields of construction, operations, and maintenance. It has turned into an economic stimulant, increasing Riyadh’s attractiveness to companies and highly qualified personnel. By making transit accessible to a wider range of citizens, Riyadh Metro fosters inclusivity by serving as a cost-effective substitute for private vehicles. The project inspires us not only because of its usefulness but also because of the way it integrates technology, sustainability, and social objectives into a cohesive vision. It is evident that the goal of Riyadh Metro is to build a city where people can prosper rather than merely provide transportation. Additionally, the organization is anticipating population growth in the city, which demonstrates their commitment to addressing the needs of the community.

The “Riyadh Metro” project is an ambitious initiative aimed at transforming the public transportation sector in Saudi Arabia by providing modern and sustainable solutions to urban traffic and environmental challenges. This public-private partnership reflects Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which seeks to improve the quality of life and develop infrastructure that aligns with future aspirations.

1. Sustainability

• Environmental Impact: The Riyadh Metro reduces the reliance on private cars, directly contributing to lower carbon emissions and air pollution. Studies show that public transportation systems, such as metro networks, play a significant role in reducing harmful emissions, making this project a practical example of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to combating climate change.
• Energy Efficiency: The metro utilizes advanced, energy-efficient technologies, making it less energy-intensive than traditional transportation options. This aligns with sustainable development goals (SDGs) that emphasize energy efficiency in modern infrastructure projects.
• Green Spaces: The project includes green spaces around its stations, enhancing biodiversity and improving air quality in urban areas. This approach integrates sustainable urban design, supporting both ecological diversity and public health.

2. Impact According to the “Triple Bottom Line” Perspective

• Economic: The Riyadh Metro creates new job opportunities and stimulates economic growth by improving accessibility across the city. Reducing commute time boosts productivity and attracts further investments, positioning Riyadh as a business-friendly city.
• Environmental: By reducing the number of cars on the roads, the project decreases pollution and carbon emissions, aligning with global sustainability efforts. This also helps alleviate traffic congestion, contributing to a cleaner and healthier urban environment.
• Social: The metro enhances social inclusion by providing affordable, accessible transportation for all residents, regardless of socioeconomic status. Public transit systems have been shown to reduce urban inequality and improve social mobility, aligning with calls for equitable urban infrastructure worldwide.

3. Accountability and Transparency

• Public Reporting: Stakeholders of the Riyadh Metro project have maintained transparency through regular progress updates, which builds public trust and demonstrates accountability. Transparent communication is crucial for large-scale projects to ensure community support.
• Community Engagement: Engaging the local community and being transparent about environmental and social impacts underscore the project’s commitment to accountability. This ensures that the metro system meets local needs and concerns, promoting long-term sustainability.

In conclusion, the Riyadh Metro serves as a model of sustainable urban development, aligning with the UN’s sustainability goals, the triple bottom line framework, and modern accountability practices. It demonstrates the potential of innovative transit solutions to enhance environmental and social outcomes, while also highlighting the importance of ongoing research into their broader societal impact.

This project is going to make an impact in people’s perspective. More people will look for sustainable measures in order to achieve a better society. They could be more conscious that many problems can be avoided, and many benefits can be subtracted just by implanting and looking for sustainable plans. We believe this will cause people to make deep reflections and see the world from a different perspective and open their minds to a more positive and constructive society.

Individually this project allows people who have been spending and wasting a precious amount of time in the past, just by going to work, to not be any longer worried and stressed about not getting in time to work and waking up way too early to get in time. Also, this project allows to save an important amount of money and reduces the footprint caused to the environment by all the traffic. Transmitting our story to other people is clearly something special. We believe that if more people see each other working for a better and brighter future, more people will tend to join different sustainable initiatives, as they will have more references to look up for. In addition, we have grasped as a group important concepts and abilities that will surely be quite effective in the future. We now know how to work with people from different cultures, different time periods and different languages. We now have acquired relevant knowledge about important concepts that we could be using in the business world. Right now I could say we all could be handling working and collaborating with people that reside in different places, which I consider is a fundamental thing for our future as globalization is now a reality. As a conclusion we as a group invite people to give it a shot, try to do something that really makes an impact on the society, even if it is not a big thing. Small things can make a huge impact, so we hope this small effort can motivate people.

While working in a multicultural team with members from Canada, Spain and Saudi Arabia we had the chance to participate in a hands-on learning experience that fit well with important ideas that are frequently covered in management, organization behavior and intercultural communication. This experience taught us how cultural backgrounds influence communication styles, decision-making processes, and values are fostered by exposure to diverse cultures. As a group we faced challenges for cross-cultural teams including variations in feedback preferences, time management, and work styles. As students we learnt resilience and became more tolerant by adjusting to these differences.

The idea of power distance is relevant in these team environments. For example, Us Canadians may value more egalitarian relationships, whereas Saudi Arabia may have a higher power distance culture, where respect for authority and hierarchy is more prominent. By navigating these dynamics, our team understood when to be respectful and when to promote transparency. This assignment allowed us to experience diverse opinions and taught us the importance of having a good relationship with groupmates.

The learning in our courses enhanced our teamwork by emphasizing the value of diverse perspectives, particularly in the COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) context. We gained a deeper sense of responsibility through understanding sustainability and the interconnectedness of environmental, social, and economic factors. This insight helped us prioritize responsible solutions.

Additionally, the course taught us the importance of clear communication and flexibility, allowing us to navigate cultural differences with patience. Embracing diverse viewpoints strengthened our collaboration and enriched our problem-solving, making our teamwork more effective and inclusive.

Initially it has been quite a challenge to organize ourselves. However, we managed to distribute the work effectively besides the inconvenience of language and distance. Moreover, the time difference didn’t help, but we did look for a meeting time that was fine with everyone. Therefore, we divided in pairs to make the tasks less hard, and we decided a date of submission to put it all together. The next step was to look a distribution platform, which was via WhatsApp. Finally, we discussed about modifying the things when meeting in zoom or through messages. As a conclusion, taking this into account, we did manage to share our tasks successfully and did a good work overall.

Something that we found worked well in our group was communicating through WhatsApp. Everyone was able to communicate effectively through WhatsApp and we could easily message each other with questions or any other issues. We also found that our group was very effective in dividing up tasks in an appropriate way. We always made sure everyone knew what they had to do and made it fair in terms of who you were working with to communicate the best. In terms of what did not work we found the time differences to be a challenge when booking meeting times with everyone in school having classes at different times. This was also a bit of an issue for our deadlines because in some parts of the world it was due earlier than others. As a group we should have implemented check-ins and created the deadlines way in advance. By navigating these challenges our team was able to use effective communication and transparency to stay on top of things.

Individual Reflections

Juan Pintado

Collaborating on this project with a diverse team was such a challenge. Working as a Spaniard with two girls from Saudi Arabia and two Canadian girls, our goal was to create a business proposal focused on sustainability. My task was to research and analyze Spanish companies that carry out sustainable measures, in order to enrich our conversations with a different perspective. The variety in our group made the meetings interesting, but also meant we needed to work harder to coordinate and communicate effectively.

Adapting to the cultural differences and communication schedules of each team member was one of the key challenges. We needed to be flexible and commit when scheduling across time zones, which motivated us to plan carefully and take advantage of our Zoom meetings.

As we progressed through the project, our communication improved and we learned to respect each other’s working methods. By using shared files and establishing clear guidelines for communication, we created a productive environment that made it easy for everyone to contribute.

This project taught me valuable skills in cultural sensitivity, adaptability, and teamwork. It highlighted how diversity can bring richness to a project. It also taught me how companies do undercover and not recognized work in order to prevent malicious consequences from showing up due to our negligence as a society.

Danah Alzahrani

I enjoyed working Within a team From diverse cultural background To Accomplish The COIL Project by doing regular meetings and then making interview, story and poster about the Company we choose. I was Responsible for doing an interview with the Saudi company to learn about their sustainable business.

The challenges of coordinating with team members—each bringing distinct perspectives—were significant. Language differences and varying cultural expectations complicated our communication, yet they also enriched our discussions, leading to a more comprehensive understanding of the topic. I learned that embracing these differences can lead to innovative solutions and deeper insights.

Ultimately, this project reinforced the value of cross-cultural communication in addressing global issues like sustainability. It reminded me that diverse viewpoints are not just hurdles to overcome but vital contributions that enhance the richness of our collective work. This experience has deepened my appreciation for sustainability and the myriad ways it can be interpreted and implemented across cultures.

Charlotte van Nostrand

Working in a group of diverse backgrounds to research and interview a company that was focused on sustainability. Our group was composed of two students from Canada, two students from Saudi Arabia and two students from Spain. Together we found a company, interviewed them, wrote a story and designed a poster while working in different time zones and different languages. Organizing meetings to work around everyone’s schedules in different time zones was tricky and added a challenge to our assignment. This assignment allowed me to experience diverse opinions and taught me the importance of having a good relationship with my groupmates.

My task for this assignment was to find a company that participates in aspects of corporate social responsibility. While researching companies I looked for aspects of the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Our group agreed on a company from Saudi Arabia where I was tasked to create the poster from the story. All around, this experience allowed me to interact with students from different cultural backgrounds and taught me how to work with a diverse group.

Razan Almutawa

In a recent project, I worked within a team from diverse cultural backgrounds to create a story, poster, and interview focused on sustainability. I was responsible for conducting an interview with a Saudi company to learn about their sustainable practices. Coordinating with team members was challenging, as each of us had different perspectives on how to approach the topic. This added complexity to our communication, especially with language differences and varying cultural expectations. While preparing for the interview, I had to ensure that the questions were clear and culturally appropriate for the Saudi company, requiring a high level of cultural sensitivity and careful wording. Despite these challenges, I gained valuable insights from this experience; I learned the importance of adaptability and deep understanding, and I realized how diversity can enrich a project and give it new dimensions. Ultimately, the experience was beneficial in terms of cross-cultural communication and enhanced my understanding of sustainability from a unique perspective.

Brooke Willier

Working on the COIL Project with a diverse group of students from various countries was a unique and enjoyable learning experience. Within our group, we had students from Spain, Saudi Arabia and Canada. Navigating different time zones required us to communicate frequently and coordinate meeting times that work for everyone. We mainly used WhatsApp to communicate, which was a new experience for me since I had never used the app before. Throughout this process, our communication and level of comfort increased as we progressed. This experience taught me the importance of having diverse perspectives in a team can lead to a higher level of collaboration and creativity. My participation for this team included researching Canadian companies that contribute to sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Once we picked a company in Saudi Arabia, my responsibility was to create the poster alongside Charlotte. Overall, this experience has allowed me to recognize the large amount of companies that are dedicated to pursuing the Sustainable Development Goals, and the important of diversity in teamwork.

Jorge Marana

Working on the Project with such a diverse team has been an incredibly experience. Collaborating with people from Saudi Arabia, and Canada opened my perspective and helped me understand how each culture brings its own insights on topics like sustainability. One of the biggest challenges was coordinating meetings across different time zones and overcoming cultural and communication barriers. This experience required me to be more organized, flexible, and mindful of how different work styles can positively impact the team. Using platforms like Zoom and shared tools helped us stay aligned and allowed us to learn to respect and leverage each team member’s strengths. This experience taught me not only about sustainability and social responsibility, but also about the value of diversity within a team. I realized that each cultural perspective enriches the discussion and opens the door to innovative solutions. Working on a global project like this reinforced my belief that, to tackle complex issues, it’s essential to integrate diverse voices and promote a collaborative approach.

References

Country comparison tool. The Culture Factor Group. (n.d.). https://www.theculturefactor.com/country-comparison-tool?countries=canada%2Csaudi%2Barabia%2Cspain

Riyadh Metro. Siemens Mobility Global. (n.d.). https://www.mobility.siemens.com/global/en/portfolio/references/metro-riyadh.html

Riyadh Metro Transport. (2024, November 4). https://riyadhmetro.com/