Chairperson of Qatar Museums H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and other dignitaries at the launch of the exhibition.
Doha: “Countryside: A Place to Live, Not to Leave” has officially opened in Doha, a groundbreaking exhibition that reimagines the rural landscape as a dynamic space for sustainability, innovation, resilience, and future living.
Created by Qatar Museums (QM) in collaboration with Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), and sponsored by Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MECC), Hassad Food, and Kahramaa, the exhibition invites visitors to explore sustainable solutions to today’s global challenges and to reimagine the countryside as central to humanity’s collective future.
Running from October 29, 2025 to June 30, 2026 across two venues, the Qatar Preparatory School (QPS) and the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), the exhibition combines research, storytelling, and immersive displays to trace a compelling geographic narrative stretching from Africa through the Middle East and Central Asia to China. It challenges dominant urban narratives, inviting visitors to explore how rural life offers more humane and ecological solutions to today’s global crises.
The exhibition was formally inaugurated by Chairperson of Qatar Museums H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Founder of OMA Rem Koolhaas, Director of OMA Samir Bantal and a high-level delegation from QFFD, MECC, Hassad Food and Kahramaa.
Director of the National Museum of Qatar Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Thani said, “The National Museum of Qatar is proud to present this deeply informative, engaging, and innovative exhibition created by one of the world’s most brilliant studios for architecture and research. As a museum that explores the traditions rooted in Qatar’s desert and sea and looks ahead to extraordinary new possibilities on our nation’s horizon, we are excited to welcome our audiences to Countryside: A Place to Live, Not to Leave.”
Director General of QFFD Fahad Hamad Al-Sulaiti stated, “At the Qatar Fund for Development, our efforts are guided by the fundamental principle that sustainable development must place people and communities at its very center. The Countryside Exhibition embodies this principle, serving as a narrative platform that brings to life stories of resilience, innovation, and transformation from the world’s rural heartlands.”
Throughout the exhibition, compelling narratives of resilience are presented alongside tangible impacts derived from projects supported by QFFD together with its partners including UNDP and the Gates Foundation. These displays underscore the critical imperative for collective, multilateral action to address interconnected global challenges, foremost among them, food security, climate adaptation, and inclusive economic growth.
This collaboration reaffirms QFFD’s steadfast commitment to investing in scalable and sustainable solutions that empower rural communities, and enhance livelihoods.
