Science | 2019
Qatar looks to the future
Abstract
The Gulf nation s new museum celebrates the country s biodiversity, cultural heritage, and what s to come The small desert nation of Qatar underwent a crisis on 5 June 2017. Neighboring countries imposed a blockade that turned it into a virtual island, surrounded on three sides by water and on one side by hostile territory, isolating it politically and eliminating the transport lines that previously supplied 80% of its food. Qatar s response has been to develop domestic resources and consolidate its national identity. The 28 March opening of the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ) in the capital city, Doha, served as a defiant celebration of that identity as an open Muslim society.