Dubai appears to be a bubble. Hard to tell.

But Dubai is definitely built on sand. And if global warming does cause serious ice melts, then all those fancy artificial islands would be under water. That would be poetic justice, considering that petroleum is a major contributor to global warming.

Meanwhile the Maldives are preparing to abandon their natural islands. They are exploring buying land in Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, etc.

I regularly transit through Dubai. But investing there is not a rock solid proposition.