Zero carbon cities are relatively new concepts that aim to support cities in realizing ecological, social and economicsustainable futures. It is argued that urbanization in developing countries may be the distinct greatest challenge in thiscentury. It is expected that 400,000 square kilometers will be built in the coming 30 years. This is equivalent to the world’sbuilt-up urban area in last 2000 years, given that cities alone account for 78 % of anthropogenic carbon emissions.Furthermore, more devastation has been caused by the latest severe climate events, such as an increased average globaltemperature, flooding, and massive forest fires. Accordingly, a sense of urgency has turned about the necessity to adoptsustainable and ecological design principles for future cities development. Egypt as one of the developing countries thatis the third largest populated nation in Africa, is facing a series of threats. From which limited access to natural resourcesin relation to the population size and economic growth besides the continuous challenging climate change implications.Furthermore, Egypt is recently facing a major energy security problem, which strongly impacts all national plans foreconomic development. Despite that, till now there are no clear laws or legislations for eco cities like zero carbon citydesign and construction. The aim of this research paper is laying hands on hidden potentials and analyzing successfulprivate initiatives for existing eco communities in Egypt. Initiatives that have tried to apply some traditional zero carbondesign concepts based on lessons learned from vernacular architectural heritage in Egypt. The paper adopted an analyticalcase study method tackling different aspects like; renewable energy, permaculture, passive systems, green infra structurelike eco-sanitation, recycling and solid waste management ending with carbon free transportation and green circulareconomy. The research contributes by critically analyzing such attempts and concludes with design best practices andstrategies on how to reach an environmentally enriched, healthier, resilient and socially rewarding zero carbon cities,running on their own locally available resources. Hoping that the recommendations are a nucleus for a national designstandard or a best practice manual towards better equitable urban future.