February 8, 2025

The past few months have certainly been eventful. There is significant progress in the global race to overcome, or at least reduce, the effects of the ever-growing issues related to climate change.

Egypt’s COP27 reached a breakthrough agreement to provide “loss and damage” funding for vulnerable countries hit by climate disasters, while Canada’s COP15 summit on biodiversity struck a chord. historic agreement aimed at protecting the environment and made a commitment to protect a third of the planet’s natural environment by 2030.

Meanwhile, the UAE, among other things, announced plans to introduce sustainability standards for buildings, roads, and homes to reduce its carbon footprint, while Dubai is accelerating the transition to a green economy. to announce a road map to make public transportation in the emirate emissions-free by 2050.

These steps will not come soon enough, because in 2022 we will also see some of the most important climate-related stories dominating the world’s headlines.

Floods, hurricanes and typhoons

The unprecedented floods in Pakistan have caused countless humanitarian and economic crises for the country.

Europe recorded its hottest summer since 2022, before reeling under high winter temperatures that forced ski resorts to close due to a lack of snow, while historic winter storms damaged the US and Canada.

What the world is experiencing is not normal. These rare extreme events are becoming more common and serve as a reminder for all of us to accelerate climate action efforts, both locally and globally. These events can also warn of consequences, especially the huge cost of inaction that the world can experience.

COP28

Image Credit: Screengrab from the video

Hope lies in innovation

As we face these major challenges, hope comes in the form of new technologies that offer solutions to the climate crisis. To better face these challenges, we need to measure and localize these innovations in addition to creating strong policies to encourage cooperation from all sectors.

Recognizing its most important meaning, innovation is one of the key topics discussed at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2023 this week, organized under the theme ‘United on Climate Action Toward COP28’ .

Masdar City’s global initiative called Innovate is one such program that includes a panel discussion featuring innovators and industry experts discussing critical climate topics. The program also hosted an exhibition at the World Future Energy Summit, where regional and international start-ups and small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) showcased some ground-breaking technologies.

Global events such as ADSW and COP28 are perfect examples to demonstrate the UAE’s commitment to embracing innovation for a sustainable future.

The country is at the forefront of creating an enabling environment for the development of innovative solutions to global challenges and is home to thought leaders and innovators from different parts of the world. .

Building a green economy

In line with its efforts to build a green and innovation-driven economy, as well as its ambitious vision for a road to net zero, the country is also home to some of the most innovative o and green-tech initiatives, including Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world using the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model. Masdar City in Abu Dhabi is another example, which contains one of the largest clusters of low-carbon buildings in the world.

In addition, the concept of sustainable living is gaining ground within the UAE, with many residents switching to sustainable lifestyles and becoming more environmentally conscious.

For example, in Sharjah Sustainable City, the first sustainable master-planned community in the Emirate of Sharjah, we have seen an increased number of people coming to learn about the residential project.

Here too, innovation plays a key role and is at the heart of its development. Equipped with renewable energy produced from rooftop solar panels, the city is built with sustainable materials, energy-efficient appliances and passive designs that help reduce utility bills and operational costs.

The community is also aligned with national efforts related to the food-energy-water nexus because it provides practical solutions related to food security, water and energy management, as well as natural resources conservation.

It is also committed to support start-ups and innovators, especially youth and women, to develop more innovations in the field of sustainability and cultivate a culture of business sustainability in Sharjah and other emirates.

For this reason, we have joined forces with various organizations to support initiatives such as the Access Sharjah Challenge, which empowers new, creative startups to grow and develop in the emirate of Sharjah.

Events like ADSW and COP28 will undoubtedly accelerate our efforts towards sustainable development, and innovation is always the key to opening the doors to progress and a sustainable future.

We must also embrace new ideas and technologies to encourage positive change and shape a better future for ourselves and future generations.

Yousif Ahmed Al-Mutawa is the Chief Executive Officer of Sharjah Sustainable City

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