UAE innovation strategy calls for investing AED 300 billion to diversify the economy and develop sustainable green industries  

Climate Change Negotiation Forum at Zayed University will have impact on the future shape of fundamental science and engineering research programs

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates- March 15, 2016: Under the patronage of Her Excellency Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of State for Tolerance and President of Zayed University, Climate Change Negotiation Forum ‘The Road from Paris’ will commence tomorrow (Wednesday) at Zayed University in Abu Dhabi campus.

The official opening ceremony will be attended by Her Excellency Sheikha Lubna, who will give a keynote speech, Professor Reyadh AlMehaideb, Vice President of Zayed University, and number of representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as the private sector.

The conference is organized by Zayed University College of Sustainability and Human Sciences in collaboration with Directorate of Energy and Climate Change at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and Regional Office for West Asia (ROWA).

The one-day forum aims to evaluate outcomes from Paris COP21 meeting with special focus on the impact in the UAE and GCC region. It will serve as a platform for decision makers, scientists, young researchers, and private sector representatives to interact and discuss the research agenda for the future.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC Parties (Conferences of the Parties) (COP) to assess progress in dealing with climate change, and beginning in the mid-1990s, to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol to establish legally binding obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

UN climate conference (COP21) concluded with a historic agreement to combat climate change through actions and investment towards a low carbon, resilient and sustainable future. The Paris Agreement for the first time brings all nations into a common cause based on their historic, current, and future responsibilities. The universal agreement’s main aim is to keep a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius and to drive efforts to limit the temperature increase event further to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

“Climate change is not only an environmental challenge. It is a development issue, which has enormous economic and social consequences. We need to know the scale of the economic, social, and ecological challenges that stand against the sustainable development. This has promoted the UN at COP21 to redefine the 8 MDG into 17 SDG that expands the concept of sustainability and asks nations to work locally, regionally and globally to achieve it within the economic and societal contexts,” Her Excellency Sheikha Lubna said.

“The UAE government has committed to developing sustainable economy through various initiatives. These include environmental protection, investing in renewable energy, green buildings, and others, and the UAE innovation strategy calls for investing AED 300 billion in various aspects that help diversify the economy and develop sustainable green industries,” she added.

Therefore, Her Excellency pointed out that “This timely conference at Zayed University will have impact on the future shape of fundamental science and engineering research programs. This conference considers that societal factors influence natural resources priorities and several dimensions of sustainable development which will subsequently define research topics in this area.”

The one-day conference is co-sponsored by the Consolidated Contractors International Company and will be attended by Masdar Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Khalifa University, and Abu Dhabi University.

An interactive panel discussion will also be held in order to engage Zayed University students, educate them, raise their awareness about climate change as an environmental challenge, and give them first-hand experience to talk with practitioners and show how to reduce vulnerability to climate change impacts and build adaptive capacity and resilience.

“I am confident that this conference will serve as an ideal platform to answer all questions related to climate change issue with special focus on the impact in the UAE and GCC region,” Professor Fares Howari, Chair of the Organizing Committee, said.