How Abu Dhabi is inspiring collaboration for climate action
The capital has long provided an important venue for high-level climate forums
Climate change is a complex tangle of multi-dimensional issues that affects every person on Earth. Those issues can only be tackled with an unprecedented level of global collaboration – between governments, yes, but also businesses, NGOs, and civil society.
The UAE is a natural meeting point for bringing those groups together, to forge the agreements we need to limit the global temperature rise. A historic crossroads between east, west, north, and south, the emirates are within an eight-hour flight of two-thirds of the world’s population, and a natural host for this year’s COP28 – the United Nations Climate Change Conference.
Abu Dhabi itself is a steadfast champion of climate action – its founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, was a concerted advocate for conservation. And the emirate is home to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), which aims to strengthen multilateral and international cooperation between its 168 member states and advance sustainable solutions along the path to net-zero.
These qualities make Abu Dhabi a natural host for numerous forums throughout the year, where leaders come together and drive the change that matters.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Once COP28 concludes in December 2023, Abu Dhabi will host its annual Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) in early 2024. First held in 2008, the January 2023 edition brought together 36,000 participants from 170 countries, with more than 600 global speakers.
“If we want to achieve lasting change, we must get people – including those who might not ordinarily cross paths – to talk to each other,” says Dr. Lamya Fawwaz, Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar, the UAE’s renewable energy company, which hosted ADSW 2023. “That’s how ADSW works. Innovators, politicians, business leaders, civil society, women, young people – every voice is valuable and heard.”
For example, ADSW plays host to the WiSER (Women in Sustainability, Environment and Renewable Energy) Annual Forum, which aims to inspire and empower women in addressing global sustainability challenges.
Indeed, there is also a strong focus on “amplifying the voices from the Global South,” says Dr. Fawwaz. Thirteen heads of state attended ADSW, including Yoon Suk Yeol, President of South Korea, and Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
The event delivers real results. Partnerships are formed, high-level agreements are signed, and business ideas are launched. For Masdar’s part, the company “signed deals to develop renewable energy projects with a combined capacity of 5GW in Angola, Uganda, and Zambia,” says Dr. Fawwaz.
Despite its name, ADSW occupies more than just a single week. Dr. Fawwaz says it is “a year-round initiative” spanning “roundtables, reports, and sessions via the ADSW Live virtual platform.”
And it has bred a host of associated, sector-specific forums that operate under the ADSW banner.
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
Abu Dhabi Sustainable Finance Forum
According to IRENA, global investment in energy transition technologies reached a record high of $1.3 trillion in 2022. But achieving the Paris Agreement goals requires four-times that number. With their colossal capital reserves, and enormous market influence, institutional investors are best placed to find the money.
Hosted by the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) during ADSW, the Abu Dhabi Sustainable Finance Forum (ADSFF) convenes global leaders from finance authorities, institutional investors, and sovereign wealth funds.
The forum focuses on the mechanisms for directing investment towards climate goals. Talks at this year’s event spanned government Green Growth Strategies, supporting sustainability startups, carbon markets, and sustainable investment by pension and sovereign wealth funds.
Speakers included delegates from BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, and the World Bank, alongside government representatives and climate innovators.
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
Such luminaries gather in Abu Dhabi due to its twin status as climate champion and global finance hub, reflected in its sovereign wealth fund (SWF), the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and being a founding member of One Planet Sovereign Wealth Funds (OPSWF) – a group established in 2017 to harness the long-term investment goals of SWFs.
Other events lean on the UAE capital’s pedigree in the energy industry, and its support for innovation.
World Future Energy Summit
Part of ADSW, the World Future Energy Summit has been gathering policy makers, energy leaders, and innovators to discuss, showcase, and collaborate on clean energy technologies since 2008. It attracts over 30,000 visitors, 2,000 exhibitors, and 700 speakers from across the world.
The inaugural summit also launched the Zayed Sustainability Prize. Named after Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the prize is awarded to NPOs, SMEs, and high schools, for innovative sustainability solutions. In its 15 years, the prize has been awarded to 106 winners, impacting 378 million people across the world.
This year’s event opened a new chapter in net-zero energy innovation, with the first Green Hydrogen Summit. Green Hydrogen is regarded as a crucial fuel on the path to net-zero, particularly for decarbonizing aviation, shipping, and heavy industry.
Topics at the event included “reducing the cost of hydrogen production, enhancing hydrogen transportation and storage infrastructure, establishing industry-wide regulations and standards, and unlocking financial support,” says Dr. Fawwaz.
The summit underlines Abu Dhabi’s support for the nascent green hydrogen industry. Masdar is “aiming to produce up to one million tonnes of green hydrogen per annum by 2030,” adds Dr. Fawwaz.
Consensus on climate
Abu Dhabi has “a proud history of bringing leaders together to form consensus,” says Dr. Fawwaz. It is a history the UAE capital is bringing to bear on climate change. Such consensus has never been more important.
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
Executive Director of Brand and Strategic Initiatives at Masdar
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