Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group (ADSG) members and professionals concerned with sustainability and its implications for Abu Dhabi participated today in the 2nd Hiwar session on Sustaining Sustainability: Building a Robust Network for Good

Session focused on "Robustness" as an essential element for creating an effective sustainability network. It is the ability to manage uncertainty in a rapidly changing world.

Session was hosted by Abu Dhabi Airports Company, one of the ADSG members

Abu Dhabi, May 15, 2011: The Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group organized the second Hiwar session, an event that focuses on current economic, social and environmental issues and its implications for sustainability in Abu Dhabi, as seen through the lenses of practitioners from the government, business and not-for-profit community.

The Hiwar was led by Paul C. Light, a Paulette Goddard Professor of Public Service at the Robert Wagner School of Public Service at New York University.

He introduced the need to have robust organizations and networks, in a world with ever-deepening economic, social, and political uncertainty. Current methods of managing uncertainty are increasingly being questioned in the light of recent shocks such as the financial crisis.  He called for a sophisticated, but simple approach to hedging against risk and exploiting opportunities. He also called for networks that are particularly useful in achieving common goals for innovation and sustainability, both inside an organization and across a network. 

"Networks are essential for the "swarming" now needed to solve pressing problems. This cannot be done one organization at a time," said Prof. Light.

According to Prof. Light, all organizations seek high performance and there are four key pillars of high performance: Alignment to a clear mission such as sustainability, alertness to threats and opportunities, agility in responding to those threats and opportunities, and adaptability in bringing new ideas to the fore.

Prof. Light believes that Abu Dhabi should lead on building a robust network of organizations committed to performance excellence and sustainability.

"What you have here is a relatively small number of organizations that are highly motivated and a central unit devoted to maintaining the network and an international reputation. There are clear goals and deliverables involved in Abu Dhabi. Also, the commitment to sustainability is clear and the support for effort is growing. Abu Dhabi has all the right players involved and the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group is a remarkable open-source model for sharing ideas," he added.

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About Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group (ADSG)
Incubated by the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi with the support of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi Emirate, the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group (ADSG) is a membership-based organization whose mission is to promote sustainability management in Abu Dhabi by providing learning and knowledge sharing opportunities for government, private companies and not for profit organizations in a spirit of cooperation and open dialogue. At present, the ADSG has 23 members and is open to organizations willing to practice and champion sustainability in Abu Dhabi. For more information visit www.adsg.ae.

About Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD)
The Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD) was established in 1996 to preserve Abu Dhabi's natural heritage, protect our future, and raise awareness about environmental issues. EAD is Abu Dhabi's environmental regulator and advises the government on environmental policy. It works to create sustainable communities, and protect and conserve wildlife and natural resources. EAD also works to ensure integrated and sustainable water resources management, to ensure clean air and minimise climate change and its impacts.

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© Press Release 2011