Abu Dhabi, 8th May, 2008: The Al Basama Al Beeiya (Ecological Footprint) Initiative research team met with the Central Statistics Department of the Ministry of Economy earlier this week to strengthen links and to obtain input on both UAE population and trade statistics for calculating the energy component of the UAE's Ecological Footprint.

Carbon dioxide emissions from energy consumption constitute 76 percent of the UAE's Ecological Footprint as per the 2006 Living Planet Report. This is the net* energy consumption figure for the UAE. (Net Energy consumption = Production plus Imports minus Exports). 

H.E Rashid Ahmad Bin Fahad, UAE's Minister of Environment and Water, had in his address to the second Steering Committee meeting of the Al Basama Al Beeiya held in Ras Al Khaimah on 17 April 2008, highlighted the critical role organisations such as the Ministry of Economy and the Federal Customs Authority could play in supporting Al Basama Al Beeiya's objectives.  

"Our meeting with the Al Basama Al Beeiya team is a follow through of the understanding, amongst the Steering Committee members, of the importance and potential of the Footprint as a powerful decision making and policy formulation tool for the UAE," said Rashid Khamis Al Suwaidi, Undersecretary for Planning and Statistics at the Ministry of Economy.  

"In the long term it is critical to build a database of environmental statistics and update them constantly. This we believe will enhance the environmental field in the country and provide a reference point for international, local and regional organizations. We need to develop a common methodology to arrive at the calculation for the indicators of the ecological footprint," said Al Suwaidi.

He also stated that a national team that will work on Footprint methodologies needs to be established and called for a meeting with researchers working in the fields of population and foreign trade to work together.

"We are very pleased to extend our cooperation to Al Basama Al Beeiya's research team and hope to positively contribute to this vital national initiative by providing a better understanding of the trade dynamics of the UAE and help calculate the carbon dioxide footprint", added Al Suwaidi. Following the meeting, an official from the Central Statistics Department has been seconded to the Al Basama Al Beeiya research team.

"Our collaboration with the Ministry of Economy is expected to strengthen the research team's access to accurate information and data on consumption within the UAE as well as exports. In addressing the same issues, we are pleased to also acknowledge the participation of the Federal Customs Authority who has seconded two of their staff to the Initiative's research team," said Razan Al Mubarak, Managing Director of Emirates Wildlife Society-World Wide Fund for Nature, Al Basama Al Beeiya's NGO partner.

"It is important that our research into the carbon dioxide footprint ensures that the footprint resulting from goods consumed in the UAE is distinguished from the footprint of goods in transit or re-exports," she added.

The Al Basama Al Beeiya continues to forge relationships with key institutions and organisations in view of its long-term goal of institutionalising the principles of sustainability and sustainable living.

-Ends-

Al Basama Al Beeiya 
The Al Basama Al Beeiya (Ecological Footprint) Initiative is the UAE's national effort to ensure a sustainable future by measuring and understanding the impact of our way of living on planet earth.  It is a historic initiative to collect vital national data according to uniform and proven standards.  Al Basama Al Beeiya will be a major tool for the government to make informed policy decisions and to uphold Sheikh Zayed's environmental legacy. The national partners in the Al Basama Al Beeiya believe that the initiative is the UAE's need of the hour, considering the country's rising consumption levels and the rapid pace of development.   

Background
The Ecological Footprint is a sustainability indicator that measures the use of natural resources by the population of a country and is expressed by a unit of bio-productive land called 'global hectare' (gha). According to the Living Planet Report 2006, the UAE has the highest ecological footprint in the world with UAE residents averaging 11.9 gha (global hectares) per person. This translates to each UAE resident requiring 7 planets to support his / her current lifestyle.

However, a review and analysis of the sources of the data used to calculate the UAE's ecological footprint has indicated that there is a considerable gap between the knowledge and data that existed in the international records and the ground data collected by local organizations. The Al Basama Al Beeiya initiative will not only close that gap, but will provide the country's leadership and government with reliable and much needed information that will then be used as a policy-guiding tool.  

Partners 

MoEW: The Ministry of Environment and Water in the UAE is part of the federal government and oversees the country's environmental policies and programmes. The ministry's mission is to achieve balanced and sustainable development in the country.  

AGEDI: AGEDI was launched in 2002, as the UAE's response to a direly felt need for a formal body in Abu Dhabi to provide comprehensive and relevant data that would improve environmental policies and their role in the decision-making process. AGEDI's efforts led to the publication of the first State of Environment (SoE) report for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in March this year.  

EWS - WWF: The Emirates Wildlife Society (EWS) was established as a public interest society in February 2001 by a ministerial resolution under the Societies of Public Interest Law of 1974. The environmental NGO is registered with the Ministry of Social Affairs. Its mission is to conserve biodiversity and promote sustainable living through education and conservation initiatives in the UAE. EWS works in partnership with the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), one of the world's most well-known global conservation organizations.

GFN: Global Footprint Network is a charitable social-benefit organization with the mission of making ecological limits central to decision-making everywhere. Together with over 70 partner organizations around the world, GFN coordinates research, develops methodological standards, and promotes innovative applications to provide decision makers with tools that will help the human economy operate within the Earth's ecological limits.  GFN serves as the steward for the National Footprint Accounts, which calculate the Ecological Footprint and bio-capacity of 150 nations from 1961 through the present. These accounts have helped the Ecological Footprint become one of the most globally successful and widely applied sustainability communication and education tools.  

For further information:  
Brian Carvalho
ASDA'A Public Relations
Tel: 009712 6334133
Fax: 009712 6334233
Mob: 00971 50 3117167
Email: b.carvalho@asdaa.com  

© Press Release 2008