Dubai – Panellists in the 3rd annual UAE Public Policy Forum explored the opportunities and challenges surrounding sustainable development, as well as ways to engage all members of the community in development efforts.
Titled “Sustainable and Resilient Cities: Opportunities and Policy Challenges to Building Smart Cities”, the panel brought together Ivano Ianelli, CEO of Dubai Carbon Centre for Excellence; Saeed Al Abbar, Managing Director and Chairman of the Board at Emirates Green Building Council and Managing Director at AESG; Dr. Victor Pineda, Director of the Inclusive Cities Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, and President of World Enabled; and Mira Ahmed Al Sheikh, Project Manager at Smart Dubai.
During the session, Dr. Pineda showcased his experience as a Person of Determination in integrating this segment of the community in efforts to shape the future and implement sustainable development goals (SDGs), presenting frameworks that can be implemented that meet the needs of this segment. The UAE has offered an outstanding and commendable model in that regard, Dr. Pineda noted – one that stimulates innovation among all segments of society, despite any difficulties they may face.
“Sustainability requires reshaping the creative environment to better integrate People of Determination and empower them to be a productive segment of society, capable of inspiring ideas and innovation, which, in turn, makes the cities of the future more inclusive for every member of society in work and in everyday life,” Dr. Pineda asserted, noting that the integration process requires several elements, notably: Laws that ensure smooth integration; a supportive leadership; appropriate budgets; dedicated institutions; and, finally, participation from all segments of the community to facilitate integration of People of Determination.
On managing rapid population growth while limiting energy consumption, Ivano Ianelli noted that Dubai has made great progress in implementing long-term sustainability goals and has been a role model in this field, promoting innovation in such sectors as transport, energy and waste management, which is particularly important for developing sustainability assessment equations and indexes. “The projects undertaken by the UAE – and Dubai, in particular – to reduce carbon emissions have driven emission rates from 40,000 tons per year down to just 18,000,” Ianelli went on to note, calling for further engaging the private sector in the process.
For his part, Saeed Al Abbar discussed ways to develop cities without harming the environment and despite the increase in population, explaining that the Emirates Green Building Council has established a new approach to construction that reduces carbon production to zero, designing smart buildings that do not emit any CO2. “To achieve these objectives, it is important to promote innovation from the private sector. We believe that teams of engineers from different companies can come up with innovative solutions to achieve these ambitious goals,” he added.
Meanwhile, Mira Ahmed Al Sheikh highlighted Smart Dubai’s role in achieving the 11th objective of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development to design smart city blueprints that that can be implemented in any country, taking into account the differences and specificities of each individual city. Dubai has made significant progress in achieving SDGs, providing all its residents with seamless access to basic services such as health and transportation. Smart Dubai had launched several initiatives and strategies to that end – from the Dubai Blockchain Strategy and the Dubai Paperless Strategy, which significantly reduced paper consumption in Government agencies. “Smart Dubai focuses on three main points when setting policies: Technology, culture, and legislation that ensures this technology is used properly,” Al Sheikh said.
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