Dr. Al Falasi showcased the UAE’s efforts in launching initiatives and programmes that contribute to greening schools…reports Asian Lite News
Dr. Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of Education, participated in the “Rethinking Education for a Climate Resilient Future” event that was organised by the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), the largest global fund solely dedicated to transforming education in lower-income countries, and a multi-stakeholder partnership in cooperation with the Brookings Institution.
The event was held on the sidelines of the 2023 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group (WBG).
Alongside Dr. Al Falasi, the panels featured diverse voices, including ministers, youth leaders, civil society organisations, and policy makers, to generate momentum for action around climate change and education nexus. Discussions highlighted the role of education in building climate-resilient societies by catalysing partnerships to build sustainable infrastructure for climate-smart education systems.
Dr. Al Falasi showcased the UAE’s efforts in launching initiatives and programmes that contribute to greening schools, with the aim of ensuring that the infrastructure of educational institutions is more sustainable and climate-smart. He said, “Our focus is on cultivating a well-rounded education that encompasses knowledge, skills, and values – especially among youth – in order to empower the next generation of leaders, who will steer us into a more sustainable future.”
Dr. Al Falasi noted that the Ministry of Education, in preparation for hosting COP28, is developing the domestic roadmap, which entails accelerating progress across all educational levels prior to COP28. The roadmap is focused on greening schools, greening learning, greening capacities, and greening communities.
He emphasised the ministry’s keenness to ensure that the roadmap can be adapted and scaled for different educational systems worldwide, noting that collaboration with international partners and multilateral cooperation are key to making these efforts a success.
The event contributes to generating more momentum around the key role of education in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also served as a platform to showcase the UAE’s efforts and progress in promoting sustainability and enhancing environmental awareness through its educational system.
African countries call for mutually reinforcing policies for sustainable development
The Kigali Declaration called on African countries to leverage new tools, innovative solutions, and technology, including through enhanced partnerships with the private sector, academia, non-governmental, civil society, and other stakeholders to build strong, agile, sustainable, and resilient national statistical systems.
Eight Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-8) ended with the adoption of the Kigali Declaration on good practices and solutions to enhance implementation of the sustainable development goals in Africa
African countries have reiterated the need to link mutually reinforcing policies for sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery to ensure inclusive emergence from the pandemic.
This came after the Eight Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-8) ended with the adoption of the Kigali Declaration on good practices and solutions to enhance implementation of the sustainable development goals in Africa, the ARFSD organizers announced Monday.
The Kigali Declaration called on African countries to leverage new tools, innovative solutions, and technology, including through enhanced partnerships with the private sector, academia, non-governmental, civil society, and other stakeholders to build strong, agile, sustainable, and resilient national statistical systems.
The ARFSD-8, organised by the United Nations Economic Commission of Africa (UNECA) and the government of Rwanda in collaboration with the African Union (AU) Commission, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and other entities of the UN system, envisaged reviewing and catalyze actions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and goals of the Africa’s 50-year continental development Agenda 2063.
“The Kigali Declaration urges African countries to link mutually reinforcing policies for sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery to ensure inclusive emergence from the pandemic,” the UNECA said in a statement.
The document highlighted the need for countries to leverage the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) to support the development of regional value chains, citing the case of minerals used in the production of batteries and electric vehicles as an example.
This year’s edition of ARFSD was held in a hybrid format in Kigali, Rwanda and virtually from March 3 to 5 under the theme “Building forward better: A Green, Inclusive and Resilient Africa Poised to Achieve the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063.”
Hanan Morsy, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), explained that the main purpose of the meeting was to review Africa’s progress and catalyze actions to achieve the 2030 sustainable development goals. The meeting was also meant to achieve consensus on urgent priorities for action, which are captured in the Kigali Declaration to be presented at the high-level political forum in New York.
Addressing the opening session, Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame expressed his hope that Africa will use the COVID-19 pandemic as a springboard to speed up progress and innovate smarter ways to invest in human capital development.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has slowed development gains, and in some cases reversed the progress that have been made,” Kagame told the high-level meeting, as he emphasized that as part of the continental COVID-19 response efforts “we can build an Africa that is greener and more resilient with a sustainable development goals and Agenda 2063 as our blueprint.”
Kagame’s sentiments were also shared by Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General, as she applauded the progress made on the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT).
The African continent must build “stronger and more resilient health systems by investing in healthcare,” a UNECA statement quoted Mohammed as saying during the opening session of the ARFSD-8.
UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of UNECA, Vera Songwe, explained that progress achieved by Africa in the areas of climate change, the continental free trade pact, the management of COVID-19, and education must be applauded.
Songwe said despite the tendency for the AfCFTA to be perceived as far-fetched, the fact that African countries have traded more among themselves during the pandemic than the five years before that period is a testament to the potential of the partnership.
The ARFSD is an annual multi-stakeholder platform organized by the ECA and the host government. This year, Rwanda, in collaboration with the AU Commission, the AfDB and other entities of the United Nations systems, is hosting the high-level gathering.
According to the UNECA, the three-day ARFSD-8 brought together African ministers, senior officials, high-level policymakers and experts from ministries and agencies and practitioners from UN member states, private sector, civil society, academia and UN organizations.
The regional forum is one of the three mechanisms mandated by theUN General Assembly to follow-up, review and catalyze actions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted by UN member states in September 2015.
SEE Institute will be the world’s most sustainable building and a hub to promote knowledge in sustainability…reports Asian Lite News
The Sustainable City in Dubai, the first fully sustainable development in the region unveiled its latest achievement: the world’s first Net Zero Carbon building.
The 50,000 sqf future-ready building will be home to SEE Institute, the sustainability research, development, and professional training arm of Diamond Developers. The state-of-the-art building is unveiled at WETEX & Dubai Solar Show, the annual trade exhibition organised by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) in Expo 2020.
The world’s first Net Zero Carbon building
The building will be offsetting all its embodied carbon emissions from construction & interiors prior to operations, based on a credible offset scheme.
The building will also produce more than 300% of its operational energy requirements through renewable sources including solar panels and a biogas plant handling organic waste from TSC. From this, 100% will cover the operational energy and 150% will offset emissions from commuting employees, water desalination, and consumable products that operate the Institute. The remaining 50% will enable the building to become carbon positive.
By exporting this surplus of energy to surrounding buildings and facilities, The Sustainable City will be setting a new precedent in transforming buildings from being pollutant, energy consumers into environmentally friendly, energy generators.
FARIS SAEED, CEO, DIAMOND DEVELOPERS:“SEE Institute is the embodiment of our mission to spearhead the global movement towards sustainable knowledge and learning advancement, in line with the aspirations of the Paris Climate Agreement and the urgency of worldwide climate action. It also paves the way for bringing the UN 2050 targets forward and achieving a Net Zero Carbon future today”.
The world’s first Net Zero Carbon building
“The Institute’s purpose is to accelerate climate action through education, R&D, business incubation, events and conferences. Through targeted collaborations with partners, academic and government entities, we aim to inspire others by sharing knowledge and expertise to ensure a better tomorrow for generations to come.”
The new building will be dedicated to the advancement of sustainability knowledge, technology and innovations through research, training, events and incubation of tech startups working on solutions promoting social, environmental and economic sustainability. Completion is expected in the next few months.
Govt nod to India, Japan MoC on sustainable urban development
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the signing of Memorandum of Cooperation on Sustainable Urban Development…reports Asian Lite News
It will create employment opportunities in the areas of urban planning, smart cities development, affordable housing and others, reports Asian Lite News
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the signing of Memorandum of Cooperation on Sustainable Urban Development between the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs and Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
To implement the project, a Joint Working Group (JWG) will be constituted to strategize and implement programmes on cooperation under the framework of the MoC. The Joint Working Group will meet once in a year, alternately in Japan and in India.
The cooperation under this MoC will commence on the date of its signature and continue for a period of five years. Thereafter, it may be renewed automatically for further successive periods of 5 years at a time.
Important decisions taken by the Cabinet today-
•Focus on Sustainable Urban Development-Agreements approved with Maldives & Japan. Will generate employment opportunities & promote strong bilateral cooperation in Smart Cities Development, solid waste management & green mobility.
The MoC will promote strong, deep and long-term bilateral cooperation in the field of Sustainable Urban Development between the two countries.
The MoC is expected to create employment opportunities in the areas of sustainable urban development, including Urban Planning, Smart Cities Development, Affordable Housing, (including rental housing), Urban Flood Management, Sewerage and Waste Water Management, Urban Transport (including Intelligent Transport Management System, Transit-Oriented Development and Multimodal Integration) and Disaster Resilient development.
The objectives of the MoC are to facilitate and strengthen India-Japan technical cooperation in the field of Sustainable urban development including Urban Planning, Smart Cities Development, Affordable Housing (including rental housing), Urban Flood Management, Sewerage and Waste Water Management, Intelligent Transport Management System, Transit-Oriented Development, Multimodal Integration, Disaster Resilient development and other areas as mutually identified by both Sides.
The proposed MoC will enable exchange of key learning and best practices in the above-mentioned areas. (INN)
