Climate change, population growth and increasing rates of urbanisation have put a strain on the environment in complex and intertwined ways. Encouraging sustainable development and protecting the environment are key to ensuring future growth in Abu Dhabi. The need for solutions has created opportunities for investment and innovation, and pushed the market towards economic diversification. The emirate’s low levels of rainfall and high temperatures have led to large increases in water and energy demand. Further adding to the strain are high rates of per capita resource consumption, rapid development and a sharp population increase. These factors have also led to greater volumes of waste and encroachment into natural habitats. As part of efforts to address these challenges, Abu Dhabi’s overarching policy initiatives seek to balance social and economic development with environmental sustainability, with the underlying understanding that environmental wealth and well-being is crucial to long-term prosperity.
This chapter contains an interview with Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri, Secretary-General, Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi.
Environment
Chapter | Environment from The Report: Abu Dhabi 2020
Displaying 1 - 6 of 183
The economy of Kuwait has long been underpinned by the production and export of crude oil. Although the rise in energy prices in 2021-22 boosted government revenue and macroeconomic stability, the Covid-19 pandemic, which preceded the commodity price boom, underscored the risk of over-reliance on an industry subject to fluctuating global demand. This has created fresh impetus for economic diversification, with robust public finances providing a strong platform to...
Economic update | Asia: Year in Review 2022
5 Jan 2023
An easing of Covid-19-related restrictions and shifting supply chains have bolstered growth in Asia, even as inflation and climate change generate significant headwinds.
Economic update | Urban areas experiment with cooling technologies to combat climate change
1 Dec 2022
With temperatures in cities set to rise in the coming decades, many public and private players in emerging markets are looking to tackle the challenge of extreme heat through technology, sustainable building techniques and the expansion of urban green spaces.
In the fight against climate change, forests are vital carbon sinks, absorbing twice as much carbon as they produce each year globally.
As climate change causes sea levels to rise to unprecedented levels, governments and citizens in vulnerable countries are looking at innovative ways to forecast, prevent, adapt to and insure against flooding.
Vision 2030 includes social development initiatives to empower micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and citizens, promote entrepreneurship and widen access to financing.