The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) has developed a strong COP28 programme and active presence through a series of activations that demonstrates its diverse pool of projects and initiatives and reaffirms its commitment to combating climate change and increasing awareness among the community.
EAD will also play a pivotal role with a negotiation team that will be representing the UAE in key discussions and negotiations linked to climate action. The negotiators will also be sharing experiences and points of view with other negotiators from around the world to fulfill the mission of COP28 as a successful platform for key decisions regarding climate change.
EAD delegation will be led by Dr. Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri, Secretary-General of EAD, who stated, “As our wise leadership has asserted, COP28 is the UAE’s most important event for 2023, and we are in alignment with the vision of the UAE in ensuring that the event is the most successful COP ever. To this end, we at EAD will be hosting a plethora of events and activations that we believe will shed light on Abu Dhabi’s leading role in conserving the environment and in climate action.”
She added, “Just this year, we launched the Abu Dhabi Climate Change Strategy – a framework that serves as our vision for how we can mitigate and adapt to climate change – one of our key milestones in our alignment to the Net Zero 2050 Pathway.”
Examples of activations involving EAD include, participating in a unique story telling event, in partnership with the Department of Energy (DoE), to showcase the Abu Dhabi Climate Change Strategy and how it will make Abu Dhabi resilient and provide a healthier future for upcoming generations.
EAD will also be sharing the success of the Abu Dhabi Mangrove Initiative (ADMI) which involves the restoration of mangroves in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. Known for their superb carbon sequestration rates, they are a leading nature-based solution to help combat climate change.
Most importantly, EAD will be announcing how many mangroves it will be planting as part of the ‘Ghars Al Emarat’ initiative – which aims to plant 10 mangroves for each COP28 visitor as a tool to offset their carbon footprint.
EAD will be hosting dedicated events to highlight its youth programmes and the EAD Youth Council will also be extremely active with a long list of activations.
EAD will also be discussing the Cap and Trade initiative and carbon pricing, and showcasing the remote-sensing vehicle emissions project, which has demonstrated significant results and will inform future plans for air quality in Abu Dhabi.
In addition, EAD will be signing a Letter of Collaboration signing with the Foundation of Environmental Education (FEE) on site at COP28.
EAD plans to showcase its range of mobile applications, as well as the newly launched NAHA platform, which is a culmination of all EAD’s main outreach initiatives and provide a range of tools and resources to empower individuals to adopt environmentally-friendly lifestyle changes.
In the Green Zone, EAD will also have a booth where a series of EAD videos will be streaming on important topics such as mangroves, fisheries, its youth-ranger programme and its successful Oryx rehabilitation programme and others.
EAD will be a key player in a variety of ways during COP28 throughout the whole duration of the event, to maintain the momentum of the climate change dialogue and to sustain exploring ways to further Abu Dhabi’s stewardship regarding climate action.