Abu Dhabi: Environmental and urban experts from across the globe are meeting in Abu Dhabi on Sunday with the aim of making cities across the world more sustainable.
They will convene for the 11th edition of the Ecocity World Summit, which is expected to see the attendance of 800 delegates from 70 countries. The long-running biennial conference is being held in the region for the first time. The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD), the environmental regulator for the emirate of Abu Dhabi, is the lead organiser for the event.
Reem Al Hashemi, Minister of State and director general for the Expo 2020’s Dubai Bureau, is expected to preside over the opening ceremony with an address on mobility, sustainability and opportunity as the visions for Expo 2020. Other key speakers include Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, secretary general at the EAD, Saeed Al Tayer, chief executive officer at the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, and Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, director of energy and climate change at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This year’s conference focuses on building ecocities in challenging environments, and is also being supported by the UAE ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abu Dhabi emirate’s urban regulator, the Urban Planning Council, besides renewable energy company Masdar.
In a statement sent on October 10, the UPC said that the summit could result in the preparation of a tangible plan that enables effective and sustainable urbanisation in desert climates such as the UAE’s. A number of new partnerships and projects within the Middle East and North Africa region are also expected to be launched.
