Reimagined Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week concludes with global commitment to deliver green recovery in 2021
Weeklong platform saw multiple announcements for sustainable projects
Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW), the global platform for accelerating sustainable development hosted by Masdar, concluded on Thursday with a resounding global commitment to deliver a green recovery in 2021.
From January 18 to 21, ADSW took place in a reimagined virtual setting, and attracted more than 100,000 views from 175 countries across its online platforms, reiterating its importance as the annual global sustainability event that sets the agenda for the year.
ADSW included high-level virtual events: ADSW Summit, which took place in the presence of Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice-President of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, the Renewable Energy Agency’s (Irena) 11th Assembly, the Abu Dhabi Sustainable Finance Forum, the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, Youth 4 Sustainability Virtual Forum; and the World Future Energy Summit Back to Business Webinar Series.
The ADSW speaker programme featured more than 500 global leaders and decision-makers from policy, industry and technology, including Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Special Envoy for Climate Change, and Masdar chairman of Masdar. In attendance were also Charles, Prince of Wales; Prince Albert II of Monaco, António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, and Khaldoon Al Mubarak, managing director and group CEO of Mubadala Investment Company.
Irena’s 11th Assembly brought together heads of state, government, ministers and energy decision-makers to discuss the global energy transition and the further adoption of renewable technologies.
The flagship ADSW Summit featured more than 90 global leaders from around the world and explored the social, economic and technological opportunities for delivering a green recovery.
The third edition of Abu Dhabi Sustainable Finance Forum hosted by Abu Dhabi Global Market highlighted the importance of a sustainable and equitable approach to rebuild the global economy.
The Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Forum and World Future Energy Summit Webinars highlighted the opportunities for advancing the energy transition and race to net zero.
Masdar’s Youth 4 Sustainability Virtual Forum was led by members of the global youth community, and explored ways for young people to play an active role in the implementation of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the UAE’s 50-year Development Plan. The forum covered topics across leadership and sustainability, skills and future of work, and innovation challenges.
ADSW 2021 also featured The Global Innovation Award, which is organised on behalf of the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment. It named Cambrian Innovation from the US the overall winner of the award.
The week welcomed several commercial announcements relating to the adoption and development of hydrogen in the UAE. Mubadala Investment Company, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and ADQ, announced the signing of an MoU to establish the Abu Dhabi Hydrogen Alliance, with the view to establish Abu Dhabi as a trusted leader of low-carbon green and blue hydrogen in emerging international markets.
Building on the Alliance, Masdar, the world’s leading renewable energy companies, announced it would join forces with Abu Dhabi Department of Energy, Etihad Airways, Lufthansa Group, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Siemens Energy, and Marubeni Corporation in an initiative designed to support the development of the green hydrogen economy in Abu Dhabi. The initiative aims to establish a demonstrator plant at Masdar City.
Building on the 2020 Abraham Accords, Masdar also signed a strategic agreement with French group EDF Renewables to explore renewable energy opportunities in Israel and support the country’s clean-energy objectives. Israel is targeting 30 per cent of its energy coming from renewable sources by 2030, up from a previous target of 17 per cent, as it looks to phase out coal use. Achieving the new target will require an additional 15 gigawatts of solar capacity being developed over the period.
Masdar also released during ADSW its 2020 Annual Sustainability Report, which revealed it had more than doubled its clean energy capacity in the last two years, generating enough electricity to power over four million homes.