AGEDI research presented at the Third International Symposium on the Effects of Climate Change on the World’s Oceans

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Santos City, Brazil – AGEDI’s regional ocean model on large-scale climate change projections on the Arabian Gulf was presented at the Third International Symposium on Effects of Climate Change on the World’s Ocean in Santos City, Brazil. The Symposium provided an opportunity for the international scientific community to share the latest information, understanding and assessments of the impacts of climate change on oceans worldwide. The event saw 12 sessions covering different but interconnected themes, from physical processes and their interaction with ecosystem dynamics, to resource provision and ocean governance. The regional ocean modelling under climate change is part of AGEDI’s four-year Climate Change Programme.

Middle East’s first Ecocity World Summit calls for abstracts

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The next Ecocity World Summit (ECWS), to be hosted in the Middle East for the very first time, has called on the wider community to submit abstracts for papers or presentations at the summit, set to be held in Abu Dhabi from 11 to 13 October 2015. Authors are invited to advance the state of thinking and inspire the next generation of ideas, projects and strategies for eco and smart cities of the future. If selected, authors will be given the unique opportunity to present their work to a top-calibre audience of local and international governmental, academic, private-sector leaders and eco-experts. The deadline for abstract submissions is 15 April 2015. Visit the ECWS page for more information.

Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi to boost environmental information for decision-makers

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Over 650 delegates from government, UN bodies, the non-governmental sector, private sector, academia and civil society will gather in Abu Dhabi between 6 and 8 October for the Eye on Earth (EoE) Summit 2015, to bridge the information gap policy-makers face in designing plans for sustainable development.The experts gathered will explore solutions and actions necessary for greater access to, and sharing of, environmental, social and economic data to support sustainable development. The Summit will address the profound impact that rapid economic and industrial development is having on natural resources, biodiversity and consumption patterns around the world. These global challenges require international collaborative action to find transformative solutions that span political boundaries and help secure a sustainable future for all. One of the critical first steps – and the focus of EoE Summit 2015 – is to address the need for evidence-based decision-making that can benefit from the available wealth of scientific data, information and knowledge, if they are made more accessible to all. For more information, visit the EoE website.

AGEDI presents Blue Carbon work at Natural Capital Symposium

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Stanford, CA, USA – AGEDI presented its Blue Carbon work at the 2015 Natural Capital Symposium – held at Stanford University – which gathers people from around the world that are working to factor the true value of nature into decision-making. AGEDI participated in the Symposium’s Lightning Talks session,  highlighting its Abu Dhabi Blue Carbon Demonstration Project and how the project findings have been used in Abu Dhabi’s coastal ecosystem management and climate change mitigation and development plans.

AGEDI appointed lead technical coordinating agency for GCC-level of Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative

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Lima, Peru – The Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative was launched at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) 20th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 20) held in Lima, Peru in December 2014. The Initiative, a collaborative effort between the secretariat of UNFCCC and the United Nations Environment Programme, aims to remove knowledge barriers that impede the implementation and scaling up of adaptation action. During UNFCCC COP 20, the UAE’s delegation offered to conduct adaptation knowledge gap analysis and priority setting for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. As the appointed lead technical coordinating agency at the GCC level, AGEDI will leverage capitalise on its Climate Change Programme, while the UNFCCC will provide the global platform to present the outcomes of this collaboration.

AGEDI presents at Coral Reefs of Arabia Conference

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Abu Dhabi, UAE – The Arabian region contains some of the most unique but understudied coral reef ecosystems on earth, including those in the Arabian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, and the Red Sea.  The Coral Reefs of Arabia Conference, held at NYU Abu Dhabi from 15 to 17 February, brought leading scientists and marine managers studying these reefs together to exchange recent research findings, and to enhance collaboration to improve understanding and conservation of these important ecosystems. AGEDI’s work in Arabian Gulf Climatic Ocean Modelling was showcased at the event via a poster presentation, illustrating how climate change is expected to unfold in the oceans in the Arabian Gulf. Oceans Modelling is one sub-project of AGEDI’s Climate Change Programme – the most comprehensive study of the issue for the region.

Making Better Cities Panel Discussion

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Abu Dhabi, UAE – In the run-up to the 11th edition of the Ecocity World Summit on 15 October, 2015, the longest-running conference series on urban sustainability, AGEDI hosted the Making Better Cities special event in Abu Dhabi with more than 100 attendees. Following welcoming remarks by H.E. Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Secretary General of Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, a panel discussion commenced and was moderated by Anthony Mallows, Director of Masdar City. Panelists included Richard Register, Founder of Ecocity Builders; Dieter Salomon, Mayor of Freiburg City, Germany; Ng Lang, CEO of URA, Singapore; and Arab Hoballah, Chief of Sustainable Consumption and Production at the UNEP/DTIE. Discussion topics included smart growth, liveability, innovation in and financing of ‘going green’ schemes, obstacles to further improvement in urban sustainability, and moving to fully green city systems from present test zones.

Third session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

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Abu Dhabi, UAE – AGEDI joined a UAE delegation to the third session of the plenary of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which was held from 12 to 17 January, 2015, in Bonn, Germany. IPBES aims to be the leading intergovernmental body for assessing the state of the planet’s biodiversity and its ecosystems. Discussions focused on communications and stakeholder engagement strategies, budget, strategic partnerships, rules of procedure, and on institutional arrangements for the UN collaborative partnership. Four regional sessions on regional assessments were also held.

National Reporting Toolkit Workshops

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Abu Dhabi, UAE – AGEDI, in association with Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, recently hosted a four-day workshop on the National Reporting Toolkit (NRT). Led by the Centre for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE), the team presented the latest NRT developments to the Ministry of Environment and Water, and to environment and statistics authorities from each of the Emirates. The team also collated feedback about the NRT from each stakeholder group, to be incorporated into the Toolkit’s functionality as it undergoes further development.