Over 20 scholars, academics, and activists from across the Muslim world came together earlier this month to issue a Declaration on Global Climate Change. I was genuinely impressed with the content of the declaration and believe it has the potential to be a powerful call for action. Besides the fact that it speaks to one of the […]
A values-based call for climate action Read More »
If you’ve engaged in the thinking around sustainability even from afar, then you’ve probably come across the energy hierarchy, water hierarchy, and waste hierarchy. These are simple models (often illustrated as pyramids or inverted pyramids) which help designers, planners, policymakers, and the rest of us make sensible decisions about managing energy, water, and waste. They do so
The Missing Hierarchy Read More »
A couple of years ago, I was introduced to the concept of City Resilience by some of my colleagues at Arup. Initially, I considered ‘resilience’ to be the likely next step for the ‘sustainability’ movement. However, as I look more into it, I am changing my view and realising that resilience is its own field, with potentially
Resilience…the New Sustainability? Read More »
I love this year\’s World Environment Day slogan: Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet. Consume with Care. I love it because it captures so well what I believe is this century\’s biggest challenge: providing for the wellbeing of up to 9 billion people within the finite resources of our planet. We are currently consuming at 1.5
One Planet Consumption Challenge Read More »
The first time I came across the topic, I was part of a team developing a sustainability framework for a mega transport project in the UAE. While there were a number of emerging local guidelines relating to sustainable buildings and neighbourhoods, there was a void when it came to local guidance on sustainability for infrastructure projects. Nevertheless, the client
On Sustainable Infrastructure Read More »
Congratulations to all those who will be finishing up their university degrees in the coming few weeks. You are probably looking forward to applying your hard-earned knowledge and skills in the real world. I am regularly approached for advice on starting a career in environmental and sustainability consulting, given that it is a relatively new field
Looking to start a career in environmental sustainability consulting? Read More »
The current main concerns with air quality in Abu Dhabi are the high ambient concentrations of particulate matter (PM10) and ground level ozone (O3)… Abu Dhabi’s annual average concentrations of PM10 were seven times higher than the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 20µg/m3 with peaks during dust storms reaching 14 , times the guideline. The
Air quality…easily the greatest threat Read More »
I had the pleasure of attending the MESL conference this week. There was one message which came across loud and clear: we need to do better, particularly in the Middle East, when it comes to designing landscapes with place in mind. As Dr. James Hitchmough bluntly put it, landscapes in the Middle East are being designed based
Green space in the desert? Read More »