Time to tackle the climate challenge is now

Gulf News, 11.09.18

With the Global Climate Action Summit set to begin in San Francisco today, there is a renewed focus on the role that non-state actors are playing in the fight against climate change. Though the Paris Agreement is a pact among national governments, it is clear that the effort to meet the agreement’s goals must permeate across levels of jurisdiction and engage multiple actors. Regions, cities, companies and individuals all need to act if the world has to keep global average temperature increase to 1.5 Celsius, or even 2 Celsius, above pre-industrial levels.

 

 

It is not a mere coincidence that the summit is taking place in California — an American state that has taken a progressive stance on climate change despite the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. Following the withdrawal, the US has seen the emergence of the ‘We Are Still In’ coalition, comprising states, investors, faith groups, universities among others. The coalition today represents “more than half of all Americans” and “$9.46 trillion in GDP,” and its contributions to climate action are proof that efforts can be stepped up even when state support is falling short.

If emissions continue unabated, it is estimated that the planet will reach the climate threshold in less than two decades. Achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 is key and emissions need to start declining steeply to get there. National commitments — submitted to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in the form of Nationally Determined Contributions, government finance and regulatory interventions are, of course, critical. Yet other actors must both complement, and participate in, government initiatives. Even national commitments can only be achieved with the engagement of local constituencies.

Innovative diversification

In the UAE, there is growing momentum to address climate change within federal and local governments, businesses and non-governmental organisations. Government initiatives have taken cognisance of the role of non-state actors. ‘Private Sector-Driven Innovative Diversification’ is among the three key priorities laid down in the UAE National Climate Change Plan. A number of companies are working to curb their electricity and water consumption. Heavy industries like cement have invested in more efficient and less polluting technologies.

In 2015, Dubai joined the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group. The Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Initiative has undertaken extensive climate modelling and research. Emirate-level electricity and water authorities, transport and energy regulators, are investing in sustainable technologies and services. Emirates Wildlife Society — WWF has been partnering with both government entities and companies to advance climate action, foster dialogue and build awareness. Business councils, and platforms such as the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Group and Emirates Green Building Council, are enhancing local capacity.

The UAE being a largely fossil-fuel based economy with high per capita energy consumption, prudent consumption and use of renewables need to be accelerated. There is potential to do much more. The country has embraced innovation — adoption of climate solutions provides the UAE another opportunity to build a smart future.

India and UAE: Charting new growth path with BIPA

South Asia Monitor; 23.02.14

[http://southasiamonitor.org/detail.php?type=sarc&nid=7414]

 In the popular imagination, two themes dominate the India-UAE politico-economic equation: oil trade and movement of Indian migrants to the West Asian country (and related remittances). While these continue to remain important, various other issues and areas of bilateral economic activity have emerged as significant. The total trade between the two countries is in excess of $75 billion. In December 2013, the countries signed a Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPA). Being seen as a precursor to the India-GCC Free Trade Agreement, the BIPA further opens up avenues for bilateral investments and provides a framework for their protection.

As the two countries expand engagement, two areas that present high potential for bilateral cooperation are clean energy and education. While clean energy provides scope for immense trade and investment related benefits, forays in education need to be pursued not only for economic returns but for return in terms of enhanced cultural capital and public goodwill.

For India, deficient in energy resources and with large swathes of the population without access to lifeline energy, renewable energy holds the key to the provision of decentralized energy solutions. In urban spaces, roof top solar photo voltaic panels, use of solar energy for heating, and waste-to-energy projects can be installed in individual buildings and for servicing communities. The World Bank report of 2013, ‘Paving the Way for a Transformational Future: Lessons from JNNSM Phase1,’ lauded the country’s Solar Mission for upscaling the deployment of solar and bringing down the cost of solar power and calling on stakeholders to devise innovative financing solutions for further growth. The country targets achieving 20,000 MW of solar generation capacity by 2022. The UAE, though bestowed with large fossil fuel reserves, falls short of power (largely natural gas-based) and imports gas to meet its requirements. The country is also keenly aware of the need to reduce its carbon footprint – amongst the highest in the world. The government of Abu Dhabi has set a target of generating 7% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020. The emirate of Dubai targets generating 5% of its energy from solar by 2030. Though the targets seem modest, they are a significant step along the right trail.

As both the countries invest in renewable energy, India’s strong manufacturing base in solar PV modules, and solar thermal systems can be employed for the advancement of renewable energy in both the countries. Pioneered by Masdar, a Mubadala company, the UAE has made strides in clean energy research, training and capacity building, and sustainable built environment solutions. The cutting edge research being undertaken in the cradles of scientific research in India and the UAE provide fertile ground for research collaborations. Launched in April 2012, the Research Centre for Renewable Energy Mapping and Assessment (RECREMA) at Masdar Institute is in the process of developing solar and wind energy resource maps for the UAE. India’s experience of resource mapping can be of assistance to the UAE scientific community and policymakers, and at the same time India can learn from the techniques being used by the UAE. 

In education, Indian private players have already registered their presence. Dubai, having adopted a unique model of establishing a free zone for education, has attracted a number of foreign universities to set up campuses in the country. The other emirates, too, host many foreign universities’ campuses. The UAE, characterized by a young demographic profile, is committed to providing sound academic and professional training to its population. Student exchanges and research/teaching partnerships – driven by more than profit alone, between Indian and UAE universities, can go a long way in fostering both academic excellence and cultural exchange. Though setting up Indian universities’ campuses in the UAE is one way to further both economic interaction and people-to-people contact, short-duration exchanges and establishment of collaborative centres in Indian or UAE universities or colleges, too, need to be promoted. Public universities can engage in such programmes, without incurring significant costs, and the Indian diaspora in the UAE would welcome such initiatives.

A Joint Commission at the level of Foreign Ministers and an India-UAE Joint Business Council have been working towards deepening of political, business and cultural ties. With the signing of the BIPA, the UAE government has allocated $2 billion for investments in infrastructure projects in India, adding to its current investments which are to the tune of US$8 billion. Investment deals in ports and power infrastructure are on the cards. Both sides have also committed to resolving impediments around current investments opportunities. Notably, the Jet-Etihad deal is currently under the scanner of the Securities and Exchange Board of India over alleged violation of takeover rules.

The signing of the BIPA has brought a renewed energy to the India-UAE relationship. India’s large and growing market (allied with growing oil demand and business opportunities), and UAE’s emergence as a business hub, bring forth critical business interests. As important strategic and economic players in South Asia and West Asia respectively, India and the UAE can chart a collaborative future for the two ends of the Asian continent.

Green diplomacy

Khaleej Times, 21.01.14

THE ABU Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) has emerged as a landmark congregation of energy and environment stakeholders. While the substantive advantages of such an exchange — spread of scientific know-how and business-generation — are significant, the ADSW is also an important element of the UAE’s green public diplomacy effort.

In the past, the country was listed amongst those with a high carbon and ecological footprints. But as the government seeks to take strides in renewable energy (RE) innovation and resource conservation, the country is also giving due attention to enhancing its global image. Public diplomacy which involves engaging and influencing international public audiences, including even local populations, is a strategic tool that can create a conducive environment for the pursuit of strategic political and socio-economic objectives. The UAE is deploying it well to raise its profile as a thought leader in environmental diplomatic quarters and as an investment destination. The country seeks to establish itself as a champion of sustainable development, despite being an economy that is dependent on fossil fuel exports for a large share of its revenue.

The ADSW is not a singular effort. Today, the UAE houses the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the first inter-governmental organisation with its secretariat in a West Asian country. This itself is a result of a concerted diplomatic effort, and has marked the UAE as a nerve centre on the map of multilateral initiatives in sustainable energy. In 2009, Germany and Austria, the other contenders in the bid to house the headquarters, withdrew their candidature and agreed to host satellite institutional centres.

The IRENA headquarters have made Abu Dhabi a hub for international dialogues on renewable energy that engage a repertoire of diplomats, technocrats, scientists and environmental thinkers and activists. At the same time, the UAE government has worked to map and develop RE resources domestically and promote RE projects abroad. The country has particularly highlighted the RE development potential offered by islands. A number of island nations are wholly dependent on fossil fuel imports for meeting their energy requirements, and renewable energy development can offer an alternative.

The UAE has sponsored small RE projects in Seychelles and Tonga. It has also established funds offering concessional loan facilities for Pacific islands and for IRENA developing countries. These programmes not only strengthen the UAE’s political and economic ties with these countries but also generate public goodwill. In today’s information environment where there is a proliferation of sources, well-designed and well-implemented public diplomacy initiatives have helped the country formulate and enhance its image as a supporter of public welfare and international sustainable development.

One important advantage of public diplomacy efforts is that these initiatives speak to political leaders and bureaucrats along with the larger community of investors, business persons, civil society activists and world citizens. In some cases, direction of messages from a government to international public audiences can cut through the hostility prevalent in counterpart bureaucracies. It can go a long way in informing and altering public opinion — the diplomatic genius that made Vladimir Putin “speak directly to” Barack Obama and the American people through a New York Times Op-ed at the height of the Syrian crisis in 2013.

On the other hand, public diplomacy efforts are often criticised for being akin to manipulative public relations exercises. This view finds its genesis in the very real possibility of states deploying such initiatives to lend credence to misinformation in the game of diplomatic one-upmanship and to garner legitimacy for unpopular foreign policy objectives.

Yet public diplomacy, including instances such as the UAE’s support to overseas RE projects and facilitation of multilateral dialogues, remains crucial to a country’s international public profile. What is being served is the cause of environmental awareness, business-to-business linkages and scientific advancement. Like individuals and corporations, states too need to invest in building perceptions through action-oriented programmes and wider communication of policies. The UAE’s green diplomacy is geared towards these objectives and has the potential to further yield scientific, developmental and economic 
dividends.