Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2013

The United Arab Emirates believe that by innovating through action, and empowering others through collaborative engagement, they can help support the international movement towards sustainable development. The UAE believes that maintaining sustainable economies, environments and societies can and should happen in every corner of the world.

The need to conserve and preserve resources for succeeding generations is the UAE’s vision for the future. Significant environmental, economic and societal advancements will lead to a sustainable future. Therefore the gap between the developed and developing worlds must be bridged and international efforts to put the planet on a sustainable path must be enhanced.

With that in mind, and in response to the great efforts exerted by the Brazilian government at the RIO+20 Earth Summit and the global call to action - the UAE has launched the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. Abu Dhabi is a significant platform for international dialogue and cooperation. It is expected to welcome over 30,000 participants from 150 countries, including world leaders, policy makers, thought leaders, decision makers, experts, scientists, business and academia, in an effort to:

• Tackle the world’s pressing issues in energy, water and environment
• Accelerate the global adoption of renewable energy
• Address water challenges in arid regions
• Elevate the water - energy – food nexus topics on the global agenda
• Encourage the dialogue between broad industry stake holders to strengthen strategic partnerships
• Stimulate investment in water, energy and environment projects
• Promote the world’s latest innovation and technologies
• Empower the young generations and entrepreneurs

Participating Conferences & Events

The International Renewable Energy Agency General Assembly
Date: 13 - 14 January 2013
Location: Abu Dhabi

The Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week will commence with the International Renewable Energy Agency’s (IRENA) 3rd session of its Assembly, on 13 and 14 January 2013, which will then be followed by the participating events that will take place throughout the week. IRENA is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to renewable energy. IRENA's objective is to promote the widespread and increased adoption and the sustainable use of all forms of renewable energy. This concerns energy that is produced from renewable sources, which include bioenergy, geothermal energy, hydropower, ocean, solar, and wind energy. IRENA was founded on 26 January by 75 states which signed its Statute and became a fully established international organisation headquartered in Abu Dhabi at its inaugural Assembly on 4 to 5 April 2011. To date, the membership of IRENA comprises 158 states and the European Union.

World Future Energy Summit 2013
Date: 15 - 17 January 2013
Location: ADNEC

World Future Energy Summit is the world's foremost annual meeting committed to advancing future energy, energy efficiency and clean technologies by engaging political, business, finance, academic and industry leaders to drive innovation, business and investment opportunities in response to the growing need for sustainable energy. WFES remains the focal point of the activities and has adopted the theme "Powering the future of energy innovation" for its 2013 edition.

ADIREC 2013
Date: 15 - 17 January 2013
Location: ADNEC

ADIREC is a high-level political conference series dedicated exclusively to renewable energy and hosted by alternate Governments every two years and convened by REN21. IREC is for government, private sector and civil society leaders to jointly address the goal of advancing renewable energy and has provided the impulse for several momentous initiatives over the past decade. Next year's IREC in Abu Dhabi (ADIREC) will continue to build upon the successes and outcomes of the previous conferences held in Delhi in 2010, Washington in 2008, Beijing in 2005 and Bonn in 2004. over 1,000 delegates at ADIREC including energy & environment ministers, decision makers from national governments and international organizations, renewable energy industry experts, science & academia and NGO representatives.

International Water Summit 2013
Date: 15 - 17 January 2013
Location: ADNEC

The International Water Summit is a new global platform for promoting water sustainability in arid regions. As a natural extension of the UAE’s commitment to sustainability, the first International Water Summit will be co-located with next year’s World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi - bringing together policymakers, scientists and business leaders to tackle the urgent water and wastewater challenges facing arid regions

The Zayed Future Energy Prize Awards Ceremony
Date: 15 January 2012
Location: Emirates Palace

The Zayed Future Energy Prize represents the vision of the Late Founding Father of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan, who championed sustainability and environmental stewardship. The prize categories (Large Corporation, SME, NGO, Lifetime Achievement and Global High Schools Prize) focus on supporting emerging businesses, individuals and support future generations that have innovative ideas and projects that can create a positive impact on meeting the requirements of our greatest energy and sustainability challenges by providing real-world solutions.

Each of these categories is evaluated based on the four core criteria of the prize:

• Leadership
• Long-term Vision
• Innovation
• Impact

The Zayed Future Energy Prize gives innovators a unique meeting platform and aims to become a catalyst for the adoption and dissemination of renewable energy and clean technology solutions worldwide. In 2013, the 5th annual Awards Ceremony of the Zayed Future Energy Prize will take place during the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

Further Information:
web: www.abudhabisustainabilityweek.com
web: www.worldfutureenergysummit.com
web: www.irena.org
web: www.ren21.net
web: www.iwsabudhabi.com
web: www.zayedfutureenergyprize.com

Source: The Architect