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Climate Action and Sustainable Future

Imagine selling refrigerator and Air conditioners to people in Arctic Circle. It will be like selling the solar panels and wind mills to generate electricity in Middle East countries, which are fossil fuel rich. Middle East countries couldn't care less. Right?

Wrong. One of the Middle East countries is now not only flaunting plans to go solar, but even to go carbon-neutral! This carbon-affluent country is now promoting the sustainable living and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals with a persuasive and resonating message that 'fossil fuel is not sustainable'.

My recent visit to Qatar has shown that this carbon-plush country is set to do unthinkable. It is going for renewables! It is not a plan. It is already happening in this tiny country, where the fossil fuel (mainly Petroleum and Natural Gas) is life-line for its 70 percent of revenue and 60 per cent of GDP and 85 percent of export. But make no mistake, Qatar is not complacent about its prosperity and well aware of the inevitable energy transition that would revolutionise the world. Qatar is getting future-ready. Qatar can go for decades without any renewable energy as it has world's third largest reserves of natural gas. Amidst such carbon-abundance, I heard founding Chairman of Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD) Dr. Yousef Al Horr in my meeting with him expressing that Qatar's battle ground is in 'built-environment' meaning buildings and infrastructure where war against GHG emission, air and water pollution begins.

I had nothing but admiration when Dr. Al Horr said that the strategy to win this battle is embedded in educating the youth in the universities.

He went on to say, "The human and institutional capacity building needed to synergize the efforts towards sustainable development has led GORD to adopt multi-dimensional capacity building approaches for addressing the needs of public, governments and businesses". He strongly believes that the rising GHGs emissions, worsening air, water and soil pollution, fast depleting natural resources are all resulting into the risk of losing the prosperous and sustainable future.

To me, it was evident that GORD's objective coincides with the objective of Smart Campus Cloud Network of TERRE Policy Centre. TERRE and GORD agreed to explore the partnership for working together on Carbon Neutral University Campuses.

Qatar is evidently exceptionally forward-looking and action-inducing country. Its long term vision is catalysed by Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, head of the state of Qatar. Under his leadership, Qatar has prepared National Vision 2030. In his interaction with press in recent UN Climate Action Summit in New York, he stated that Qatar has prepared a set of fixed goals, the most important of which are those related to renewable energy to generating 200 megawatts from solar energy within the next two years, which will increase to 500 megawatts afterwards, and Qatar is seeking to regulate carbon pricing as a means of reducing emissions and driving investments towards cleaner options. He also declared that FIFA (football games) World Cup 2022 that Qatar is preparing to host, would be environment-friendly and the first "carbon neutral" tournament through the use of solar-powered stadiums and the use of cooling and lighting technology that is water and energy-saving.

GORD will be hosting Qatar Sustainability Summit (QSS) on October 27&28, 2019 to drive climate actions and find ways forward to a sustainable future. I would be speaking there on "Making Youth Climate and SDGs Action-Ready" with action on Smart Campus Cloud Network (see: sccnhub.com). Carbon neutrality would be one of the Green Destination themes of QSS.