One global perception of the UAE commonly held can often be contrary to the reality. While often portrayed as the land of skyscrapers and oil wealth, the UAE should equally be known for its diverse environmental ecosystems. Be it marine and coastal, desert, wetlands or the mountains, each of the seven emirates is home to vast natural reserves that have been nurtured and maintained due to a long-held country-wide focus on sustainability, biodiversity and ecological conservation.
Be it Sharjah’s Wasit Wetland Centre or Dubai’s Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary, there are numerous conservation projects that are central to the country’s ecological identity and form a part of the country’s climate action strategy in one way or another.
Last week, Abu Dhabi – already a frontrunner in the conservation sphere – took a landmark step in announcing at the end of the IUCN world conservation conference that one third of its land mass will comprise nature reserves. This is a bold move that aligns neatly with the country’s vision to prepare for the future and take steps to tackle climate change.
Abu Dhabi has long chosen the path of maintaining the ecological balance, given the existence of Al Wathba Wetland Reserve, the Mangrove National Park or the wildlife reserve on Sir Bani Yas Island, among several other green spaces spread across the emirate.
The announcement is consistent with the UAE’s planning for the decades ahead, and in line with a growing Gulf trend. In 2023, the Gulf Co-operation Council countries showed a 6.6 per cent increase in the area of terrestrial reserves across member countries.
Environment and Protected Areas Authority in Sharjah, or the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD), carry out regular patrols. Recreation or commercial activity in these areas require permissions or impact assessments. Laws often also regulate activities around reserves if those can affect the reserve’s environment-buffer zones.
Even around the world, there has been progress on this front as the international community appears to be on track to meet global targets. Last October, the UN said there had been headway on pledges to protect 30 per cent of the Earth by 2030 – what’s known as the “30x30” target.
But even as that signifies progress in a world worryingly beset by news of hottest summers on record, flashfloods and wildfires, it is of the utmost importance that the work of nurturing biodiversity anywhere in the world not stop merely at the demarcation of areas as reserved or protected.
In Abu Dhabi, there is little fear of that. For one, EAD, which will manage the 4,600 kms of newly designated reserves, is a well-established entity, with decades of experience and local know-how in the area of conservation and the protection of endangered species. The agency also works with local law enforcers in conducting inspections to support the country’s National Biodiversity Strategy 2031.
The strategy focuses on six key pillars, including the protection and monitoring of critical biodiversity areas and minimising the impact of climate change.
With an expanded area of land to become nature reserves, it is clear that Abu Dhabi, and indeed the UAE, even as it caters to the demand of a growing population, is opting for a more sustainable path than one of unfettered development at the cost of the environment.
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Jeremy Allen White, Odessa Young, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 4/5
Landfill in numbers
• Landfill gas is composed of 50 per cent methane
• Methane is 28 times more harmful than Co2 in terms of global warming
• 11 million total tonnes of waste are being generated annually in Abu Dhabi
• 18,000 tonnes per year of hazardous and medical waste is produced in Abu Dhabi emirate per year
• 20,000 litres of cooking oil produced in Abu Dhabi’s cafeterias and restaurants every day is thrown away
• 50 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s waste is from construction and demolition
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder MHEV
Power: 360bhp
Torque: 500Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh282,870
On sale: now
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus
To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.
The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.
SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.
But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Tuesday (UAE kick-off times)
Leicester City v Brighton (9pm)
Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United (11.15pm)
Wednesday
Manchester United v Sheffield United (9pm)
Newcastle United v Aston Villa (9pm)
Norwich City v Everton (9pm)
Wolves v Bournemouth (9pm)
Liverpool v Crystal Palace (11.15pm)
Thursday
Burnley v Watford (9pm)
Southampton v Arsenal (9pm)
Chelsea v Manchester City (11.15pm)
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
Results
2.30pm: Expo 2020 Dubai – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m; Winner: Barakka, Ray Dawson (jockey), Ahmad bin Harmash (trainer)
3.05pm: Now Or Never – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: One Idea, Andrea Atzeni, Doug Watson
3.40pm: This Is Our Time – Handicap (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Perfect Balance, Tadhg O’Shea, Bhupat Seemar
4.15pm: Visit Expo 2020 – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Kaheall, Richard Mullen, Salem bin Ghadayer
4.50pm: The World In One Place – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1.900m; Winner: Castlebar, Adrie de Vries, Helal Al Alawi
5.25pm: Vision – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Shanty Star, Richard Mullen, Rashed Bouresly
6pm: Al Wasl Plaza – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Jadwal, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
Married Malala
Malala Yousafzai is enjoying married life, her father said.
The 24-year-old married Pakistan cricket executive Asser Malik last year in a small ceremony in the UK.
Ziauddin Yousafzai told The National his daughter was ‘very happy’ with her husband.
Teams in the EHL
White Bears, Al Ain Theebs, Dubai Mighty Camels, Abu Dhabi Storms, Abu Dhabi Scorpions and Vipers
The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
