Leaders driving the green agenda are being urged to step up their efforts to get the public "on board" with the transition to renewable energy.
Engaging with consumers is crucial to global efforts to tackle climate change, experts said at an Abu Dhabi conference.
Last week almost 200 countries signed a deal to slow global warming after two weeks of negotiations at Cop26 in Glasgow.
Leaders agreed to swap the phrase “phase out” coal for “phase down” to try to limit temperature rises to 1.5°C after some countries objected to the wording.
You will never do it without consumers. So you need them on board.
João Galamba,
Portugal’s deputy minister and secretary of state for energy
But speaking at a panel at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, speakers stressed the need to win public support.
They said some people are equally resistant to switch to renewable energy, which can be more expensive, and education will be key in persuading them.
Moderator John Defterios, professor of business at NYU Abu Dhabi, said governments had to get better at explaining the need to go green.
“If you asked them what happened at Cop26 the average consumer probably wouldn’t understand it,” he said.
“The average consumer who has to pay the household bills doesn’t understand the energy transition [from fossil-based fuels to carbon].”
Governments, the private sector, non-governmental organisations and others are not doing a good job of explaining there is a major shift, he added.
But the World Energy Council is working to change that, said the professor, by “humanising energy”.
That is important because consumers are key in the move to more renewables, said panelists.
“We all talk about the energy transition. But I think the trillion dollar question is how are we going to manage this transition?” said Dr Alparslan Bayraktar, Turkey’s deputy minister of energy and natural resources.
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Adipec 2021 - in pictures
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“We need to talk smart. [We need to be] inclusive. And we need to engage with citizens.
“Let me give you an example from Turkey. We introduced, almost two years ago, a green tariff. We said to consumers, if you would like to switch your tariff from regular mix to only green, of course you have to pay a little bit of a premium.
“And guess what, the switching rate was extremely low, negligible. People don’t want to pay. So humanising energy and to include citizens and consumers into this important.”
Fellow panellist Joao Galamba, Portugal’s deputy minister and secretary of state for energy, agreed bringing consumers on board was crucial.
“For the simple reason you will never do it without consumers. So you need them on board. You need a good story to tell,” he said.
“In Portugal we have a good story to tell. There is a clear economic advantage. There is a clear advantage in terms of costs.
“This is entirely true of the power sector. It might not be true in airline travel.”
The UAE is set to be at the forefront of the climate change conversation for the coming years after clinching host status for Cop28 in 2023.
The Emirates has pledged to hit net zero emissions by 2050 as part of a wide-ranging strategy aimed at protecting the environment.
Cop26 - in pictures
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
More on Quran memorisation:
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Raha%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Kuwait%2FSaudi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tech%20Logistics%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2414%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Soor%20Capital%2C%20eWTP%20Arabia%20Capital%2C%20Aujan%20Enterprises%2C%20Nox%20Management%2C%20Cedar%20Mundi%20Ventures%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20166%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
