On 7 December 2015, we officially launched the 4^th Annual EmiratesGBC Awards honouring organizations in the MENA region that demonstrate clear implementation of sustainable design, construction and/or operation of buildings and structures.

We are now accepting applications for the following categories:

• Green Building of the Year and its 4 sub-categories: Green Hotel, Green Commercial Building, Green Residential Building, Green School;
• Green FM Organization of the Year;
• Green Material/Product of the Year;
• Green Building System of the Year;
• Green Research of the Year;
• Green Training Initiative of the Year.

The deadline to submit the applications is 18 February 2016.

Winning organizations will be awarded during the Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner which will take place at the Murooj Rotana Hotel in Dubai on 18 May 2016.

Requirements for each category, terms & conditions and application form are available on the EmiratesGBC 2016 Awards website.

For questions and enquiries please contact egbcawards@emiratesgbc.org. For sponsorship opportunities please click here to access our 2016 packages.

The EmiratesGBC 2016 Awards are audited by KPMG. A big thank you to our Silver Sponsor, Dow Chemical, for its support.

Along with the EmiratesGBC 2016 Awards, the Student Excellence Award rewards a student from a recognized UAE university who has conducted exceptional research work in a subject related to green buildings in the Middle East. The winning student will be announced at the Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner on 18 May 2016 at the Murooj Rotana Hotel in Dubai.

Deadline for students to submit their research and required documents is 18 February 2016 COB.

Requirements, terms & conditions and application form are available on the 2016 Dr. Owainati Student Excellence Award.

For questions and enquiries please contact egbcawards@emiratesgbc.org.

Emirates Green Building Council is pleased to announce its recent initiative to further educate the industry and community by sharing green building tips through an online toolkit.  The toolkit is being developed with the objective to provide relevant information on green buildings that can be incorporated into the EmiratesGBC website and communicated to those of various levels of technical capacity.

EmiratesGBC is currently in the development stage of this project and we are seeking committed partners to support the project.  Once the Green Building Toolkit is launched online, it will be available for thousands of individuals and businesses to use to assist them with decisions to make their homes, offices or schools more efficient and sustainable.

The Emirates Green Building Council will promote the Green Building Toolkit through its website, newsletter, press release, events, social media and through email announcements to both its membership and non-membership database.  We invite you to partner with us for an initial 2-year period, and support EmiratesGBC to extend its reach promoting green building practices.

To gain more information on the sponsorship opportunity for the EmiratesGBC Green Building Toolkit, please contact Rania Haddad at engagement@emiratesgbc.org or 04-3468244.

As a result of cooperation between the Centre for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), a comprehensive study on the “State of Play of Sustainable Building in MENA” is being conducted to support the Global Initiative for Resource Efficient Cities (GI-REC) that was launched by UNEP in 2012. The objective of this study is to provide a regional review and baseline for policy makers in the region.

In support of this study, Emirates Green Building Council has compiled research to demonstrate the state of green buildings and cities in the UAE. The State of Play of Sustainable Building in MENA will be launched during a regional meeting organized by CEDARE in Cairo, Egypt at the 17^th and 18^th of January 2016.  EmiratesGBC is proud to be a part of this regional report and we look forward to sharing our findings.

EmiratesGBC prepared the 2015 City Briefs for Abu Dhabi and Dubai in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC). These briefs highlight the green building policies and stakeholders in Abu Dhabi and Dubai with emphasis on the planned and implemented initiatives that promote sustainable development.

Stay Tuned! The briefs will be available on EmiratesGBC website in early 2016.

EmiratesGBC would like to thank its members, Griffin Consultants, DSA Architects International, CH2M, PeoPla Green Technologies and BK Gulf for submitting their pledges to support the UAE Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) submission to COP21 to increase the clean energy to 24% of the total energy mix by 2021.

As part of EmiratesGBC’s commitment, we will  serve our members through measuring and verifying their pledges to support the UAE INDC commitment to COP21.

EmiratesGBC members are encouraged to issue their own specific corporate commitments, demonstrating the ambition of their business to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the built environment.

It’s not too late to submit your pledge! Contact us today on engagement@emiratesgbc.org!

EmiratesGBC is proud to present the Energy Efficiency Program‘s online database, which is a publicly available directory featuring reputable ESCOs, Suppliers, Consultants and FMCs serving the retrofit market in the UAE.  The database is officially supported by Etihad Energy Services (Etihad ESCO).

Moreover, the Program’s online database registration form has recently added new and important features:
1) Accredited ESCOs can now upload and showcase their respective RSB logo on the database:

2) Companies that have Certified Energy Managers/Auditors among their personnel can also upload their respective logos:

EmiratesGBC encourages its Corporate Members to avail the opportunity for market visibility, access to competitive pricing, and priority market requests by registering and submitting their company qualifications.

For more info, please contact eep@emiratesgbc.org!

EmiratesGBC held its final Focus Day of 2015 in partnership with DEWA on 7^th December in DEWA’s Sustainable Building in Al Quoz under the theme ‘Powering Innovation: Green Buildings and Energy Management’. Faisal Rashid, the Director of the Demand Side Energy Management at Dubai Supreme Council Energy, presented the keynote address. The following panel on ‘Regulation & Implementation of Renewables’ was addressed by Faisal Rashid; Saeed Al Abbar, Chairman of EmiratesGBC; Daniel Zywietz, Deputy Chairman, Clean Energy Business Council & CEO of Enerware; Johannes Waimer, Solar Consultant at Premier Solar Technologies; and Elie Matar, Head of Electricity at Dubai Regulatory & Supervisory Bureau. Discussions focused on the importance of solar energy in achieving net zero energy buildings. The panelists also added that under the current regulations, savings can be achieved with acceptable payback period for solar investments, and called for updating the regulations based on technology advancements.  At the end of the event, delegates undertook a tour of DEWA’s Sustainable Building.

The year 2015 for EmiratesGBC marked an extraordinary line-up of popular topics that were well received by attending members and partners. Over the past year, EmiratesGBC Technical Workshops delved into a range of topics including lighting technicalities, commercial refurbishment, green facility management, BIPV technology, green concrete, ESCO technologies, and HVAC optimization methods, among others.

Last month, an enlightening workshop addressed the various software used for successful building energy retrofit and post-occupancy energy management projects. Participants gained perspective on a range of versatile and ground-breaking software that have yet to permeate the UAE market, despite the energy efficiency potential within the country.

A Summary Brief compiling the discussion points from all 2015 Technical Workshops will be uploaded on the website in a few weeks and shared with the industry.  We hope the Brief will serve as a valuable reference.

For this new year, the first Technical Workshop will be held at EmiratesGBC office on January 12^th from 8:30am to 10:30am. The topic will discuss External Thermal Comfort. To register, please email technicalworkshops@emiratesgbc.org.

Technical Workshops are open to EmiratesGBC members and partners only and subject to limited seating. Please be sure to register your participation early.

In 2015, the MENA GBC Network collectively focused discussions and activities around the theme of “sustainable affordable housing”, concluding the year with a seminar organized alongside The Big 5 exhibition in Dubai in November. A  joint document is currently under preparation to address the topic from each GBC’s perspective including current situation, challenges and opportunities in the region.

The next topic to be commonly addressed in 2016 is “green schools”, which aligns with areas identified as critical in the UAE and the region, including such focus areas as the positive impacts of healthy IAQ and indoor comfort on cognitive performance. We will keep you posted during the year on the MENA Network’s progress.  In the meantime, however, do not hesitate to contact us on info@emiratesgbc.org for more information.

The MENA GBC Network represents 15 GBCs within the World Green Building Council regionally and ensures shared knowledge on programs, projects, and policies and aims to capture the diversity of challenges and solutions while taking into account the uniqueness of climatic or cultural conditions.

Congratulations to our corporate members “Adeeb Group” for their accomplishment and recognition in winning Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award in “Silver Grade” during its 14^th Cycle for the 3^nd Consecutive year for the service sector category. The Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award (SKEA) was launched by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ADCCI) back in 1999 as a blue print, a roadmap and a methodology for continuous improvement aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of the Business Sector in Abu Dhabi and the UAE.

To celebrate the first Buildings Day ever, which took place on 3 December 2015 in Paris along with the COP21 negotiations, World Green Building Council released a summary report covering all the activities and pledges that GBCs initiated all over the world. As you will see in the report, with its pledge campaign EmiratesGBC has actively engaged its members to commit for a green future and we are hoping for more pledges in the coming weeks. Furthermore, as part of the COP21 UAE delegation, our Chairman Saeed Al Abbar attended and participated in meetings and workshops in Paris to showcase how the country is doing in terms of district energy and building efficiency.

December was a fruitful month in reinforcing our partnerships to make Green Key a stronger eco-certification in the country.

On the 7 Dec, we had the pleasure to welcome to Dubai Mr. Finn Thomsen, International Green Key Director and the Deputy CEO of the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE)-left on the picture, who joined us for a full day of certifcation audits and strategic discussions. We also met with the Environmental Centre for Arab Towns (ECAT), Associate Member of FEE in the UAE to finalize our three-way agreement and foresee the best way to support each other’s programs.

The 2016 Green Key re-certification process has now started, and we invite all UAE hotel properties to contact greenkey@emiratesgbc.org should they want to receive more information on the Green Key criteria and how to get certified.

On 23 December 2015, EmiratesGBC joined the Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD) in their quarterly meeting with representatives from the Ajman tourism industry. Mrs. Habiba Al Marashi, EmiratesGBC Co-Founder and Treasurer, presented the Council’s vision, mission and programs to His Excellency Mr. Faisal Al Nuaimi, General Manager and an audience of local hoteliers. She also had the honor of presenting His Excellency with a copy of the EmiratesGBC Technical Guidelines for Retrofitting Existing Buildings.

The meeting provided an ideal platform to support the ATDD and network with key players in the Ajman hospitality sector.

EmiratesGBC offers a series of professional training programs in partnership with British University in Dubai (BUiD). The following courses are scheduled to take place in Dubai during the first months of 2016.

Based on the growing demand for qualified professionals, the Certified Energy Auditor (CEA) and Certified Energy Auditor in Training (CEAIT) certifications were developed and added to the broad portfolio of professional certifications offered by the Association of Energy Engineers now offered through EmiratesGBC-BUiD training program. The first three day Certified Energy Auditor course will be held on January 12-14.

Also on the calendar is the Certified Energy Manager (CEM) training, which will be held February 21-24.  The CEM qualification is aimed toward engineers and architects working in the areas of energy engineering or energy management. For more information and to register your intent for upcoming courses, please contact our education partner BUiD.

EmiratesGBC is happy to support The World Future Energy Summit (WFES), part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, taking place 18-21 January 2016. The WFES is dedicated to advancing future energy, energy efficiency and clean technology. It’s where government leaders, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, investors and thousands of visitors come together to experience the latest developments in future energy. For the world’s energy innovators and suppliers, it’s a must-attend opportunity to network, launch, discover and build valuable new partnerships. We invite you to visit the EmiratesGBC booth at the WFES. Click here to learn more and to register.

Also in January, EmiratesGBC is supporting the Future Interiors UAE, which provides the meeting place for project owners, project managers, design professionals, contractors and consultants to stay up to date on industry trends and lucrative business opportunities. The event will serve as an important platform for the Interiors community to discuss the very latest trends and developments both in the region and those unique to the UAE. Click here for registration.

Later in February, the Council is will be supporting the Future Landscape & Public Realm in Abu Dhabi, which is a specialized conference exploring the opportunities and challenges in developing Abu Dhabi’s public realm to create an appealing, sustainable city. The second annual edition will provide a unique platform for business professionals to discuss the latest challenges and opportunities covering the landscape and public realm industry in Abu Dhabi and the wider UAE. Click here for registration.

Emirates Green Building Council’s presence in trade magazines and national newspapers is continuously growing.  Below are a few highlights:

• The EmiratesGBC campaign to support the UAE commitment to COP21 was highlighted in Al Ittihad, Albawabah.ae, Abu Dhabi Environment, Menaherald, inews-arabia.com.
• The EmiratesGBC participation in The Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD) quarterly meeting was covered by the media in The Gulf Today, and Wam UAE.