In this episode of the Sustainability Lounge by EmiratesGBC, hosted by ​Ayhan Tugrul, Board Member of EmiratesGBC and COO of CARES, the council invited a very special guest to tell us about how choosing to live in green buildings shapes the future of our cities and generations ahead. Farah Naz, Global Climate Advisory Director at Surbana Jurong Group, Corporate Member of EmiratesGBC, shares how the future of urban development and the critical role cities play in addressing climate change. Together, we discuss why cities are responsible for the majority of global emissions, the challenges leaders face in implementing climate solutions, and why achieving net zero is a journey rather than a destination.

Farah Naz is a globally recognised climate strategist, public speaker and award-winning leader with over 25 years of experience across the built environment sector in the United States, United Kingdom, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. As Global Climate Advisory Director at SJ Group, she advises governments, cities and organisations on accelerating climate action through low-carbon, resilient and people-centred solutions. A Chartered Engineer in the UK and UAE, trained architect, and Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), Farah was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the World Green Building Council. She is also the author of Net Zero City, one of the Gulf region’s first books focused on decarbonisation.