In partnership with Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and, EmiratesGBC is proud to announce the launch of the Building Retrofit Training (BRT) Programme.  The BRT Programme is a certification course designed to teach the fundamentals of building retrofit.

BRT training courses are offered at two levels: Level One – Beginner (now open) and Level Two – Advanced (expected January 2018).

Registration is now open for the BRT Level 1 Beginner Course on 16^th August 2017 taking place in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi and on 13^th September 2017 in the EmiratesGBC office in Dubai.

Based on the EmiratesGBC Technical Guidelines for Retrofitting Existing Buildings, the BRT program will provide professional capacity building for the industry to retrofit existing buildings for improved energy efficiency. Candidates for the BRT workshops are comprised of a broad range of stakeholders including building owners, end users and operators.

Register here for the BRT Level One Course. Space is limited so book your seat today!

Please visit our website for further information on the BRT Programme.

The EmiratesGBC Energy Efficiency Program (EEP) will once again host an engaging workshop, this time being held with Taqati on August 28^th at Sheraton Mall of the Emirates. The workshop will discuss the role of Etihad – TAQATI | Dubai Energy Efficiency Program – in supporting the implementation of DSM Strategy, emirate-wide stakeholder network, energy and water reduction targets, financial benefits and schemes, and the challenges and barriers of the DSM Strategy. The workshop is open for EmiratesGBC EEP members, please click here to register.

EEP Workshops are a direct benefit for members of the EmiratesGBC Energy Efficiency Program.  If you are a corporate member of EmiratesGBC but not yet participating in the EEP, please email eep@emiratesgbc.org to learn more.

The EmiratesGBC team is gearing up for a busy month in September. In addition to the launch of the Building Retrofit Training in Dubai (September 13), and the monthly member-only Technical Workshop (September 12), EmiratesGBC will be hosting an invitation only Developers Forum Roundtable on September 17^th. If you are a developer and wish to attend, please email engagement@emiratesgbc.org.

We are also excited for the launch of our nZEB Report on September 27^th. This event is not to be missed so email events@emiratesgbc.org to reserve your spot!

Held under the theme “Urban Energy: Powering Smart, Happy and Efficient Cities”, the 6^th Annual EmiratesGBC Congress is taking place on October 17^th and 18^th at the Pullman Dubai Creek City Centre.  We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of this flagship event and we are pleased to announce that registration for the 6^th Annual EmiratesGBC Congress is now open and with new prices. We are expecting a sold out Congress for 2017, so we urge you to register early to avoid disappointment.

This year’s Congress consists of a distinguished line-up of speakers, stay tuned for the next speaker spotlight feature.

Held under the theme “Urban Energy: Powering Smart, Happy and Efficient Cities”, the 6^th Annual EmiratesGBC Congress is on the horizon and invites your active involvement through sponsorship.

There are still opportunities to sponsor, and we encourage you to consider the available Congress sponsorship packages.  For more information on how to support this important flagship event, please contact us at engagement@emiratesgbc.org.

Thank you to our Principal Sponsor AkzoNobel and Venue Sponsor Majid Al Futtaim for their early support of this pivotal event.  The 6th Annual EmiratesGBC Congress will be taking place on October 17 & 18 in Dubai at Pullman Dubai Creek City Center.

This month we would like to offer you a summer tip to conserve energy “Close the curtains to reduce the heat gain thus reducing energy consumption for cooling”. This is courtesy of the lifestyle awareness section of the EmiratesGBC Green Building Tooltips.

The EmiratesGBC Green Building Tooltips is a rich online platform serving to further educate the industry and community on simple green building practices.

The interactive designs cover three different building typologies, showcasing a home, school and office building.  The initiative is powered by BASF and Legrand, EmiratesGBC board members underlining their commitment to promoting sustainability.

We strongly urge you to visit the Green Building Tooltips on our website to test out this valuable online tool and fulfil your goal of pursuing a greener lifestyle whether it be at home, school or at the office.

World Green Building Week is on the horizon. Led by the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), World Green Building Week is an annual event that empowers the green building community to deliver green buildings for everyone.

This year, the week takes place in the last week of September (25th September to 1st October) and  Emirates Green Building Council would like to encourage you to support the week by marking your calendars, spreading the word and potentially hosting your own event to celebrate this pivotal week.

This year’s theme is #OurHeroIsZero, which puts focus on net zero buildings.  The theme is in line with the Advancing Net Zero WorldGBC project and follows the launch of the From Thousands to Billions report which highlights the need for all buildings to be net zero by 2050.  The theme also perfectly aligns with EmiratesGBC’s Nearly Zero Energy Building study.

Emirates Green Building Council will be supporting World Green Building Week 2017 by marking a new milestone for the Council and releasing the first of its kind report on Nearly Zero Energy Buildings in UAE.  (See article below for more details.)

Do not forget #OurHeroIsZero

EmiratesGBC is proud to announce our support as a Knowledge Partner of the upcoming Energy Efficiency Expo at World Future Energy Summit. Taking place from 15- 18 January 2018 in Abu Dhabi under the theme “Sustainaing the Clean Energy Consensus; Empowering new players’. As with last year, we will be offering our members the opportunity to join the Emirates Green Building Council’s pavilion in a key location on the show floor. Stay tuned for more details over the coming months.

Cityscape Global 2017 is the largest and most influential real estate investment and development event for emerging markets globally. Bringing together investors, developers, government officials and real estate professionals, there is no better place to find investment opportunities and new business partners.

Cityscape Global is taking place on 11 – 13 September 2017 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, UAE.

To find out how you can get involved please contact the Cityscape Global team at info@cityscapeglobal.com or click here for further information.

The advancement of façade design and development is crucial to unlocking the safer, greener, and more comfortable and more visually impressive buildings of the next generation.

With this in mind, we are proud to announce the return of the Façade Design & Engineering Forum and Awards. Now in its 10th edition, the conference has become a specialised forum discussing how to overcome design and engineering façade challenges as well as demonstrating innovative technologies to create the most iconic façades. Taking place on September 18^th, 2017 at The Address Hotel – Dubai Mall, Dubai, UAE, click here for more details.

There are lots in store for the third and fourth quarter this year, with September and October centred around the theme of Smart Buildings, Sustainable Construction and Energy Efficiency.

On 12^th September, the EmiratesGBC Technical Workshop will address how green buildings contribute to smart cities.

On 10^th October, EmiratesGBC will host a contractors workshop on sustainable construction practices at the TIME Oak Ruby Hotel. The workshop is open to contractors and sub-contractors.

On 31^st October, the Technical Workshop will highlight the benefits of electronically commutated motors which are ideal for ventilation and refrigeration industries.

Each technical workshop is followed up with a technical brief summarizing the workshop discussions.  To view the briefs from previous technical workshops, please click here.

Are you an EmiratesGBC member or partner and would like to facilitate a workshop? Do you have any suggestions for topics to be addressed? If yes, then we’d like to hear from you – email us at technicalworkshops@emiratesgbc.org.  

This month we take a look at The Green Issue: Sustainability and Wellness in Dubai 2017 report, which highlights UAE’s goal of becoming a global leader in sustainability. The report’s key findings show that the UAE ranks amongst the top 10 countries to hold LEED certification outside the United States, with Dubai holding the 3^rd position amongst global cities with the highest number of green buildings (under both LEED and BREEAM).

What else did the report discover? Click here to download and find out more.

Calling all UAE Green Key hotels! The 2017 Best Practice Competition has been launched by Green Key International under the theme ‘Partnership and Local Engagement for Sustainable Development’.

Only one month left for Green Key Hotels to submit their stories to Green Key International – the deadline is 1^st September 2017 to enter the competition and be recognized for contribution to sustainable responsible tourism.  Only submissions from Gren Key certified hotels will be considered, and the winner will be announced publicly on World Tourism Day, 27 September 2017.

If your hotel is not yet Green Key certified, EmiratesGBC is accepting applications for Green Key certification throughout the year.  Please contact greenkey@emiratesgbc.org for more information on the hotel Certification Program in the UAE.

The summer months are an ideal time to begin thinking about green building industry professional credentials to enhance your career. In collaboration with British University in Dubai, we offer a series of trainings that prepare attendees for examinations including LEED and AEE courses. Please contact us for more details.

• LEED GA October 13-14, 2017. Click here to access the flyer.
• LEED AP (BD+C) November 9-11, 2017. Click here to access the flyer.
• Certified Energy Auditor September 26-28, 2017. Click here to access the flyer.
• Certified Energy Manager October 15-18, 2017. Click here to access the flyer.

As part of EmiratesGBC’s Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (nZEBs) Study, an analytical report is under development that will serve to assist in determining a definition of nZEBs in the UAE.  This definition can then be used as a reference to support future building regulations. The Report will be released during the World Green Building Week on 27^th September 2017 aligning with its theme of Our Hero Is Zero.

To evaluate the market readiness and feasibility of nZEBs in the UAE, EmiratesGBC requested masked data on best practice low-energy projects and approached building experts to complete a survey on their understanding of the concept of Nearly Zero Energy Buildings.  We received a sufficient amount of responses which have positively contributed to the progress of the report and measuring market readiness.  Thank you to all who have contributed.

Do stay tuned, as we are finalizing the study and hope to see you at the report launch on 27 September.

We are pleased to invite Dubai Hotels, Shopping Malls and Schools to participate in a Benchmarking Project carried out in partnership with Dubai’s commitment to the Building Efficiency Accelerator, a global initiative under the United Nations program “Sustainable Energy for All”, in which EmiratesGBC is collaborating with the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy.  To participate in this project, contact the EmiratesGBC office at  04-3468244 or send an email with your interest to BEA@emiratesgbc.org.

Under this initiative, we will benchmark at least 100 buildings in three focus groups (hotels, schools and shopping malls). To learn more about the Benchmarking Project, click here.

BEA Sponsorship opportunities are also open, and we invite you to learn more by clicking here.  For more information on how to support this important project as a sponsor, please contact engagement@emiratesgbc.org.

If you are interested in using EmiratesGBC office space for a workshop or meeting, please get in touch with us at 04-3468244 or send us an email to office@emiratesgbc.org. The room is fully equipped with AV and provides a nice environment for focused meetings or training workshops.

Click here to learn more about how the Technical Guidelines can potentially save your facility or home millions in utility bills and reduced operational costs.

Khaled Bushnaq of Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), an independent forum aimed at conserving the environment by strengthening and promoting green building practices, has been appointed Regional Chair of WorldGBC’s Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Regional Network – a group of Green Building Councils working to advance green buildings within the region.  Bushnaq has been appointed for his proven leadership in the green building movement and dedication to improving the sustainability of buildings, both in the UAE and at the regional level. Read more…

In partnership with the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and Masdar(Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company), the BRT Programme begins on 16 August 2017, at Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, with the second workshop to be held at the EmiratesGBC office in Dubai on September 13.

The course is aimed at strengthening the efficiency of existing and new buildings in the UAE and bridging the knowledge-gap regarding best practices for retrofitting and building sector efficiency among all stakeholders in the industry. Read more …

WorldGBC has announced new Board Directors as well as new Chairs and Vice-Chairs of its five regional networks.  We’re delighted to announce that three new global green building leaders have joined our Board of Directors, with five existing members re-appointed, including a new Vice-Chair. Read more…

Watch here