Under the supervision of Faculty Dr. Sabina Guest Speaker
By Ghaya Alblooshi,
AUE,
Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Sustainability is a world concern, as to spread awareness between AUE students, Dr. Sabina has allowed us to attend two inspirational guest speaker lectures. The sessions were also graced by the presence of the Vice President of Academic Affairs, Prof. Abhilasha Singh and the Dean of CEDU, Dr. Nissrin Shaya.
On Tuesday the 10th of October 2020, we had our first virtual guest speaker, his name was HH Sheikh Dr. Abdul Aziz Nauimi, also known as the “Green Sheikh”. The opening statement of his speech was “I am a human being like you, but my actions are extraordinary”. What I received from his statement was, the greater picture you look for will only be possible with the help of our actions, no matter how small the action may be. He also added that your words and actions must be based on integrity and that everyone must be responsible for his or her actions, no matter their nationality. As long as one is a resident of the UAE, they are a significant part of this land and its people.
The Green Sheikh defines sustainability in many ways, he says it is “To give support”, “To keep up good actions”, “To go back to basics, nature, and simplicity”, and lastly “To save, protect, and prevent”. He told us how he applies his philosophy of “Putting last first”. Moreover, the results of being sustainable will help achieve his vision of “Creating infinite possibilities for all generations”. By that his Mission to “Spread global awareness about environment, wellbeing, and sustainability” will be easier to reach.
His brief speech was very inspirational to me, I understood the relationship we have with nature, I learned that polluted nature pollutes the soul and the body (human, animal, and plants) and that we as humans change nature to our selfish needs and desires, where it has been shown in research and studies that other creatures adapt and evolve themselves to the needs of nature around them. It is our responsibility to provide a helping hand to nature and honour her. HH Sheikh Dr. AbdulAziz Nuaimi ends his speech with the words “Do Not Wait for The Light at The End of the Tunnel, Be the LIGHT”
Our Second Guest Speaker visited us on the 27th of October 2020, his name was Mr. Ibrahim Al-Zu’bi, a Chief Sustainability Officer at Majid Al Futtaim-Holding. He talked about how companies can apply and achieve sustainability along with why a company should embrace it. He defined Sustainability as “Minimising our negative environmental impact and maximizing our social and economic impact”. This implies that as a company they need to think of the environment, the company you serve, and economic sustainability.
He further explained how much water the MENA region consumes from the sea. The process itself requires a lot of energy to change saltwater to normal, drinkable water. The energy which is used depends on fuels which release CO2 into the environment. This is why we should develop and use technology which is not dependent on fuels which release Carbon Dioxide into the environment.
“When being green it does not refer only to nature green.”
Mr. Ibrahim stated that Majid Al Futtaim raised approximately +1.2 billion of green bonds which will be invested in environmentally-friendly projects in areas such as renewable energy and sustainable water management.
He stated that “Sustainability is the heart of the company” and that it will not function without sustainability.
It showed me that even if a process may take time, the results are far greater than what one might think they be. I liked their policy, “Dare today to Change Tomorrow”, A step that we take forward might be hard and impossible, but we dare do it and come out the other side as winners, environmentally, socially, and economically. So, do DARE, and start with small steps. As we remember from our first guest, the Green Sheikh, it does not matter how big the action, but how extraordinary they are.
