Women playing “transformative role” in UAE’s sustainability drive: report

Women in the United Arab Emirates are helping drive the country toward a more sustainable future, with female leadership and talent set to play a “transformative role” in the achievement of its sustainability goals, according to a new report from the US-UAE Business Council. 

Masdar and the Women in Sustainability, Environment and Renewable Energy (WiSER), a strategic outreach initiative, contributed to the report, Women in Sustainability: How Women in the UAE Are Shaping a More Sustainable Future. The report cites the UAE as a “positive model” in the region for the opportunities it gives to women. “Women have contributed enormously to the success of the UAE’s sustainable development goals by shaping the sustainability dialogue, developing clean energy solutions, realizing the construction of smart cities, and more,” according to the report. 

In particular, the report highlights the importance of equal access to education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects, citing that 77 percent of students taking computer science classes in the UAE are female. The report also features local institutions in the UAE dedicated to preparing women for professional success in fields related to sustainability, including Khalifa University of Science and Technology.

The work of WiSER is also featured in the report, as a platform that “strives to position women and girls of all nationalities as drivers of change and innovation, while ensuring that their voices are heard across the sustainability debate.” The report cites WiSER’s year-long Pioneers Program as crucial in empowering young women to carry forward the sustainability agenda.  

Profiling female Emirati role models who have made major contributions to the UAE’s sustainability goals, the report outlines roles that women will play in helping the UAE to achieve its sustainable development initiatives. 

Amna Al Zaabi, an analyst at Masdar, is featured as a future leader of sustainability. “Working at Masdar enables me to contribute to the urban fabric of the UAE, creating sustainably designed spaces, and rethinking how we design and build,” she says in the report. 

The report concludes with a look at Masdar’s contribution to the US renewables market, and notes that “the development of female leadership and cultivation of female talent will play a transformative role” in realizing the nation’s sustainability efforts. 

Released on the occasion of Emirati Women’s Day, which is held this year under the theme of “Preparing for the next 50 years: women are the support of the nation”, the report provides an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of women so far and look ahead to their contributions over the next 50 years.

here.