Let down by world leaders (again) at Rio+20, green Arab researcher Mohamed Abdel Raouf says it’s time for a less top-down approach to solutions

It’s been over a fortnight since the Rio+20 summit which was supposed to look at sustainable development (and in later years ‘sustained growth’ – something which is very different) whimpered to an end. The was so little progress at the climate summit that I feel sorry for those journalists who attended and were asked to write up some ‘news’. Nobody thought it was going to be as ground-breaking as the initial summit twenty years ago which saw world leaders sign up to protect biodiversity and champion sustainability but the outcome was more depressing than many hoped.

It seems climate change has fallen spectacularly off the world agenda and, with it, our chances of an international agreement with the grit to steer the planet back onto the right track. I caught up with Mohamed Abdel Raouf, a green researcher based in the Middle East after a busy and frustrating time at the Rio+20 conference to get his take on events.

Abdel Raouf seems pretty eager to get the bad news out of the way first and tells me that the official outcomes of the negotiations were disappointing. The document which emerged from the conference, titled ‘The Future We Want’, “contains hardly any new commitment by governments” he explains. “It is neither transformational nor visionary – there are no clear measurable goals/targets, no timelines and no clear indication of how the transition to green economy will be funded.” He states that the problem is a lack of leadership. World leaders weren’t able to put their national interests aside and work on a common global agenda which requires practical steps be taken towards a new type of economy.

“They are locked in the old ways of doing things,” he admits. “These ways proved to be unsustainable and inequitable and thus resulted in economic crises and drove people onto the streets of the Arab World and Wall Street to demonstrate. This also means that top-down solving of the world’s problems is no longer an option.” I think his last sentence is particularly insightful and reflects what a lot of campaigners I know have been saying about the climate summits for years – they are not the solution.

However, the forever optimistic Abdel Raouf insists that there are reasons to be hopeful. “The Arab world skepticism about the green economy shifted a little at Rio+20,” he states. “A year ago, Arab countries were suspicious of the concept, now they are exploring green economy as one tool for sustainable development.” Yet he admits that the Arab nations positioned themselves with G77 and China which was the main group opposing many parts of the document under negotiation at Rio+20.

Even so, the final document does call on Arab nations to join others in their efforts to promote sustainable development and the green economy. Whether this call will be heard and then answered is another issue all together. Personally, I remain sceptical but Abdel Raouf’s optimism is unshakable and he insists that “it may be true that humanity lost an opportunity but we definitely still have not lost hope.”

: Image of Christ The Redeemer via Niall Dunne/Shutterstock.com

For more on Rio see:

What Can Rio+20 do for the Arab World?

Qatar’s Temporary Rio+20 Pavilion Shaped Like Soaring Falcon

Israel Takes Messianic Stance on the Rio+20 UN Conference

The post Rio+20 and the Arab World: ‘Our Leaders Have Failed Us’ appeared first on Green Prophet.

All of the materials used to erect the temporary pavilion – the steel, the stretched roof and all of the interior furnishings – were sourced within the country. Out of respect for the conference focus, each delegation was required to keep their embodied carbon footprint to a minimum. This is commendable, of course, but utterly without effect given the conference’s  failure to produce any meaningful agreements.

Nonetheless, Grimshaw’s design, which was completed within a mere five weeks, included a translucent roof that allowed natural light to penetrate the entire structure, reducing the daytime electricity load and slits in the vertical walls that promoted natural ventilation.

The 500 square meter pavilion showcased a variety of sustainability projects the wealthy oil nation is pursuing in their bid to go from carbon to creativity.

Food insecurity and water scarcity are of particular concern to the Qatar National Food Security Program, which commissioned the pavilion’s construction. Executive Chairmain Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiya noted “In Qatar, we import from 90 to 95% of food and all our water is desalinated. Food and water security is a pressing issue, especially with the considerable raise of food prices in the last years.”

Qatar’s nine solar-powered stadiums that are in the pipeline for the 2022 world cup and the upcoming 2012 UN Climate Conference (COP18/CMP8) that will be held in Dohar in November were also topics of conversation at the 20th anniversary of the first conference on sustainable development in Rio de Janeiro.

The pavilion was disassembled and will be stored in Brazil for future use elsewhere.

:: Inhabitat

More on Qatar and Sustainability:
Can Qatar Balance its Oil Interests and Host a Climate Conference?
SLIDESHOW: Entries for Qatar’s 2022 World Cup Stadiums
Local Architect Questions the Logic of Qatar’s 2022 World Cup Groundwork

The post Qatar’s Temporary Rio +20 Pavilion is Shaped Like a Soaring Falcon appeared first on Green Prophet.

As part of their negotiations with leaders throughout Africa, IRENA is pitching Morocco as the continent’s pilot country. Which makes sense given that MASEN is set to announce the winner of a tender to design, finance, construct, operate and maintain a 160 MW CSP plant near the southern city of Ouarzazate. Although the Solar Impulse journey has stalled, delaying the announcement, Saudi’s ACWA consortium seems set to win.

Lessons learned from Morocco

Building a Renewable Energy Database Framework, with Morocco as a pilot country, is just one of IRENA’s several renewable energy initiatives in Africa that is crafted to improve the accessibility and dissemination of qualitative and quantitative data to policymakers and stakeholders working to expand the continent’s clean energy infrastructure.

Morocco has keen ambitions to generate 2GW of solar energy by 2020, putting it far ahead of many other African nations that continue to stumble over coal and other fossil fuels while 590 million people continue to sit, literally, in the dark as a result of limited access to energy supplies.

“Blackouts, along with reliance on expensive fossil fuels for stop-gap electricity generation, are estimated to cost African economies between 1% and 5% of GDP each year,” according to a recent IRENA press release.

But bridging the gap will be no easy feat and requires a thorough review of both opportunities and restrains facing leaders. IRENA, with headquarters in Abu Dhabi, has introduced a Renewable Scenario for Africa, which reviews the impact of various policies that could promote the transition to a clean energy system within the next two decades.

Full energy access by 2030

“The scenario projects that the share of renewables in Africa could increase from 17% in 2009 to 50% in 2030, and nearly 75% by 2050. Total installed renewable capacity would grow from 28 GW in 2010 to around 800 GW by 2050, with solar photovoltaic accounting for 245 GW, wind 242 GW, hydropower 149 GW, concentrating solar power 94 GW, biomass 69 GW and geothermal 8 GW,” according to the agency.

“The Renewable Scenario factors in the goal of full energy access by 2030, while substantially reducing longer-term costs compared to the business- as-usual scenario in 2050. IRENA continues working with African partners to enhance the Renewable Scenario with more detailed data and tools.”

While many critics rightfully expect little in the way of meaningful action from the Rio+20 conference, these side events may prove infinitely more interesting and successful than the main circus. And North Africa, despite the Arab Spring uprisings, is leading the pack.

:: IRENA

Image credit: man walking Moroccan desert, Shutterstock

More on Rio+20 and Morocco’s Solar Energy Plans:

Israel Takes Messianic Stance at the Rio+20 Conference

What Can Rio+20 Do for the Arab World?

Desertec Begins: 500MW Moroccan Solar in 2012

The post IRENA to Pitch Morocco as Africa’s Renewable Energy Pilot at Rio+20 appeared first on Green Prophet.

Israel has a reputation as an international hub of green technology. It has not only fostered a market for clean technology and sustainable innovation, but has also made these developments a national priority.

Eyal Rosner was recently appointed the director of Israel’s national initiative to develop transportation technologies that reduce the use of oil. In 2011 the program was approved by the government and given a budget of NIS 1.4 billion ($365 million) for a decade of research and development, from jet fuel alternatives to oil-replacing technologies of all shapes and sizes.

Israel is now home to over 100 alternative energy start-up companies and another 100 university-based research groups. Not bad for a young nation with slightly less people than New York City, and possibly up to 13 percent of that population living abroad.

Israeli Environmental Protection Minister, Gilad Erdan, expressed concerns that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will use the global conference as a chance to harp on  the Israeli-Palestinian conflict rather than focusing on environmental issues.

According to Erdan, Israeli delegates would rather discuss technology and solutions to the environmental issues that plague the region, mainly desertification and water scarcity.

Israel has already been able to develop international cooperation and connection through its national water company, Mekorot. The Rio+20 Conference may be an opportunity to diversify those cooperative efforts. Or it may turn out to be just another occasion of U.N. theater, abundant photo opportunities and scant tangible action.

::Jpost

Image of  solar powered water heaters in Jerusalem via Gilabrand, Wikimedia Commons

Read more about Israeli innovation:

Better Place Electric Car Network Begins in Israel

First Transit Implements GreenRoad Technology

Israel Cleantech Ventures Raising $100 Million for Energy Innovation

The post Israel Takes Messianic Stance on the Rio+20 United Nations Conference appeared first on Green Prophet.