4 April 2011
Global Green Growth Institute to Open Regional Office in UAE, Collaborate with IRENA
story highlights

The Global Green Growth Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Arab Emirates, under which it will open a regional office, execute low-emission growth projects, conduct capacity building, and promote Masdar City as a "smart city." Under the MoU, the UAE will initiate collaboration with the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to promote renewable energy solutions.

13 March 2011: The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), launched in 2010 to promote environmentally sustainable economic growth, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish a Middle East and North Africa regional office in Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City and to develop joint capacity-building programs.

The regional GGGI office will seek to: develop and execute low-emission green growth projects for a green growth master plan, tailored to UAE’s conditions; conduct training and capacity building programs on green growth initiatives at the regional, national and local levels; and provide financial support for joint projects, collaborative research and joint programs.

According to GGGI’s Executive Director Richard Samans, GGGI also will “utilize its network of public-private partnerships to promote Masdar City as a world-class, smart city” and develop the regional office as “a knowledge-sharing, training and capacity-building center in the field of green growth.”

For its part, the UAE will work to create a tri-party collaboration involving GGGI, the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to promote renewable energy solutions, new green technologies and carbon-neutral measures to advance economic growth and quality of life in Masdar City, the UAE and worldwide.

GGGI is governed by a Board of Directors composed of international experts and representatives of sponsor and partner governments. [GGGI Press Release]

related posts