Qatar, in a short period of time, has exhibited its resolve and great ability towards adopting sustainable development. The country is steadily moving forward on the path to fast implement global sustainability practices and standards which reflects Qatar’s seriousness towards achieving sustainable development goals well in time.
Qatar is taking all necessary measures not only to adopt technological innovations meeting sustainability criteria but also to promote environmentally-friendly practices.
2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar will be a “carbon-neutral” tournament with zero harmful emissions, the Minister of Municipality and Environment, H E Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi told sustainability summit last week
The Minister said strict standards in design and construction would offset the tournament’s carbon footprint, despite the huge number of infrastructure projects underway in the Gulf emirate. “The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy has been working on planning and organising a carbon-neutral 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament,” he said.
Meanwhile, in the same conference it was revealed that the cities developed by Qatar in accordance with sustainability standards following the Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS) have exceeded one billion square feet (sqft).
Dr Yousef Al Horr, Chairman of the Gulf Organization for Research and Development (GORD), said that the development of individual buildings in Qatar according to the same criteria exceeded 150 million square feet.
He said that the cities that have been recently developed in a sustainable manner included Lusail City, which exceeded half a billion square feet, in addition to the new economic cities, which constitute a total of more than 100 million square feet.
“All buildings applied the criteria of sustainability in terms of the infrastructure aspects and the provision of services and green spaces required,” he added.
A number of organizations at government and private level are engaged in promoting sustainability in the country and now Qatar Green Building Council (QGBC), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), has announced that Qatar Sustainability Week 2018 will take place from October 27 to November 3, 2018 to promote Qatar’s sustainability vision.
Many embassies will also participate the activities of week-long event under which a series of informative, fun, and interactive sessions will be held to encourage the practice of sustainable living in the country.
The week-long event will influence the behaviour of individuals and entities encouraging them to practice sustainable living which requires reducing carbon footprint by altering methods of transportation, energy consumption, and diet.
A ceremony for the Qatar Sustainability Awards 2018 will take place on October 28, when 27 organisations will each receive a coveted award in a different category, recognising their efforts in furthering sustainable development and environmental protection in Qatar.
