Engineers carry solar panels on to the roof of a property in Barcelona in September 2022. Spain and other Mediterranean countries have generated record amounts of power from wind and solar farms. Bloomberg
Smoke rises from brick factory stacks in Nahrawan, Baghdad. Tackling emissions from heavy industry is crucial to tackling global warming. Reuters
A boy stands near a flock of sheep as a sandstorm approaches in the Syrian countryside of Tabqa. Syria is among the countries most vulnerable and poorly prepared for climate change, which is expected to worsen. AFP
Mountains of smouldering rubbish at the Bhalswa landfill in New Delhi, India. Reuters
Greenpeace activists take part in a climate change protest in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin in May. AP
A man carries water bottles across the heavily polluted Negro River in Manaus, Brazil. About 35 tonnes of rubbish are removed daily from the river. AP
A helicopter drops water on a brush fire in California. Bloomberg
UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa speaks on the opening day of the Bonn climate change conference in Germany. Getty
Activists take part in a demonstration to raise awareness of global warming, during an event to mark World Environment Day in Kolkata. AFP
A helicopter drops water on a bushfire near a residential district in Athens. The fire forced residents to flee. AFP
A gauge measures water levels in the Rio Nambe river, in New Mexico. Ninety per cent of the state is experiencing extreme drought. Getty
Afghan refugees search for recyclable material from heaps of rubbish in Karachi, Pakistan. AP
A climate activist ties herself to the net during the semi-final tennis match between Croatia's Marin Cilic and Norway's Casper Ruud at the French Open in Roland Garros in Paris. AP
A dance group performs at a climate summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Getty
US climate envoy John Kerry talks to a delegate at the Stockholm 50 climate summit. Getty
A boat is stranded during low tide at the Chebayesh marsh in Dhi Qar province, Iraq. Reuters
A woman crosses a polluted river in Dhaka, Bangladesh. EPA
A man walks past an abandoned boat in the bed of a drought-affected reservoir on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen. EPA
Dr Nawal Al-Hosany is permanent representative of the UAE to the International Renewable Energy Agency
June 29, 2022
Carbon dioxide levels are the highest ever in human history.
As shocking as this moment is, it should arrive as no surprise. We have passed plenty of warning signs on the road that has led us here.
The first red flag was raised by Eunice Foote in 1851. Consigned to the footnotes of history until only recently, Foote conducted an experiment which concluded that: “An atmosphere of [carbon dioxide] would give to our Earth a high temperature.”
Plenty of warming warnings have followed over the next 151 years.
In 1965, a report from the American Association for the Advancement of Science concluded that: “Pollutants have altered on a global scale the carbon dioxide content of the air and the lead concentrations in ocean waters and human populations.”
And just last year, the mission statement from Cop26 in Glasgow reminded us of the importance of keeping 1.5°C alive.
By failing to heed these distress signals, our planet is now 1.1°C warmer than it was in the 1800s.
In 2021, energy-related carbon dioxide emissions skyrocketed to 36.3 billion tonnes – higher than they’ve ever been. The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is now at nearly 412 parts per million and rising. That’s a 47 per cent increase since the beginning of the Industrial Age.
For almost 150 years, Eunice Foote's work was ignored and her caution dismissed
Getting back on track was already challenging. Now, according to the UN’s latest data, carbon emissions must drop 7.6 per cent per year through to 2030 to keep temperatures from exceeding 1.5°C. We have less than a decade to do this.
The Middle East has a critical role to play in forging a climate-resilient future. According to a new report published by the World Government Summit (WGS) Organisation and Oliver Wyman, the region needs to reduce its projected greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 42 per cent by 2030.
The WGS report also highlighted three sectors as key to reducing the Middle East’s emissions. Energy generation accounts for 39 per cent of all regional emissions, while industry contributes 21 per cent and transport systems emit 11 per cent of the region’s GHGs, according to the report.
These findings are consistent around the globe. And they point to a key insight: policy and investments are not keeping pace with industry. If we are to decarbonise the atmosphere in time, this must be our starting point.
In renewable energy and electrification solutions, we have the potential to reduce 75 per cent of the world’s energy-related carbon emissions – that’s according to research from the International Renewable Energy Agency.
The question must be asked: if we have this viable technology ready to deploy in the name of decarbonisation, why are the policies and investments not keeping up with the demands of industry?
Without agile policymaking frameworks in place, the demands of industry will continue to eclipse the needs of people and planet.
Without a robust investment strategy for the research and development and the talent needed to further enhance and scale our renewable solutions, we will not decarbonise fast enough to build a climate-resilient pathway for frontline communities.
Eunice Newton Foote. Wikicommons
On the other hand, with the right policies and investment commitments in place, economies can work with international partners to accelerate the diversification of their energy and industrial mixes.
Thanks to its agile and resilient-focused leadership, the UAE is currently experiencing the benefits of such an approach, with its non-oil economy recording its highest level of output in three years.
The UAE is also engaged in ongoing discussions with other major economies to leverage each other’s knowledge and strengths to scale new renewable solutions, such as hydrogen and clean energy projects with Germany, while at the same time helping to build renewable energy capacities in developing countries – from the Caribbean to the Pacific.
At home, we recognise that we must also more effectively manage the demand-side of the energy nexus.
Doing so will help not only mitigate but reduce carbon emissions, according to analysis presented by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), following the Sixth Assessment Report.
The IPCC suggests that between 5 and 30 per cent of annual global GHG emissions from end-use sectors are avoidable by 2050, if we combine behavioural changes with demand side mitigation. That’s compared with 2050 projections of two scenarios consistent with current national policies until 2020.
The IPCC goes on to state that more efficient end-use conversions can improve services while reducing the need for upstream energy by 45 per cent.
We can achieve this through changes in the built environment, by repurposing and building more sustainable infrastructure. Doing so would lead to the creation of smart cities, the co-location of jobs and housing and the reallocation of street space for more active mobility.
A girl folds a blanket at her house rooftop near the Thermal Power Corporation plant in Dadri, India, in April. AFP
The above paragraph may remind you of Expo 2020 Dubai. Indeed, it is not surprising that the recommendations made by the IPCC on mitigating carbon emissions can be found are met by what has since become Expo City Dubai and announced as the host venue for Cop28 in 2023.
It was designed to leave a legacy of sustainability and put people at the heart of the built environment. And by hosting the UN’s climate change conference in two years, Expo City Dubai will not only continue the theme of connecting minds, creating the future, it can show that people must be at the heart of the fight against climate change, that people are at the heart of society, and that people are the reason we must constantly strive to reduce our carbon emissions.
Let’s just be clear on this point: the planet will survive, we won’t. Earth will heal, repair and recover long after we are gone. It is our future that we hold in our hands, not the planet’s.
When Foote captured carbon dioxide and warm air in two separate glass cylinders in 1851, she noted that the cylinder filled with carbon dioxide warmed even more, and, once removed from the light, “it was many times as long in cooling” than the cylinder with warm air.
As I quoted at the start, Foote warned that an atmosphere of “that gas” – CO2 to you and me today – would result in a “very high temperature” for Earth.
For almost 150 years, her work was ignored and her caution dismissed. I wonder how long it would have taken if her experiment had outlined the potentially devastating impact “that gas” would have on human health, as well as on the planet. And I wonder if she would have been ignored at all, if her name was Eric rather than Eunice.
If you go…
Emirates launched a new daily service to Mexico City this week, flying via Barcelona from Dh3,995.
Emirati citizens are among 67 nationalities who do not require a visa to Mexico. Entry is granted on arrival for stays of up to 180 days.
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group F
Manchester City v Hoffenheim, midnight (Wednesday, UAE)
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The 12 breakaway clubs
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 640hp
Torque: 760nm
On sale: 2026
Price: Not announced yet
Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi
Director: Kangana Ranaut, Krish Jagarlamudi
Producer: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni
Rating: 2.5/5
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday Sassuolo v Torino (Kick-off 10.45pm UAE)
Saturday Atalanta v Sampdoria (5pm),
Genoa v Inter Milan (8pm),
Lazio v Bologna (10.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Crotone (3.30pm)
Benevento v Napoli (6pm)
Parma v Spezia (6pm)
Fiorentina v Udinese (9pm)
Juventus v Hellas Verona (11.45pm)
Monday AC Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Kamindu Mendis bio
Full name: Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis
Born: September 30, 1998
Age: 20 years and 26 days
Nationality: Sri Lankan
Major teams Sri Lanka's Under 19 team
Batting style: Left-hander
Bowling style: Right-arm off-spin and slow left-arm orthodox (that's right!)
Peak chart position: No.1 in more than 47 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Lebanon
Views: 5.3 billion on YouTube
Sales: With 10 million downloads in the US, Despacito became the first Latin single to receive Diamond sales certification
Streams: 1.3 billion combined audio and video by the end of 2017, making it the biggest digital hit of the year.
Awards: 17, including Record of the Year at last year’s prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, as well as five Billboard Music Awards
Packages which the US Secret Service said contained possible explosive devices were sent to:
Former first lady Hillary Clinton
Former US president Barack Obama
Philanthropist and businessman George Soros
Former CIA director John Brennan at CNN's New York bureau
Former Attorney General Eric Holder (delivered to former DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz)
California Congresswoman Maxine Waters (two devices)
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available. Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus. Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel. Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
