A wildfire in Greece last July. If rising temperatures and extreme weather conditions suggest that our house is on fire, then the foundations we have built it on are close to collapse. AFP
A wildfire in Greece last July. If rising temperatures and extreme weather conditions suggest that our house is on fire, then the foundations we have built it on are close to collapse. AFP
A wildfire in Greece last July. If rising temperatures and extreme weather conditions suggest that our house is on fire, then the foundations we have built it on are close to collapse. AFP
Dr Nawal Al-Hosany is permanent representative of the UAE to the International Renewable Energy Agency
March 06, 2024
In the immediate aftermath of Cop28, I wrote in these pages that 2023 had been a dark year for diplomacy.
At the time, the rumbling of several geopolitical and humanitarian crises hung over the climate talks in Dubai. Two months into 2024, the skies of diplomacy look murkier than they did at the turn of the year, despite the UAE Consensus offering some light on the horizon.
As distressing headlines from the Middle East continue to dominate the news cycle, with deepening conflicts, the world’s multilateral institutions – the very entities designed to uphold international law – are creaking under pressure, exposing systemic inequities and inefficacies.
This decade was supposed to mark a turning point for inclusive and sustainable economic development for all. Instead, it is becoming a decade of humanitarian shortcomings. In our increasingly interconnected world, peace, stability and prosperity are inextricably linked to our ability to address the other existential threats we face – including climate change and energy security.
Our climate fight is a direct casualty of conflict. Indeed, conflicts complicate an already fractured global diplomatic landscape. They disrupt crucial but volatile markets, such as oil and gas. They tempt the world to secure their energy supplies from sources we must transition away from. They overshadow diplomacy efforts that require everyone’s buy-in – such as the ongoing climate talks. And they redirect vital expenditure away from climate solutions.
Displaced Palestinians hold a white flag as they pass an Israeli tank position while fleeing the Hamad Town district of Khan Younis. Bloomberg
A Palestinian woman cuts material to be used for sewing nappies at a workshop in Rafah. AFP
Smoke rises following an explosion in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel. AP
Parachutes carrying relief for Palestinians drop from an Egyptian Air Force cargo plane over central Gaza. Bloomberg
A Palestinian boy who is suffering from malnutrition is treated at a healthcare centre amid widespread hunger. Reuters
Palestinian children attend an English class in the library of the school housing displaced people in Rafah, the southern Gaza Strip. AFP
An UNRWA-run school housing displaced Palestinians in Rafah. AFP
Palestinians search for bodies and survivors in the rubble of a residential building destroyed in an Israeli air strike in Rafah. AP
A wounded Palestinian man who lost his wife and daughter walks past a neighbours' house destroyed by Israeli bombing in Rafah. AFP
An injured man is rescued from the rubble after an Israeli air strike on the Rafah camp in Gaza. EPA
Palestinians walk amid the rubble of houses destroyed by the Israeli bombardment of Gaza city. AFP
Aid is dropped into Gaza from US military aircraft. Reuters
Palestinians gather at air lorries in Gaza. More than 100 were killed when Israeli troops opened fire. AP
The sun sets behind destroyed buildings in Gaza. AFP
A Palestinian man enters a heavily damaged house following an Israeli strike in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP
A wounded Palestinian is assisted at the site of an Israeli strike in Deir Al Balah, in the central Gaza Strip. Reuters
Palestinians gather in the hope of getting bags of flour carried by air lorries near an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza city, as the enclave's residents face crisis levels of hunger. Reuters
Palestinian children wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues in Gaza. Reuters
A displaced Palestinian child holds a crying baby in a camp in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters
We need to invest north of $5 trillion globally, every year, into energy transition solutions to tackle climate change. And yet the cost of conflicts continues to spiral. Rising military expenditure and an increased focus on conflicts impede countries’ ability to invest in climate solutions. And that’s not to mention military emissions in conflict zones, which account for about 5.5 per cent of global emissions.
Rising military expenditure and an increased focus on conflicts impede countries’ ability to invest in climate solutions
If rising temperatures and intensifying extreme weather conditions suggest that our house is on fire, then the foundations we have built it on are close to collapse. Rebuilding them relies on an effective and collective push from the global community to put people above political interests.
In the UAE, our leaders are meeting this moment of fragility with a clear and concise path forward, towards prosperity, stability and sustainability. This is being done in a range of ways – by providing vital food and water supplies to those most in need, working on resolutions to end regional conflicts, and ensuring that political leaders lay the groundwork for peace so that climate action can follow.
Last December, the Cop28 Declaration on Climate Relief, Recovery and Peace represented a watershed moment in this regard. The declaration underscores the urgent need to create institutions that are more representative of global populations, emphasising the connection between climate resilience and global stability. It acknowledges that peace and recovery are not only outcomes of effective climate action but also prerequisites for its success. It espouses a much-needed humanitarian approach to climate action.
By prioritising the needs of the most vulnerable communities and countries, the declaration calls for an unprecedented level of international co-operation and solidarity, which is crucial for addressing the systemic inequities that have long hindered global climate action efforts.
Cop28 President Dr Sultan Al Jaber applauds after the UAE Consensus is reached in Dubai last December. The agreement offers some light on the horizon. AFP
More recently at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, the launch of the Cop Presidencies Troika, which includes the UAE, Azerbaijan and Brazil, marked a levelling-up for climate diplomacy. It sets the course for continuity in purpose and ambition from one Cop presidency to the next, laying the groundwork for a more cohesive and strategic global climate action framework.
By fostering a sense of shared responsibility and mutual support among successive Cop presidencies, the Troika agreement enables a more integrated and proactive approach to ensure that each Cop builds on the achievements of its predecessors to advance global climate goals.
As we carry the torch forward to Azerbaijan and then to Brazil, the path towards climate resilience requires a unified approach that transcends political and geographical boundaries. By aligning the efforts of successive Cop presidencies, we can create outcomes that benefit all, rather than a select few. This approach not only ensures that the ambitious goals set in Paris, and refined in subsequent Cops, are met, but also that they evolve to meet the changing needs of our planet and its inhabitants.
We cannot do this, however, if we do not have a bedrock of stability firmly in place. We must develop collaborative frameworks, such as the Troika, that recognise the fundamental interconnectedness of climate change, peace and recovery. We need structures and institutions that catalyse equitable and transformative change.
It is now down to our leaders to build bridges and the foundations for lasting and sustainable peace and prosperity. Without them, we cannot hope to meet the climate goals and ambitions we have set for ourselves in the near, medium or long-term future.
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
Trump v Khan
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”
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
