The UAE ranked 14th for the highest national concentration of sustainable buildings in the world and was the only country from the region in the top 30, according to a new survey.
The country is home to 869 green-rated buildings, while Saudi Arabia ranked 54th with 38 green-rated buildings, consultancy Knight Frank said in the second edition of its (Y)our Space report, which surveyed almost 400 businesses worldwide on their workplace strategies and real estate needs.
Kuwait and Oman have 12 green-accredited buildings each and rank 69th and 70th, respectively.
"The climate crisis has spawned a global green reawakening and businesses in the Middle East are alive to the climate challenge," Faisal Durrani, head of Middle East research at Knight Frank, said.
The UAE is encouraging the construction of greener buildings and working to retrofit older buildings to make them less energy-intensive as part of its push into energy sustainability. The UAE has committed to the Paris Agreement on climate change to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 23.5 per cent by 2030.
Global companies that have set a 2030 net zero carbon target may struggle to achieve their objectives if there is no major shift towards sustainable buildings, the Knight Frank report found
Three-quarters of Middle East businesses surveyed, which represent 7,800 staff, say their real estate choices in the future will be influenced by their net zero targets, the consultancy said. However, the vast majority of companies say that less than 25 per cent of their global portfolios are green or sustainable.
“The message to landlords is loud and clear: green credentials of buildings will become a key battleground in [the] post-Covid economy, particularly as office footprints are likely to be revised downward as more businesses adopt hybrid working methods, factoring for greater remote working," Mr Durrani said.
Being "greener" will be a major differentiator as businesses adapt their occupational strategies to encourage more employees to return to the office, he added.
Landlords in the region will have to weigh the costs and benefits of "greenifying" their buildings to cater to changing business demands.
"As investors and businesses are increasingly factoring the green credentials of a building in their decision making, it’s clear that the saleability and lettability of non-green-rated buildings will be negatively impacted over the medium to long-term," Mr Durrani said.
Global businesses want to be more sustainable, with 40 per cent of companies setting a net zero carbon target, the report showed. Of those, 77 per cent are aiming to achieve this goal by 2030.
However, despite the real estate sector accounting for as much as 40 per cent of global carbon emissions, and with growing pressure from the environmental, social and governance (ESG) agendas of investors, more than 87 per cent of companies said that less than half of their current global real estate portfolios are either green or sustainable, the report said.
"This suggests a real disconnect between real estate and wider corporate thinking on sustainability," Knight Frank said.
Almost 60 per cent of global respondents said that there is only a partial recognition from their wider business that occupying and utilising real estate differently will impact their ability to achieve net zero carbon and wider sustainability targets.
A further 15 per cent said that there is no recognition of this at all, the report showed.
“Developers and landlords in the Middle East have made great strides in delivering world-leading green buildings, incorporating stunning technologies," Mr Durrani said, citing the condensation harvesting system on the Burj Khalifa as an example.
"But such technologies need to be adopted more widely if landlords are to compete on a level playing field for increasingly green conscious businesses," he added.
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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All or Nothing
Amazon Prime
Four stars
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Bert van Marwijk factfile
Born: May 19 1952
Place of birth: Deventer, Netherlands
Playing position: Midfielder
Teams managed:
1998-2000 Fortuna Sittard
2000-2004 Feyenoord
2004-2006 Borussia Dortmund
2007-2008 Feyenoord
2008-2012 Netherlands
2013-2014 Hamburg
2015-2017 Saudi Arabia
2018 Australia
Major honours (manager):
2001/02 Uefa Cup, Feyenoord
2007/08 KNVB Cup, Feyenoord
World Cup runner-up, Netherlands
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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A German university was a good fit for the family budget
Annual fees for the Technical University of Munich - £600
Shared rental accommodation per month depending on the location ranges between £200-600
The family had budgeted for food, books, travel, living expenses - £20,000 annually
Overall costs in Germany are lower than the family estimated
As proof that the student has the ability to take care of expenses, international students must open a blocked account with about £8,640
Students are permitted to withdraw £720 per month
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
'The Lost Daughter'
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
Rating: 4/5
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
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INFO
Everton 0
Arsenal 0
Man of the Match: Djibril Sidibe (Everton)
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
The Details
Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5