Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, attended the launch of a smart university campus that will help to lead the charge towards a more sustainable future.
The University of Birmingham Dubai's high-tech grounds, in Dubai International Academic City, feature a “floating” library, a living laboratory, and tens of thousands of sensors to help meet a net-zero carbon target by 2035.
It covers an area of 30,000 square metres and is fitted with 23,000 Internet of Things (IoT) sensors which can adjust lighting based on occupancy and environmental changes, while capturing data which can be analysed to ensure energy is used sustainably.
Sheikh Hamdan said on Twitter following the visit that Dubai's goal was to be a major education capital that attracts the brightest young minds from around the world.
Adam Tickell, vice chancellor at University of Birmingham Dubai, said the goal was to create the world's smartest campus in partnership with Siemens, the German industrial conglomerate.
Boosting efficiency to help the planet
The living lab “uses data from people in the building”, Mr Tickell said.
“We're using data from people, and the sensors try to understand the way that the building and the people interact. It's almost like not thinking about people in the building as separate but thinking of them as part of a whole organism.
“When we walk into a room and we turn on lights or air-conditioning, the sensors allow us to adjust what's happening. Immediately, we can also use the data that we get from across the whole campus to analyse so that we can become much more energy efficient.”
Besides digital sensors, the campus uses analytical technologies, artificial intelligence, decentralised energy storage and renewables.
“The primary motivation was absolutely to reduce our energy and carbon consumption to the lowest possible level,” Mr Tickell said.
The University of Birmingham Dubai broke ground on the second phase of its campus in 2019.
In September 2018, the university became the first global top 100 and UK Russell Group university to establish a campus in Dubai.
Enrolments have doubled this year, Mr Tickell said.
“The move from the space that we've been using into our own campus has been transformational,” he said.
“So what we're finding is that enrolments have doubled this year and interest is really, really high. We always knew that it would take a bit of time to attract people, but the fact that we've got the new campus has been transformational for us.”
David Sadler, provost at the University of Birmingham Dubai, said he hoped that smart technology would help to cut energy use by between 15 and 20 per cent.
“Over our time in the building, that's quite a saving,” he said.
The university's design borrows the principles of an Arabic wind tower to create natural cooling in the courtyard.
The project was about five or six years in the making, and construction began two years ago.
Mr Sadler said university programmes include artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow.
Campus key to university's ambitions
The university has about 800 students and 100 staff members, while it can accommodate 2,900 students and 300 staff at capacity.
The campus includes a 300-seat auditorium, six laboratories, a lecture theatre modelled on the horseshoe Harvard Business School style, and 28 classrooms of different capacities.
The university’s floating library refers to the design of the study space. In the middle of the university’s atrium is a stairway styled after the Spanish Steps in Rome. The library is suspended over these steps and seems to float.
Designed by Hopkins Architects, the buildings are located opposite the city’s first purpose-built student housing community and look across parkland.
Mr Tickell said the vision was to fuse the historic style of the Edgbaston campus in England with the heritage, tradition and the beauty of Arabic culture and architecture.
The university will offer 15 new programmes in the autumn, including a bachelor's degree in biomedical science, an MSc in financial mathematics, and an MSc in data science.
While there are staff members who will be based at the Dubai campus on a full-time basis, some UK-based will visit.
Study programmes at the Dubai campus include biomedical science, accounting, financial management, international commercial law, business, economics, computer science, artificial intelligence, public health, psychology, and education degrees that include teacher training in special educational.
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How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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No.6 Collaborations Project
Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
Three trading apps to try
Sharad Nair recommends three investment apps for UAE residents:
- For beginners or people who want to start investing with limited capital, Mr Nair suggests eToro. “The low fees and low minimum balance requirements make the platform more accessible,” he says. “The user interface is straightforward to understand and operate, while its social element may help ease beginners into the idea of investing money by looking to a virtual community.”
- If you’re an experienced investor, and have $10,000 or more to invest, consider Saxo Bank. “Saxo Bank offers a more comprehensive trading platform with advanced features and insight for more experienced users. It offers a more personalised approach to opening and operating an account on their platform,” he says.
- Finally, StashAway could work for those who want a hands-off approach to their investing. “It removes one of the biggest challenges for novice traders: picking the securities in their portfolio,” Mr Nair says. “A goal-based approach or view towards investing can help motivate residents who may usually shy away from investment platforms.”
Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding
Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.
For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae
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Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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Results
2.15pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Arrab, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
2.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Mahaleel, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel.
3.15pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum handicap (TB) Dh200,000 2,000m; Winner: Dolmen, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
3.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Amang Alawda, Sandro Paiva, Bakhit Al Ketbi.
4.15pm: The Crown Prince of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 1,200m; Winner: AF Alwajel, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
4.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 2,000m; Winner: Al Jazi, Jesus Rosales, Eric Lemartinel.
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
