Emirates Environmental Group conducts the 22^nd Cycle of the Inter-College Environmental Public Speaking Competition

Emirates Environmental Group conducted the 22^nd cycle of the annual Inter-College Environmental Public Speaking Competition for the 1^st time over a course of 4 days from 21^st November to 24^th November 2022. The programme which was hosted by the Knowledge Park in Dubai registered the participation of 490 students. This bilingual (Arabic/English) competition was rolled out to provide a platform for the youth of the region to voice their concerns on current sustainability issues and suggest solutions for the same. The event was held in a hybrid format thereby allowing the teams to participate virtually or in person. This arrangement successfully enabled teams from 10 Arab Countries to participate and compete.

Through this platform EEG aims to educate and empower the younger generation to help give back to the community and feed into the sustainable development of the region.  To achieve that, EEG extended this previously 2-day event to 4 days, to enable wider participation and enable more institutions to benefit from this unique one of a kind educational platform. This year, 73 participating teams competed for the coveted rolling trophy under the following topics:

1. Water Security and Food Security – Correlated?
2. Conserving the True Lungs of the Planet: Key to Preventing Climate Change
3. Industrial Animal Agriculture – A Compelling Contributor to Climate Change?
4. Growing Cities: Redesigning Infrastructure Towards Net Zero

EEG Co-Founder and Chairperson, Mrs. Habiba Al Mar’ashi, raising the curtain on the 22^nd cycle said “The Inter-College Environmental Public Speaking Competition was initiated for the first time in 2001 in the UAE. Through this programme EEG aims to motivate the future generation in the region to have a clear understanding of contemporary environmental issues and share practical solutions for them. Since then EEG has continuously built the youth’s capacity for research, critical thinking, leadership and networking; the few vital qualities that are required to make a lasting impact on the world.”

Adding further Mrs. Al Mar’ashi mentioned “For more than two decades, the Inter-College Environmental Public Speaking Competition has been providing a cross-border inclusive platform to reiterate the role of youth as important contributors in achieving sustainable development. Considering the popularity of this programme, EEG also intends to take the platform a step ahead and open registrations to universities and colleges beyond the Arab Region as well.”

To score the students fairly, EEG assembled together a jury of eight bilingual experts, who are active in the field.

• Mr. Mansour Faried – Chief Engineer, China State Construction Engineering Middle East
• Mr. Jamil Haddad – Business Development & Sustainability Manager, Al Bayader International
• Prof Dr. Sabih G. Khisaf – VP International Hyper-loop TT Infrastructure Lead – Mena Region
• Ms. Reem Khallaf – Environmental Management & Sustainability Analyst, Accenture Middle East
• Mr. Haithem Ibraheem – Property Operations Manager, ICD Brookfield Place
• Mr. Rouba Abou-Atieh – Executive Coordinator, United Nations Environment Programme
• Ms. Seta Tutundjian – Founder, Chief Executive Officer, Thriving Solutions Earth
• Engr. Yousef Mohamed Al Marzooqi – Head of Consumer and Chemical Products Section, Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology
• Ms. Dima Maroun – Partner, Environment and Sustainability, Thriving Solutions Earth

The winners of the 22^nd cycle of Inter College Environmental Public Speaking competition are:

The coveted rolling trophy was bagged by Al Yamamah University – Riyadh – Saudi Arabia who scored the highest points in the 4-day competition. This is their third victory in the competition and hence the University will be able to proudly showcase the Rolling trophy as a permanent fixture and highlight it as one of their proud achievements.

During the closing ceremony of the competition, EEG’s Chairperson announced that in its next cycle the competition will be open to Universities and Colleges beyond the Arab Region. This will appropriately commemorate the efforts of UAE to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and will befit the occasion of COP 28 that will be hosted by the country.

Having accreditations to two prestigious entities; the United Nations Environment Programme, and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and building on the work of EEG to deliver on the relevant  UNSDGs, it conducted this important event to directly address and to work on the deliverables of UN SDG Goal #2: Zero Hunger, #3: Good Health and Well-Being, #6: Clean Water and Sanitation, #7: Affordable and Clean Energy, #9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, #11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, #12: Responsible Consumption and Production, #13: Climate Action, #14: Life Below Water, #15: Life on Land and #17: Partnership for the Goals.

Emirates Environmental Group (EEG(, is a professional working group established in 1991. It is devoted to protecting the environment through the means of education, action programmes and community involvement. EEG is actively encouraged and supported by concerned local and federal government agencies. It is the first environmental NGO in the world to be ISO 14001 certified and the only organisation of its kind in the UAE with accredited status to the United Nations Convention to Combating Desertification (UNCCD) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). EEG is a member of the UN Global Compact, the Global Urban Development (GUD), the One Planet Network under programme of Sustainable Food System (SFS), Sustainable Food Systems (SFS) Programme’s Multi-stakeholder Advisory Committee (MAC) and Global Partnership on Marine Litter (GPML).

For more information, contact us: email: eeg@emirates.net.ae; Tel: 04-3448622; Fax: 04-3448677 and please visit our bi-lingual website: www.eeg-uae.org; Follow us on FB; Twitter & Instagram: @eegemirates

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