April 7, 2022
By Neeshad Shafi, Cofounder of Arab Youth Climate Movement Qatar
I was thrilled to attend last week’s first-ever Middle East and North Africa Regional Climate Week (MENACW 2022), a promising momentum-builder ahead of this year’s COP27 UN climate conference in Egypt and next year’s COP28 in the United Arab Emirates. Hosted in Dubai, MENA Climate Week provided a unique opportunity to raise the profile of the Arab States region as a global climate risk hotspot and a top priority for climate adaptation investments as well as an essential partner in the global clean energy transition.
I was one of more than 4000 participants who attended the event, which comprised over 200 in-person sessions and many more online. Some 500 speakers from 147 countries flocked to MENA Climate Week to share their visions of a sustainable way forward for the region. Conversations included participants from the host government of the UAE and many other policymakers, private sector leaders, academic experts, young climate champions, and civil society groups.