Hayatona – Our Life I Shawati’ 71
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، تــم الاعتــراف رســميا بأبوظبــي كمركــز إقليمــي 2025 فــي مطلــع عــام للخبــرات فــي مجــال التعليــم مــن أجــل التنميــة المســتدامة مــن قبــل جامعــة الأمــم المتحــدة، لتصبــح بذلــك أوّل جهــة فــي منطقــة الخليــج العربــي تحظــى بهــذا الاعتمــاد. ويُعــد هــذا الإنجــاز ثمــرة للجهــود المتواصلــة والرؤيــة الاســتراتيجية لهيئــة البيئــة - أبوظبــي، التــي قـادت لأكثـر مـن عقديـن مـن الزمـن مبـادرات التوعيـة والتعليـم البيئـي والمشـاركة المجتمعيّــة. ويعكـس هـذا الاعتمـاد التـزام أبوظبـي الراسـخ بجعــل مفاهيــم الاســتدامة ركيــزة أساســية ضمــن منظومــة التعليــم، ويعــزّز مكانــة الإمــارة كمركــز إقليمــي رائــد للتعليــم البيئــي والاســتجابة للتحدّيــات المناخيّــة فــي المنطقــة. يمثّــل انضمـام أبوظبـي إلـى شـبكة مراكـز الخبـرة الإقليميّــة فـي مجـال التعليـم مـن أجـل التنميـة المسـتدامة نقلـة نوعيّــــــة فـي مسيــــــرة تطـوّر التعليــــــم البيئـي فـــــي العالـــــــــــم العربـي؛ فهـذا الإنجــــــــاز لا يقتصـر علـى كونـــه اعترافـــا دوليـــاً، بـــل يجسّـــد التزامـــا راســـخا بالاســـتدامة يتجـــاوز حـــدود نقـــل المعرفـــة ليحوّلهـــا إلـــى أفعـــال ملموســـة، تمهّـــد الطريـــق لمســـتقبل بيئـــي واعـــد. يحمــل تصنيــــــف “مركـــــــــز الخبــــــرة الإقليمــيّ” فــي طيّاتــــــه مســؤولية كبيــــــرة؛ فهــــــو يعــزّز مكانــــــة أبوظبــي الرياديّــــــة فــي مجــال التّعليــــــم البيئــــــي، القــــــادر علــى الاستجابــــــة السّريعــــــة والفعّالــــــة للتحدّيــــــات المناخيّــــــة، وتعزيــز مرونــــــة المنظومــــــة البيئيــة، مــع الحفــــــاظ علــى الأصالــــــة الثقافيــــــة. ومــــــن خــال عملنــــــا، حرصنــــــا علــــــى مواءمــــــة جهودنـــــا مـع أُطـــــر العمـــــل الدوليّـــــة مثـل أهـــــداف التنميـــــة المسـتدامة
A major focus of the Abu Dhabi RCE will be closing critical gaps in environmental learning by offering field-based, hands-on learning opportunities that move learners from passive understanding to active participation. Sustainability cannot remain theoretical. It must be tangible, localised and linked to community action. To that end, the RCE will build on the work EAD has championed for years: developing practical educational programmes that are deeply rooted in our natural heritage, our culture and our environmental re- alities. This includes integrating indigenous knowledge into extracur- ricular activities, celebrating local biodiversity and reviving traditional ecological practices that have sustained Emiratis for generations. When students see their environment reflected in what they learn, they are far more likely to become stewards of its future. At the heart of our RCE is youth. This is the generation that will inherit both the challenges and the opportunities of a changing planet. Our work is therefore focused on ‘Generation Restoration’, a growing com- munity of young people empowered to lead ecosystem rehabilitation, climate action and sustainable living. Their energy, creativity and sense of urgency must be part of the solution. Digital platforms form the backbone of our strategy to scale sustaina- bility education across Abu Dhabi and beyond. At the heart of this dig- ital ecosystem is ‘naha’, a dynamic knowledge hub developed by EAD to foster environmental learning, collaboration and action. Far more than a conventional e-learning tool, ‘naha’ centralises all EAD outreach programmes and serves as an interactive space where users can access
biodiversity in the UAE’s waters. © iStock في
Abu Dhabi has officially launched its Coral Garden initiative, the largest project of its kind in the Middle East, to help restore marine life and protect
In early 2025, Abu Dhabi was officially recognised as a Regional Centre of Expertise [RCE] on Education for Sustainable Development by the United Nations University, becoming the first entity of its kind in the Gulf region. This milestone was made possible through the sustained efforts and strategic vision of the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi [EAD], which has spent over two decades pioneering environmental ed- ucation, awareness and community engagement initiatives. The desig- nation reflects Abu Dhabi’s longstanding commitment to integrating sustainability into education and positions the emirate as a leading hub for transformative learning and climate action across the region. The recognition of Abu Dhabi as an RCE on Education for Sustainable Development marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of environmen- tal education in the Arab region. More than recognition, this milestone affirms our long-standing commitment to sustainability and sets the foundation for a future in which knowledge is not only transmitted but transformed into action. The RCE designation comes with responsibility. It places Abu Dhabi in a leadership position to drive transformative learning that responds to climate urgency and ecological degradation with relevance, speed and cultural integrity. By aligning with global frameworks such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 4.7, a target within the broader SDG 4 [Quality Education], ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportuni- ties for all, and SDG 13.3 – which focuses on building knowledge and capacity to address climate change – we now have a platform to ac- celerate climate literacy, foster community participation and promote nature-based solutions through education. Moreover, the RCE’s key focus on education regarding ecosystem restoration is indeed central to addressing collective responsibilities within the UN Environment Programme [UNEP] action plan, which is part of the UN Decade on Eco- system Restoration [2021-2030].
EAD ’ s project TotalEnergies, will utilise innovative technology and state-of-the-art restoration solutions, including ROOT - three-dimensional models that mimic the root system of mangrove trees. © EAD
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