Winners of 2017 MENA Green Building Awards honored

Winners of the 2017 MENA Green Building Awards

Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), an independent forum aimed at conserving the environment by strengthening and promoting green building practices, has announced the winners of the 2017 MENA Green Building Awards that recognize innovation, creativity and excellence in promoting sustainability best practices.
With record submissions from six nations across the MENA region, the awards highlighted the growing focus of industry stakeholders to promote innovation and best practices to drive sustainable built environments.
At a carbon-neutral awards ceremony held at Roda Al-Murooj hotel in Dubai, the winners in various professional categories were honored in the presence of government officials, industry leaders, representatives of academia and media. The Dr. Owainati Student Excellence Award for a student from a university in the UAE, who has conducted exceptional research on a subject related to green building in the Middle East, was also presented at the event.
Enas Alkhateeb, Faculty of Engineering and IT, British University in Dubai, UAE, received the honor for “Potentials of Retrofitting the Federal Buildings in the UAE to Net Zero Electricity Cost Buildings.”
Supported by the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), the 2017 MENA Green Building Awards was organized by EmiratesGBC in partnership with the JordanGBC and LebanonGBC. The event was highlighted on social media under the hashtag: #MENAGBAwards.
Saeed Al-Abbar, chairman of EmiratesGBC, said: “We congratulate the winners of the 2017 MENA Green Building Awards not only for their demonstrated excellence in driving the sustainable built environment of the region but also for their commitment and dedication to innovation and promoting green best practices. This year, we had a record number of submissions, underlined by their quality, creativity and original thinking.”
Lee Siang, chairman of WorldGBC, added: “The 2017 MENA Green Building Awards highlights the dedication of the regional construction industry stakeholders to pursue environment-friendly practices.
The innovations and best practices that the winners present are uniquely suited for the region and can be replicated in similar environments globally. This makes the awards a key part in the global sustainability narrative that the World Green Building Council promotes.”