Having been instrumental in shaping the largest LEED certified building in the Middle East, Dr Kazim hopes others will emulate the concept. As a result he seeks out knowledge-sharing opportunities at public forums to market the idea and also dispel misconceptions surrounding sustainability.
On the issue of sustainability,burberry, Dr Kazim says, "It hasn't gained wide acceptance because of the misperception that sustainability initiatives will cost an arm and a leg to implement. This is a short-sighted view and very disappointing. A little bit of groundwork would reveal that the initial costs are minimal while the annual returns are huge."
"With regard to water conservation, we started from the outside," says Dr Kazim. "We use additives in the soil that improve the structure as well as reduce the irrigation requirements for the plants. We have foliage such as cacti, palm trees and ghaf that require minimal water supply. Drip and time-controlled irrigation system and usage of water flow restrictors have also been implemented throughout the campus. Consequently, we have achieved a reduction in water requirement for landscaping by 16 million gallons per year.
"I can give you 20 initiatives but in the end we might carry out one or two of these. For me, it's not about putting things in the pipeline or making a wish list. It's important that we achieve what we set out to do. Over 90 per cent of my work has to do with execution."
With measures at DIAC firmly in place,beats by dre, Dr Kazim is looking to replicate the strategy at Dubai Knowledge Village. "We have started the recycling programmes and ensuring the conservation of water and electricity by any means possible. Both measures have generated substantial savings already."
Eco buildings save money
"It cost DIAC only 0.1 per cent of the total cost of the project. And, in terms of returns, we are saving Dh2.4 million a year on energy and water conservation. LEED certified case studies also illustrate that the productivity of the people living or staying in these buildings improves by 2 to 16 per cent."
"Hydrogen is another precious resource for producing energy. Unfortunately in the UAE, it has not gained ground unlike in developed countries such as Germany, Spain, the UK, Brazil and to some extent China where hydrogen energy is used for mass transit transportation systems.
Starting from within its own campus, DIAC hosts workshops and awareness sessions during the ‘Week of Welcome' at the beginning of each academic year. In these sessions, newcomers are informed about the DIAC code of conduct, as well as environment, health and safety issues. "We share best practices with students and with other organisations as well. For instance, recently at the Dubai Police,sac burberry, we shared information on how we achieved the green certification to help them move in the same direction. We leverage every opportunity to address an audience of key decision makers in the field of energy to highlight these issues at conferences such as the Gulf Education and Training Exhibition (Getex), the Dubai Energy Forum and Offshore Arabia that were held recently. We partner with Emirates Environmental Group and Dubai Municipality and encourage our students to participate in these organisations' conservation activities. We even invite professionals and homemakers for complementary sessions on best practices for water and energy conservation."
DKV is a hub for training and development of human capital, domestic and regional. Currently, it hosts 450 training institutes, professional development companies and consultancy firms. The other entity under the TECOM education cluster, DIAC is home to 27 academic institutions from 11 countries. It has 18,000 students and 100 nationalities.
For some years now, Dr Ayoub Kazim has been promoting sustainability and advocating for lifestyle changes that would help to reduce energy consumption. He takes added responsibility as a citizen of the UAE, a country that is taking baby steps towards reducing its carbon footprint.Two sewage treatment plants have also been set up at DIAC; one with a capacity of 5,000 cubic metres and the other of 1,800 cubic metres. The water obtained from the plants is used for landscaping purposes. Also, recycling programmes for paper, plastic and glass that were rolled out two years ago are progressing successfully through dedicated recycling sites.
Who: Dr Ayoub Kazim, managing director of TECOM Investments' Education Cluster
What: Implementing sustainable initiatives within DIAC
How: Achieving LEED certification from the US Green Building Council for phase three set of buildings within DIAC and integrating water and energy conservation measures across the campus.
According to estimates, buildings account for almost one-half of the world's material and energy consumption,casque beats, one-sixth of fresh water use,casque dr dre, and a quarter of all wood harvested. In light of this and with the world moving towards an era of smarter technology and more expensive natural resources, green buildings are no longer considered fashion statements but more as an imperative.
The benefits accrued from achieving the green certification for the buildings are numerous, including tangible financial costs, extended lifecycle and greater well-being among the occupants.
Key to water conservation
With the LEED certification achieved, Dr Kazim moved on to other energy conservation measures. As an ideal economic and environmental solution for energy-saving, district cooling was adopted throughout the zone as an alternative to conventional air conditioning systems. A solar tracker was installed, which currently generates 2.9kW of power to light 129 lamps in the corridors. This results in a saving of six tonnes of CO2 per year.
He says the private sector should step up its act and contribute to this growing awareness. "As of now, its role is non-existent." For Dr Kazim, CSR is not about a few photo opportunities, it is about embedding the culture in his colleagues' minds, from the managing director all the way to the junior staff. "Each one needs to be educated on conservation measures, environmental impacts, and the entire value chain."
Fact box...
Green buildings can reduce: Energy use by 24-50 per cent Water use by 40 per cent CO2 emissions by 33-39 per cent Solid waste by 70 per cent"Although currently the individual universities at DIAC are mandated to instill the culture of conservation among the students and their parents, in the long-term we as the umbrella organisation would need to take concrete steps to engage the wider community if we are to change existing perceptions and ingrained habits."
Looking at a greener future
Dr Kazim is the managing director of TECOM Investments' Education Cluster that comprises Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV) and Dubai International Academic City (DIAC). An expert on energy carriers such as hydrogen and fuel cells, his desire to raise awareness from the grass roots level saw him as a faculty member on renewable energy in his alma mater - the UAE University in Al Ain. After nearly 15 years in teaching and research, an inner calling to contribute to Dubai, the emirate of his birth, prompted him to take up an assignment with DKV six years ago.
He has published 50 journal papers on renewable energy, energy policy and economics, and also continually seeks opportunities to address the issue at regional and global forums. His speeches are not mere rhetoric - he has produced tangible results to substantiate his arguments. In fact,louboutin pas cher, he has implemented sustainable measures across the entities he heads and met exceptional targets.
"We were not just interested in getting certification, but wanted to serve as role models in the education zone and create awareness among the students and staff. I saw it as a learning opportunity for them,burberry soldes, where they not only could see,abercrombie france, feel, and experience the ambience of green buildings but also engage in sustainable projects and initiatives that lead to achieving the green certification."
All five buildings at DIAC phase three enforce a no smoking policy. In fact, smoking is not allowed within eight metres of building entrances. The facilities also enjoy 30 per cent more fresh air compared to ANSI/ASHRAE 62.1-2004, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality standard requirements, making the buildings very healthy for their occupants.
"We have also reported 32 per cent water cost savings with the installation or retrofitting of ultra-low (0.5 GPM) flow restrictors on 800 faucets. We installed bags in 950 water cisterns that utilise 20 per cent less water while flushing. Through the use of these bags, we save around 1,600 gallons of water per day and Dh10,000 per month on water consumption."
However, it's not just the private sector that needs to be proactive in its role, he says. "We need more academic institutions to come forward and offer programmes on renewable energy. Heriot-Watt University is among the few that currently offer such courses.
De-lamping and reduction of the light index from 21 watt per metre square to 10 watt per metre square was accomplished. Through this exercise, excess illumination or below normal lighting - both of which would hurt the eyes - is avoided. In addition,abercrombie and fitch, the LEED certified buildings run on intelligent lighting systems that ensure automatic switching on and off of power according to occupancy.
"When we were working on the design phase, people dismissed our effort as nonsense," says Dr Kazim. "We had to contend with comments like ‘you are dreaming', ‘it's going to cost you the earth' and a lot more. With my technical background and experience on renewable energy and conservation I was aware that if we embed the guidelines in the preliminary stage, the overheads would be significantly reduced. To date, it is the only core and shell academic block in the Middle East with a total built up area of 600,000 square feet that is LEED certified.
Back in 2008, with the first and second phases at DIAC reaching full capacity, Dr Kazim and his team launched phase three of the academic development. And it was at this stage that sustainability activities were first introduced on campus. The aim was to get a LEED certification from the US Green Building Council (USGBC) for the new set of buildings, therefore LEED guidelines were incorporated into the design stage of phase three. A year later, in 2009, the USGBC awarded the buildings LEED certification with a silver rating.
"Looking forward,abercrombie, we are considering ways to use organic waste through setting up anaerobic digesters that extract methane from waste for use as a fuel (biomass energy). From the food courts at DIAC and DKV, we are working out a method to reuse the used cooking oil from the restaurants to make soaps and creams or as a source of bio-diesel. We will be working with a vendor to achieve this objective," says Dr Kazim.
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