Education and carbon capture with emphasis on technology are the two major topics on the agenda at the environmental conference to be held in Oman next year.
To be hosted by Be’ah, Oman’s Environmental Services Holding Company, the International Sustainability Resources and Technology Conference will be held in association with International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) and G-STIC at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) from February 10 to 12.
The conference, which will bring together experts, students, policy makers and strategic partners, aims to translate the global concepts to the local level.
Shaikh Mohammed al Harthy, Vice-President, Strategic Development Sector at Be’ah, while addressing a press conference on Monday said, “We are focusing on sustainable waste management and the conference will discuss a wide variety of topics concerning major environmental issues.”
The focus is on sustainable development goals and the future of resource management while shedding light on Industry 4.0 and the latest technological solutions that minimise damage on the environment, he said.
Al Harthy said that by hosting this conference, Be’ah’s key emphasis is to lead change by focusing on developing sustainable and reliable infrastructural solutions.
The ISRTC 2020 is collaborating with the International Solid Waste Association, an organisation that has 1,300 members in 110 countries of which Oman is a national member.
“We are working on having Oman as the Centre of Excellence and be a regional partner and have the MENA chapter in Oman for the Arabian Peninsula,” said Mark Tijhuis, MD of ISWA in Netherlands. While talking about the importance of the conference and bringing in new technology he said, “Technology is about behaviour.”
ISWA will be sharing its experience and knowledge within the fields of sustainable waste management and climate mitigation by informed discussions through expert working groups.
The conference will also see a collaboration with specialist event organiser led by independent and non-profit technological research institutes organising the Global Sustainable Technology and Innovation Conference.
Dr Veerle Vandeweerd, Director, Policy Global Sustainable Technology and Innovation Conference Series (G-STIC), said globally there is a need for new technologies and research institutes need to come together.
“To achieve a sustainable society we need a holistic vision. There are systematic changes that have been happening. In the past no one would have thought the consumers would never pay for the treating of waste water. Waste water used to be dumped into the ocean. Today, however, from liquid waste we can extract energy, extract nitrogen and phosphorous and use for agriculture. Waste water can be a resource and when it is a resource the private sector will come forward. We need smart farms and application of agricology. What we need to work on is a culture of innovation and a culture of change,” explained Dr Vandeweerd.
Said al Shanfari, CEO of OCEC, said while there have been a variety of conferences held on many other topics, this was the first time OCEC was hosting an environmental conference.
“The OCEC uses solar energy for heating of the water and natural light to its fullest. The OCEC has achieved LEED Gold certification for its sustainable design placing it as the one and only building with Gold ranking in the Sultanate. We are very excited to host the ISRTC 2020,” said Al Shanfari.
A major focus at the conference will be on carbon capture. “If we need to control global warming we must get into carbon capture. We can extract carbon from air and make bricks out of them. Some countries are already doing it. It is worth trillions of dollars. We have to begin to think of entirely different ways of producing and consuming,” Vandeweerd explained.
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