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More than 35,000 plastic bottles, 10 tonnes of paper and 66 tonnes of waste were recycled by companies and schools in Dubai as part of the “Let’s Reduce and Recycle” Campaign which was organised as part of Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week 2019.
During the closing ceremony of Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week 2019 at its premises, Dubai Chamber unveiled the results and impact of the week-long campaign which attracted the participation of more than 17,700 individuals, 41 companies and 10 schools, in addition to seven recycling partners who supported the effort.
Held November 21st-28th under the theme “World without Waste”, Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week 2019 featured a series of events joined by 400 delegates from the local business community, including a CEO Dialogue and roundtable discussion on waste management, an exhibition displaying the latest waste management solutions and a workshop tackling the issue of food waste in the UAE.
The CEO Dialogue event, organised in cooperation with the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, was joined by representatives from the UAE’s government and business spheres who shared their recommendations for reducing, recovering and recycling waste to and preventing its disposal to landfills. Industry experts highlighted the need to reframe the concept of waste as a resource and noted that companies need to do more to promote responsible consumerism among employees and customers.
The roundtable shed light on practical waste management strategies to help accelerate progress towards achieving the UAE’s waste diversion goals. Among the main suggestions made by participants were the need to put more emphasis on segregating recycling material from waste at the primary source, analyse the lifecycle of company products, reduce waste at each stage of the supply chain and source raw materials.
More public-private sector partnerships and collaborations are required to provide right technology, infrastructure and financial resources to encourage recycling, according to the participants who also identified key challenges in this area such as limited infrastructure to support waste collection and recycling, a lack of transparency in the traceability of waste management and the prevalent use of landfills throughout the UAE.
At the exhibition, several companies and schools showcased their innovative products and services designed to reduce food waste and e-waste, facilitate recycling and handle waste auditing, in addition to best practices implemented which have enabled them improve in this area.
A workshop, entitled “Stop Food Waste”, was hosted by Fairmont the Palm Hotel and Accor Group of Hotels and highlighted the financial benefits of adopting practical strategies that enable businesses to reduce and reuse food waste, as well as importance of food waste efforts in achieving sustainability goals. During the workshop, key stakeholders from the hospitality and food and beverage sectors spoke about their experiences in using technologies for monitoring, measuring and reporting levels of food waste, in addition to composting practices that enabled them to recycle waste and divert it away from landfills.
For his part, H.E. Majid Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, described Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week 2019 as a major success as the initiative achieved its objectives of effectively mobilising the business and academic communities to take action, reduce waste and boost their social impact.
“We were very encouraged to see such a strong response to the Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week 2019 and the recycling campaign engaging a diverse group of companies and schools. The initiative was an opportunity for us to take the pulse of the business community on important sustainability matters, evaluate current levels of progress and identify key areas where businesses can enhance their approach to waste management,” said HE Al Ghurair.
“When it comes to sustainability, actions speak louder than words, and the Dubai Chamber Sustainability Week platform has used this approach to showcase the tangible benefits of adopting practical waste management strategies. The initiative went far beyond raising awareness, as it provided participating organisations with the knowledge and tools they can use to expand their sustainability efforts in the future and become leading examples within their industries,” he added.
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