Minister of Environment and Climate Change H E Dr. Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali Al Thani (second left), UDST President Dr. Salem Al Naemi (second right), and other officials at the agreement signing.
Doha, Qatar: As part of the strategy to promote student research, drive climate change-resistant policies and facilitate entrepreneurship, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoECC) and the University of Doha for Science and Technology (UDST) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) yesterday.
Minister of Environment and Climate Change H E Sheikh Dr. Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali Al Thani and UDST President, Dr. Salem Al Naemi, attended the MoU signing at the UDST premises. The agreement was signed by Assistant Undersecretary for Environmental Protection Reserves and Wildlife Department at MoECC, Dr. Ibrahim Al Maslamani, and Vice-President of Academic Affairs at UDST, Dr. Rachid Benlamri.
Speaking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the signing, Dr. Al Naemi said the agreement is an extension of the university’s and the Ministry’s vision toward achieving the 2030 climate change strategy and an opportunity for “our students to do their research and coursework practically.”
“This MoU is to encourage the ministries and other entities to make opportunities for students to work part-time during their school years. It is also an opportunity for them after graduation; having spent some years with them, they’ll know their capability,” Dr. Al Naemi said.
“The other is to create a research opportunity between the Ministry and the university to solve real problems to serve the Ministry, the nation and the Qatar National Vision 2030. In this case, we, as a university, have a lot of labs, simulations and capabilities that we can offer to the Ministry and others. This is where we will create opportunities for our students to solve real problems, and I hope this creates employment for them in the future or a commercial enterprise.”
In a statement, Dr. Faleh said: “Collaborating with and supporting the national educational institutions to conduct research and understand the effect of environmental challenges to find solutions is an important step towards achieving the Qatar National Environment and Climate Change Strategy. This agreement is part of our commitment to implement the National Climate Change Plan 2030, which strikes a balance between the urgent need to work on climate change and environmental protection and the necessity to support sustainable social and economic development.” As part of the agreement, both entities will work on projects in biodiversity and wildlife, management, development and rehabilitation of nature reserves. Many studies will be conducted to measure the impact of hunting on the environment and fungal organisms inside and outside natural reserves, update environmental sensitivity maps, understand raw and construction materials, and assess the impact of development projects on the environment.
The MoU will also facilitate a life cycle assessment in addition to understanding the social and economic impacts of human practices.
UDST will work on the environmental conditions, including air quality, soil quality, water quality, noise pollution, and natural and geological heritage, and provide training for the Ministry’s staff.
“The other part of this agreement is how we can design some workshops to help the Ministry focus on areas like using artificial intelligence in different ways for the environment. I’m hoping we translate this document into a real project from which we will all benefit,” Dr. Al Naemi added.
Asked about UDST’s plans to partner with other agencies, Dr. Al Naemi said the institution always seeks beneficial agreements with relevant organizations. He disclosed that several collaborations are being worked on with a partnership with the Qatar Stock Exchange to be announced soon. Dr. Al Maslamani also commenting on the MoU said that the Ministry aims to build bridges of collaboration with different national higher education entities that are exerting efforts to research and achieve the Qatar National Environment and Climate Change Strategy and to implement the National Climate Change Plan 2030. He added that UDST is one of the educational institutions that has developed important expertise in research and education in environment preservation and environmental sustainability.
