Program, Speakers Revealed for Saudi Green Initiative Forum at COP28

Taking place on December 4 during COP28 in Dubai, this year’s Forum maintains the theme “From Ambition to Action” for a consecutive year. (SPA)
Taking place on December 4 during COP28 in Dubai, this year’s Forum maintains the theme “From Ambition to Action” for a consecutive year. (SPA)
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Program, Speakers Revealed for Saudi Green Initiative Forum at COP28

Taking place on December 4 during COP28 in Dubai, this year’s Forum maintains the theme “From Ambition to Action” for a consecutive year. (SPA)
Taking place on December 4 during COP28 in Dubai, this year’s Forum maintains the theme “From Ambition to Action” for a consecutive year. (SPA)

The program and speakers for the third edition of the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) Forum was revealed on Friday.

Taking place on December 4 during COP28 in Dubai, this year’s Forum maintains the theme “From Ambition to Action” for a consecutive year. The event will convene an elite lineup of influential figures, climate experts, senior government officials, and CEOs to share their insights and discuss what more can be done to address climate challenges.

Speakers confirmed to be taking part include William Thomas Winters, CEO, Standard Chartered, Dr. Angela Wilkinson, Secretary General and CEO, World Energy Council, Olivier Le Peuch, CEO, Schlumberger, and François Jackow, CEO, Air Liquide, and a number of Saudi government officials.

The forum’s program will focus on multiple key themes, including innovating and scaling up clean energy solutions, the Red Sea’s ecosystem, financing climate action, and protecting terrestrial and marine areas in the Kingdom.

The forum also presents a unique opportunity for diverse stakeholders to engage in dialogue, share insights, and showcase innovative approaches to addressing climate challenges, and supporting global action.

The forum will feature a series of panel discussions that will explore the key themes under four event pillars: "Industrial Plays,The Financial Architecture of Tomorrow,” "Innovative Transitions," and "Coherence for Impact.”

The sessions will examine critical topics, including clean energy scaling, desertification mitigation, climate technology innovation, safeguarding the Red Sea, sustainable urban planning, CCUS and hydrogen technology, and ESG investments. In the year of the global stocktake, the SGI Forum 2023 will be an important platform to accelerate global efforts to address climate challenges.

In addition to the forum, the Saudi Green Initiative Gallery will be open daily from 10:00am to 9:00pm throughout the COP28 conference, except for the day of the SGI Forum (December 4). The Gallery will showcase Saudi Arabia’s range of initiatives and projects working to deliver a greener, more sustainable future, underscoring the Kingdom’s enduring commitment to climate action.

This year, the Saudi Green Initiative is premiering an interactive speaker series called SGI Talks, to offer a wider audience access to different aspects of the climate action conversation and encourage dialogue. The series will engage with the major sustainability trends of the future, complementing the wider COP28 agenda. Talks will include a range of topics, including new technologies transforming energy efficiency.

The SGI Gallery will display the breadth and depth of climate action initiatives taking place across Saudi Arabia and the range of entities, projects and individuals behind these efforts. Visitors to the SGI Gallery will discover how the Kingdom is progressing towards its targets and learn more about the multitude of sustainable initiatives already delivering impact across the country.



Arab, Islamic, African Mechanism Established to Support Palestinian Cause

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan (Reuters)
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan (Reuters)
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Arab, Islamic, African Mechanism Established to Support Palestinian Cause

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan (Reuters)
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan (Reuters)

The Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the African Union (AU) signed a tripartite agreement on Monday to support the Palestinian cause, during the Arab-Islamic Summit in Riyadh.

The move was praised by the summit, especially for the African Union’s strong position on the issue.

According to information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, the mechanism will be coordinated through the organizations’ secretariats. Representatives will meet regularly to align their positions and strengthen their influence in international forums.

Joint coordination meetings will be held soon to finalize the details of the agreement.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan welcomed the cooperation, noting that the three organizations will now speak with one voice internationally, instead of through individual bilateral talks.

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit added that while Arab-African and Arab-Islamic cooperation already exists, this is the first time an agreement has united the three organizations on this issue.

He said the agreement will expand cooperation and set a clear strategy moving forward.