The Center for Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) at Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) organized a scientific workshop titled “Energy and Sustainability: Lessons Learned from Applied Work”. 

 

The workshop was a forum for researchers from several countries and universities to present the recent results of their research papers on energy sustainability and economic development. The researchers discussed a number of issues, including energy transformation, pollution, climate change, energy sustainability, and their impacts on economies around the world. 

 

Attending the workshop were a number of officials and interested people, including American Chargé D' Affaires James Holtsnider, and the Director of the Graduate Studies & Research Office at GUST, Professor Issam El Moughrabi. 

In a speech to the media, the Chair of SEED, Dr. Khalid Kisswani, said, “The workshop is considered as a platform that gathers specialists from inside and outside the university to present and discuss the latest research on energy and sustainability, as well as allowing experts to participate, discuss, and devise creative energy solutions and ideas, and create a network of specialized academics”. 

Kisswani also pointed out that the workshop comes in line with GUST’s strategy which aims to enable faculty members to achieve scientific progress, in addition to promoting research and development at the university. “There is no doubt that the theme of this workshop is a very important topic since it is also compatible with the development plan of Kuwait Vision 2035, which aims to achieve economic sustainability and maintain environmental safety and use clean, renewable energy”, Kisswani added. 

 

American Chargé D' Affaires, James Holtsnider, praised the ideas and proposals presented at the workshop, noting that the impacts and effects of fossil fuels on climate change is being experienced internationally, and the critical need for clean energy. 

 

“We should not forget that the dust storms that have recently swept through the region and Kuwait are one of the consequences of this climate change, as well as its impact on global food security due to drought in some areas or floods that are reducing agricultural production”, Holtsnider added.

 

He pointed out that the United States has pledged to reduce its gas emissions by 50 percent before 2030, hoping Kuwait to do the same, noting that it is one of the countries characterized by its high exposure to the sun and therefore it can utilize solar energy as a power source, adding that it has the potential to be a global leader in this field. 

 

GUST’s Director of the Graduate Studies & Research Office, Professor Issam El Moughrabi, stressed the importance of the topics discussed in the workshop, especially since renewable energy has become an urgent need in the current changing levels of energy, and the country’s desire to promote the concept of sustainability. El Moughrabi pointed out that this workshop was very rich in information and findings from the researches that addressed a number of issues in this area, which are worthwhile and invite us to benefit from them. 

 

The workshop agenda included a number of lectures, including one entitled “Kuwait Sustainable Energy Road Map” presented by Dr. Salem Al Hajraf, and another lecture entitled “Sustainable Energy Transition in the GCC: The Role of Green Power” presented by Dr. Leila Dagher, as well as a lecture entitled “The Role of Energy Efficiency in Shaping the Energy Transition” presented by Professor Fateh Belaid, and via Online, Dr. Khaled Guesmi’s lecture entitled “Financial Crises and Oil Risk”.