Sustainable Qatar


Book Description

This open access book provides a topical overview of the key sustainability issues in Qatar, focusing on environmental sustainability from a socio-political perspective. The transition to a sustainable Qatar requires engagement with diverse areas of social-political, human, and environmental development. On the environmental aspects, the contributors address climate change, food security, water reuse and desalination, energy, and biodiversity. The socio-political section examines state strategy and regulation, the place of environmental law and geopolitics and sustainability innovators and catalysts. The human section considers economics, sustainability education, the knowledge economy, and waste management. In doing so, the book demarcates the ways in which the country encounters and grapples with significant challenges and delves into the range of options for future pathways to sustainability in Qatar. Relevant to policymakers and scholars in energy and environment, urban and developmental studies, as well as the arenas of politics, climate change and policy, this book is a landmark collection on environmental policy in the Gulf and beyond.




Sustainable Urban Agriculture


Book Description

In the vibrant discourse of urbanization and climate change, Sustainable Urban Agriculture: New Frontiers investigates emerging needs, rising challenges, and opportunities to support urban agriculture. Navigating the dynamic interplay of urbanization and environmental challenges, the book introduces two pivotal agendas for urban sustainability—the "green" agenda, focusing on environmental health, and the "brown" agenda, emphasizing human well-being and social justice. The book embraces a global perspective by confronting geographical biases and advocating for context-specific understanding and early interventions in small and medium cities. This transformative journey guides readers through uncharted territories, fostering profound awareness of urban agriculture's role in shaping a sustainable and resilient future in agriculture. Features Presents information on socio-ecological resilience, shaping a sustainable urban future Unveils practical implications, traversing frontiers where urban cultivation extends beyond crops, cultivating a thriving urban ecosystem Discusses diverse urban agriculture practices, from traditional methods to cutting-edge technologies Providing readers with an understanding of the multifaceted layers inherent in urban agriculture, this volume in the NextGen Agriculture: Novel Concepts and Innovative Strategies series is essential for academics, students, practitioners, and experts in urban agriculture and planning, horticulture, landscape architecture, and plant sciences.




Environmental Law in Arab States


Book Description

Environmental Law in Arab States offers a comprehensive and authoritative account of the guiding principles and rules relating to environmental protection in the Arab region. Taking an international and comparative approach, the book introduces readers to the latest developments of environmental law across the Arab region through applicable legislation, green finance, and climate technologies The impact of these is assessed in each of the major areas of environmental regulation, air pollution, water pollution, biodiversity, conservation of nature and cultural heritage, infrastructure development, and Islamic ecology. Consideration is given to participatory and bottom-up legal strategies – focusing on transparency, accountability, gender justice, and other human rights safeguards – that are needed to achieve greater coherence and coordination in the implementation and enforcement of environmental regulation across the region. The book closes by providing legal assessments and reflections on how Arab countries can, through clear and comprehensive legislation, advance existing national strategies and visions on trade and investment, green growth, Islamic green finance, circular economy, blue economy, and low carbon future amongst others.




The Report: Qatar 2015


Book Description

Qatar’s sizable oil and natural gas reserves have underpinned its rapid economic growth over the past two decades. Home to the world’s largest non-associated gas field, the country is the world’s fourth-largest producer of dry natural gas and the largest producer of liquefied natural gas, with hydrocarbons revenues forming the bulk of national income as a result. Although the drop in global energy prices has impacted export revenues, rigorous economic diversification drives in recent years have paid dividends, and in 2015 non-hydrocarbons growth reached 7.7%, compared to a 0.1% contraction for hydrocarbons growth during the same period. The country’s financial sector has continued to evolve; Islamic banking in particular has witnessed significant progress. Meanwhile, as the country gears up to host several important sporting events in the coming years, most notably the 2022 FIFA World Cup, numerous big-ticket infrastructure builds continue to expand the construction sector.




Political Power and Environmental Sustainability in Gulf Monarchies


Book Description

This book offers a new perspective about the Gulf Arab states entering a post-oil era by looking at the political factors behind the green transformation. It discusses the recent ‘environmental enthusiasm’ in the oil- and gas-rich Gulf monarchies by asking how political power can be constituted through advocating environmental sustainability. While hydrocarbon-wealthy Gulf monarchies have been viewed as the globe’s ‘hydrocarbon powerhouse’ with an immense ecological footprint, efforts towards sustainability and environmental protection measures are increasingly monitored. Climate Change, environmental, degradation and the global pressure towards a low-carbon development are threatening the very basis of economic and political power of the oil- and gas-exporting Gulf monarchies. So far, discussions about this fundamental transformation have barely elaborated how it affects and reorganizes political power games in the region. This book attempts to overcome the dominant focus of techno economic drivers of change and uncovers how environmental sustainability impacts state-society and state-elite relationships as well as shaping regional and even global geopolitics.




The World Guide to Sustainable Enterprise


Book Description

The World Guide to Sustainable Enterprise is the first comprehensive global compendium that clearly describes the national approaches to sustainable enterprise. Through a systematic review of each country, this quick-to-access reference guide showcases the similarities and differences in each region. Every country profile includes key information about the relevant history, country-specific issues, trends, research, and the leading organizations operating in the field as well as best-practice case studies. The guide comprises four volumes, each dedicated to a specific region of the world. In a world where organizations are working increasingly across national and regional boundaries and research takes a joined-up and international approach, this book is an essential guide for practitioners and researchers in the disciplines of business sustainability, social enterprise and corporate responsibility. The first of its kind, this reference book provides the reader with a unique insight into what is the current state-of-play in each country. Each edited volume provides expert contributions from around the world; the contributors have been selected on the basis of their knowledge of the country and their clear experience in sustainable enterprise. Each regional/country profile includes the following subsections: Sustainable Enterprise in context; Priority issues; Trends; Government policies; Case studies; Further resources; and References. This unique resource will be an essential acquisition for all organizations who need to benchmark their sustainable enterprise strategies throughout different regions and cultures and want the best possible intelligence on the key issues and concerns relating to sustainable business and social responsibility in all of the markets in which they operate. It provides a useful companion reference collection to The World Guide to CSR, also edited by Wayne Visser. The full Four Volume Set of The World Guide to Sustainable Enterprise is available for purchase as a single item at a 25% discounted rate.




Introduction to Qatar


Book Description

Qatar is a small country located in the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East, bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south and the Persian Gulf to the north. Despite its small size, Qatar is a wealthy and influential nation due to its vast reserves of natural gas and oil. The capital city of Qatar is Doha, which is the economic and political hub of the country. The majority of Qatar's population are expatriates, with only a small percentage being native Qataris. Arabic is the official language of the country, but English is widely spoken as well. Qatar is known for its modern architecture, luxurious hotels, and world-renowned museums. The country has also made significant investments in sports, hosting events such as the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the Qatar Total Open tennis tournament. Despite being a conservative Islamic country, Qatar has become more liberal in recent years, with greater emphasis placed on women's rights and opportunities for education and employment.




Transitioning Towards a Knowledge Society


Book Description

The book offers a critical evaluation of Qatar’s path from oil- and gas-based industries to a knowledge-based economy. This book gives basic information about the region and the country, including the geographic and demographic data, the culture, the politics and the economy, the health care conditions and the education system. It introduces the concepts of knowledge society and knowledge-based development and adds factual details about Qatar by interpreting indicators of the development status. Subsequently, the research methods that underlie the study are described, which offers information on the eGovernment study analyzing the government-citizen relationship, higher education institutions and systems, its students and the students’ way into the labor market. This book has an audience with economists, sociologists, political scientists, geographers, information scientists and other researchers on the knowledge society, but also all researchers and practitioners interested in the Arab Oil States and their future.




Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security


Book Description

This book describes initiatives and concrete examples on sustainable food production worldwide. In the current world scenario, where nations all over the world are struggling to accomplish the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and to ensure sustainable patterns for all, this book provides a contribution towards a more comprehensive and interdisciplinary understanding of the cross-cutting issues related to Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security. This interdisciplinary book supports the efforts to engage a commitment from all fields of science, to work together to provide knowledge that could help to address SDG2 (No hunger) and lead to the promotion of quality of life, by means of a more sustainable food production, and improved food security. This book is expected to fill the gap of publications in this field. It gives a special emphasis to a state-of-the-art descriptions of approaches, methods, initiatives and projects from universities, stakeholders, organizations and civil society across the world, regarding cross-cutting issues in sustainable food production. It includes examples of policies and practices case studies, examples of projects, institutional policies, innovative methods and tools and research outputs, which highlight the interdependence between sustainable agriculture and food security issues. It is expected that the “Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security” will make the many benefits of sustainable food production clearer and, inter alia, lead to an increase in the emphasis provided to this central theme.




Sustainable Energy-Water-Environment Nexus in Deserts


Book Description

This book addresses challenges and opportunities in the Energy-Water-Environment (EWE) nexus, with a particular focus on research and technology development requirements in harsh desert climates. Its chapters include selected contributions presented during the 1st international conference on sustainable Energy-Water-Environment nexus in desert climates (ICSEWEN-19) held at the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI) in Doha, Qatar in December 2019. This volume is comprised of three main chapters, each describing important case studies and progress on water, energy and environmental questions. A fourth chapter on policies and community outreach on these three areas is also included. This compilation aims to bridge the gap between research and industry to address the socioeconomic impacts of the nexus imbalance as perceived by scientists, industrial partners, and policymakers. The content of this book is of particular importance to graduate students, researchers and decision makers interested in understanding water, energy and environmental challenges in arid areas. Re searchers in environmental and civil engineering, chemistry, hydrology and environmental science can also find unique in-situ observations of the current nexus imbalance in deserts climate to validate their investigations. It is also an invaluable guide for industry professionals working in water, energy, environment and food sectors to understand the rapidly evolving landscape of the EWE nexus in arid areas. The analyses, observations and lessons-learned summarized herein are applicable to other arid areas outside North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula as well, such as central Australia, the southwest of the United States and deserts in central Asia.