COP28

As host nation, the UAE’s responsibilities will include formulating the outcomes of the summit and supervising the negotiations to achieve official decisions that will be announced at COP28.

For requests related to participation at COP28, reach out to: cop28@uaeembassy-usa.org or +971-800-2828. To view the latest agenda and see information regarding visas and logistics for COP28, please consult the COP28 and UNFCCC websites. 

The major global event will welcome high-level participation, including over 140 heads of state, senior government leaders, over 70,000 participants and more than 5,000 media professionals.

In anticipation of the event, HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, has formed and serves as Chair of a Higher Committee to supervise the preparations for COP28. Sheikh Abdullah has called for COP28 to unleash “transformative progress for a climate-safe world.”

Since its inception in 1971, the UAE has supported the global climate agenda. As a country at the heart of climate impacts and undergoing a major energy transition, the UAE has long viewed climate change as a challenge that must be overcome.

The UAE’s hosting of COP28 builds on the country’s track record of action to meet the global climate challenge. The UAE is a global hub for logistics, transportation and green technology and is at the crossroads of business, commerce and tourism. The country is therefore uniquely positioned to build bridges and foster consensus to accelerate inclusive climate progress.

The UAE is the first country in the region to ratify the Paris Agreement, the first to commit to an economy-wide reduction in emissions, and the first to announce a Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative, proving its commitment to raising ambition for climate action.

Learn more about how the UAE is addressing climate change in close cooperation with the United States.

Key Areas of Focus

In a speech at 7^th Ministerial meeting on Climate Action in July 2023, and in an accompanying open letter, Dr. Al Jaber outlined four areas of focus for COP28.

Fast Tracking the Energy Transition

• Work to triple renewable energy output to 11,000 gigawatts by 2030.
• More than double low carbon hydrogen production to 180 million tons per year by 2030.
• Transform food and agriculture systems through a greater investment in agri-tech, smarter water use and food production in an accelerated time frame.
• Work with the energy industry to accelerate decarbonization and work with NOCs and IOCs to zero out methane emissions and expand hydrogen by 2030.

Fixing Climate Finance

• Create a “comprehensive transformation” of climate finance reform instead of “piecemeal reform.”
• Work with the IMF, the World Bank and GFANZ to unlock the power of capital markets, standardize voluntary carbon markets and incentivize private capital and finance.
• Encourage donors to double adaptation finance by 2025, prioritizing the Global South.
• Ensure that every concessional dollar is matched by $2 or $3 worth of private capital.
• Help the most vulnerable to rebuild after climate-related disasters.
• Together with the international community, build on the progress made in Sharm El Sheikh to fully operationalize the loss-and-damage fund.

Nature, People, Lives and Livelihoods

• Protect the most vulnerable communities and most critical systems from extreme weather and biodiversity loss.
• Advance the world’s focus on nature, food, health and resilience as part of a robust framework for the Global Goal on Adaptation.
• Protect the rain forests and invest in nature-based solutions, such as mangroves, which act as powerful carbon sinks while protecting coastlines and preserving natural ecosystems.
• Ensure that our global food system is resilient to the changing weather patterns which threaten farmers around the world. Additionally, call on countries to integrate National Food System Transformation plans into both NDCs and National Adaptation plans and participate in the first climate-health ministerial.

Inclusivity

• Create the largest ever youth climate delegate program and a pavilion for Indigenous Peoples, to tap into their concerns and wisdom as they protect 80% of the world’s biodiversity.
• Break down the silos between traditional and emerging energy sectors, launching integrated dialogues between the IEA, UNFCCC and IRENA where specific actions on fast-tracking the energy transition can be agreed.
• Bridge divides that are blocking critical breakthroughs in the climate fight.

The COP28 Leadership Team

HE Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, President-Designate

Dr. Sultan Al Jaber brings two decades of leadership experience in government, business, energy systems, and diplomacy. During his double tenure as Special Envoy for Climate Change (2010- 2016, 2020-present), Dr. Al Jaber has played a seminal role in shaping the country’s clean energy path, including as founding CEO and currently the Chairman of Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s pioneering renewable energy initiative, that has since become a leading global clean energy player. Dr. Al Jaber has also been an outcomes-focused participant at over ten COP summits, including the historic Paris COP21 in 2015. Upon joining Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) as its CEO, Dr. Al Jaber has spearheaded a $15 billion decarbonization strategy and new low-carbon solutions business.

HE Shamma Al Mazrui, Youth Climate Champion

The Youth Climate Champion role is designed to amplify the work of youth-led and youth-focused organizations within the COP process. H.E. Shamma Al Mazrui, UAE Minister of Community Development, will be the first-ever Youth Climate Champion with a Ministerial role. She will be responsible for engaging with youth globally in the lead-up to, and during, COP28 UAE. This will include working with local and global stakeholders to provide capacity-building opportunities for youth, as well as mechanisms to fund youth innovations in the field. H.E. Al Mazrui is also the Vice Chair of the Arab Youth Center, the Secretary General of the Education and Human Resources Council, Chairperson for Special Olympics UAE, and President of the National Center for Education Quality.

HE Razan Al Mubarak, UN Climate Change High-Level Champion

As UN Climate Change High-Level Champion, H.E. Razan Al Mubarak will mobilize the private sector and civil society, along with driving efforts to address the climate and nature crises together. The role of the UN Climate Change High-Level Champion is focused on engaging state and non-state actors, including cities and sub-regional governments, indigenous peoples, civil society, and private sector partners. Al Mubarak will draw upon her experience as President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Managing Director of the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) and Managing Director of Emirates Nature-WWF to ensure progress on biodiversity, conservation, and nature-based solutions.

HE Mariam Almhieri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment

H.E. Mariam Almheiri will support the COP28 UAE leadership team and continue to lead national progress on climate change, ensuring that the UAE delivers on its climate targets set out by the Paris Agreement and its Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative, along with promoting nature-based solutions (100 million mangroves by 2030). She will also spearhead the UAE’s intention to drive new political visibility and outcomes on food systems transformation at COP28 UAE.

HE Majid Al-Suwaidi, Director-General, COP28

HE Majid Al-Suwaidi will serve as Director-General of COP28, helping to organize an ambitious and inclusive conference. Previously, he served as the UAE Ambassador to Spain as well as Consul General of the UAE in New York. An expert in international negotiations, he has led the UAE Mission to the United Nations’ (UN) engagement in matters covering a wide range of issues relating to economic growth and development.

Previously, Al-Suwaidi served as Lead Negotiator on Climate Change, Energy and Sustainability for the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He worked closely with the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to negotiate the landmark climate change agreement, which was adopted at the Paris Climate Conference (COP21) in 2015. He was also instrumental in the advancement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which set an international mandate to act on global sustainability issues.

Hana AlHashimi, UAE Lead Climate Negotiator for COP27 & COP28

Before her appointment as the UAE’s Lead Climate Negotiator for COP27 and COP28, Hana AlHashimi was a senior adviser in the Office of the President of the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly. She led on environment and climate action, sustainable energy, frontier technologies, and information and communications technologies (ICTs).  She also served as the liaison with the Group of 77 and China.

Her prior experience includes project development for sustainable energy accelerators at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in Vienna, Austria, as well as management consulting for social businesses at Munich Advisors Group in Germany.

Hana holds a Masters of Sciences in International Relations and Diplomacy from Leiden University and the Netherlands Institute for International Relations (Clingendael), and a Bachelors of Commerce in General Management and the Social Context of Business from McGill University in Montreal, Canada.