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DEWA participates in the 4th Emirates Nature-WWF Leaders of Change programme · DEWA Podcasts

• 0:00
  You know, when we talk about sustainability in
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  the utility sector, my mind usually goes to the
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  big stuff, the massive infrastructure, you know,
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  solar parks, desalination plans. Right, the hardware,
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  the big visible projects. Exactly. But there's
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  this growing argument that maybe the biggest
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  lever for change isn't the machinery at all.
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  It's the people on the payroll. Oh, absolutely.
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  That's a crucial distinction. I mean, you can
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  build the greenest grid in the world, but if
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  the culture inside the company doesn't match
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  the technology, You're really missing half the
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  picture. And that right there brings us to the
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  focus of today's deep dive. We're looking at
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  a specific initiative that really tests this
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  theory. Dubai Electricity and Water Authority
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  participates in the fourth Emirates Nature World
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  Wildlife Fund for Nature Leaders of Change program.
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  Right. And just to give you a bit of context,
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  Emirates Nature World Wildlife Fund for Nature
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  is the local entity here in the UAE associated
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  with the World Wildlife Fund for Nature. And
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  this isn't a one -off event. No, not at all.
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  This is the fourth cycle of the program, and
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  its mission is very specific. It's all about
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  enhancing actual hands -on knowledge of the local
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  environment and really developing employee expertise.
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  Okay, so Leaders of Change. It's a great title,
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  but I have to be honest. When I hear employee
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  training, I'm picturing a windowless conference
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  room and a very long slideshow. Yeah, death by
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  PowerPoint. Is that what we're looking at here?
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  Thankfully, no. Not even close. This is designed
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  to get people out from behind their desks. It's
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  very much a muddy boots kind of operation. Oh,
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  OK. So they're literally out in the field. They
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  are. The program mixes training sessions with
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  actual field visits and interactive activities
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  all across the UAE. So they're not just, you
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  know, reading about biodiversity. They are engaging
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  with it. And the goal is what? To build skills.
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  It's about honing both personal and professional
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  skills, sure, but also promoting real community
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  engagement in climate action. It's sort of like
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  turning employees into citizen scientists. That
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  sounds a lot more engaging than a seminar. Do
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  we have a sense if employees are actually, you
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  know, buying into it? Well, the numbers suggest
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  they are. To date, 334 participants from various
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  divisions of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority
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  have taken part. Wow, 334. Yep. And looking at
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  the feedback, participants have praised the chance
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  to work with specialized teams. They're seeing
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  how the theory actually applies on the ground.
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  It's interesting because 334 people, that's a
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  significant sample size. That's enough to actually
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  start shifting. The internal conversation within
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  an organization. And that is precisely the point.
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  This isn't just an HR exercise. This is a strategic
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  play coming from the very top. Which it has to,
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  right? Otherwise, these things just tend to stall
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  if there's no executive push. Correct. And in
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  this case, the directive comes straight from
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  His Excellency Saeed Mohammed Al -Tayr, Managing
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  Director and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water
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  Authority. He laid out exactly how this fits
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  into the organization's broader identity. OK,
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  so what was the specific message there? He said,
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  and I'll read this directly, Dubai Electricity
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  and Water Authority provides its employees with
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  training opportunities that instill a culture
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  of sustainability and environmental stewardship,
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  enabling them to enhance their contribution to
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  sustainable development. As a socially responsible
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  organization, we encourage employees and stakeholders
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  to fulfill their environmental, volunteer, and
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  community responsibilities and motivate them
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  to work as one team to achieve Dubai's sustainability
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  goals. Dubai Electricity and Water Authority
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  is among the leading institutions supporting
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  national efforts to protect natural resources,
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  promote community awareness of environmental
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  and societal responsibilities, and engage the
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  public in sustainability programs and initiatives.
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  You know, listen to that. The phrase that really
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  jumps out at me is instill a culture. It feels
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  like that is the missing link in so many corporate
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  sustainability plans. It really is. Through a
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  program like Leaders of Change, Dubai Electricity
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  and Water Authority is actively trying to convert
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  employees from, say, passive workers into active
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  environmental stewards. It's the difference between
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  following a rule because you have to. Because
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  it's on a checklist. And following it because
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  you actually understand the ecosystem you're
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  protecting. Precisely. And that mindset doesn't
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  just stay in the office, does it? No, of course
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  not. When you equip over 300 people with that
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  kind of deep experiential knowledge, they take
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  it home. They take it to their neighborhoods.
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  It creates a ripple effect that supports those
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  broader national efforts. So here's a thought
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  to mull over as we wrap up. We spend billions
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  on green technology, which is obviously necessary.
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  But what if every major corporation also invested
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  in deep, field -based environmental literacy
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  for their staff, just like this? It's a powerful
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  idea. How much faster would we actually hit those
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  national sustainability goals? Something to think
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  about. Thanks for joining us on this deep dive.