President of Alexandria University Engages in Preparatory Webinar for COP28 Climate Conference
Professor Dr. Abdelaziz Konsowa, President of Alexandria University, witnessed on Monday morning the preparatory webinar for the COP28 Climate Conference, which was organized by the International Committee for the Development of Dry Lands, the Regional Action for Climate Change Foundation in Japan, the “Nizami Ganjavi” International Centre, and the African Organization for Young Leaders, at the Conference Centre of the Faculty of Medicine. The webinar was also attended by Dr. Mustafa Kamel, former Minister of Environment, Dr. Ayman Abu Hadid, former Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Omar El-Areini, former President of the Montreal Protocol, in addition to several Egyptian and foreign experts, researchers, and students.
The webinar discussed many important topics, including climate change and dry lands, food security, biodiversity, energy and sustainable development, political will and human solidarity needed for change, adaptation, African youth’s view of climate change, the Egyptian perspective on climate change, and funding requirements.
In his speech, Dr. Konsowa stressed Alexandria University’s keenness to host events related to climate change issues and reduce carbon emissions. He referred to the university’s role as a house of expertise for Alexandria Governorate and the surrounding industrial community, which represents about 40% of Egyptian industries in general, and 58% of the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries in Egypt. He explained that the university is working through its professors and specialized centres to shift towards the green industry, which represents the locomotive for sustainable development. He added that Alexandria University cooperates with many partners at the governmental, academic, and industrial levels with regard to issues of climate change, and recently signed a protocol with the Alexandria Governorate to establish a management system to deal with torrential rain through a 9-stage program that ends by the end of 2024, which includes the establishment of an early warning system, and implements applicable scientific research through the university’s technology incubator (Alexandria University Technology Park).
Dr. Ismail Serageldin, former Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and co-chair of the Nizami Janjavi Centre, pointed out that climate change is the biggest challenge for which solutions should be sought through increased cooperation between international bodies and national bodies in developing countries. He also stressed the importance of pairing wisdom with knowledge to face the challenges related to climate change and support for sustainable development, adding that poor countries are affected more than developed countries by the problems of climate change, lack of food resources and high prices.
Dr. Adel El-Beltagy, Chairman of the International Committee for the Development of Dry Lands, warned of possible catastrophic scenarios if carbon emissions continue at this pace, such as temperature fluctuations, ecosystem imbalances, food shortages and an increase in the population, so it was inevitable to work on reducing the negative effects and using the latest scientific and technical methods in agricultural management. He also pointed out the important role of the academic community to provide scientific research and apply it on the ground.