Analysis reveals that these “useless zones” which naturally happen at depths between 200 to 800 metres in some elements of the world are seeing their oxygen content material depleted. The phenomenon is made worse by local weather change. In such marine useless zones, the warming waters have nearly no oxygen left.
But it’s difficult to get individuals dwelling within the area to see the worth of the marine ecosystems of the Arabian Gulf and the Mediterranean. In June this yr, on the second annual MENA Oceans Summit in Dubai, Razan Al Mubarak, UN Local weather Change Excessive-Degree champion stated that there must be extra sturdy collaboration in order that the oceans can proceed to thrive and assist international ecological steadiness. They should be considered as invaluable allies in constructing a resilient planet, she stated.
The MENA area, which refers back to the Center East and North Africa, might additionally profit with higher integration of ocean-based measures into their nationwide insurance policies, particularly as updates to the Nationally Decided Contributions (NDCs) of particular person nations are due by 2025, emphasised Al Mubarak.
Within the newest Eco-Enterprise Podcast, Center East correspondent Rachel Kelly speaks to a consultant from Goumbook, the social enterprise behind the Oceans Summit and an initiative to shine a lightweight on regional ocean priorities. Founder Tatiana Abella additionally shares why she began Goumbook, how the conversations on water conservation and agriculture has developed within the Center East, and the organisation’s subsequent steps.
Tune in as we talk about:
- Goumbook’s origins
- A lacking sense of ‘rootedness’ for individuals within the Center East?
- Extra in regards to the MENA Oceans Initiative
- Scaling sustainable agriculture analysis within the area
- Subsequent steps: Addressing the ‘social’ facet of sustainability
The transcript in full:
Goumbook’s founder and manging director Tatiana Abella. Picture: Goumbook
Let’s lay the foundations right here. Inform us extra about GoumBook.
Goumbook began in 2009, so it’s been nearly 15 years. “Goum” comes from an Arabic phrase very particular to the Gulf area. The “Goum” was the tribe, the household travelling across the desert. The phrase comes from the Bedouins, pastoral nomadic tribes who’ve traditionally inhabited the desert areas within the Center East and North Africa.
The rationale I selected the identify is that I needed to actually join what we do with the place we’re. I needed one thing extra rooted within the custom and the tradition of the area, and searching round, I discovered the Goum and the Bedouins truly had been very, very sustainable. For instance, their lifestyle, sharing all of the sources, by no means losing, being very shut as a group. And if you consider the way in which we stay at present, generally we don’t even know our neighbour. We eat like there’s no tomorrow. We waste a lot. We positively have to look again at how, the earlier generations used to stay. That was very, very sustainable in comparison with the way in which we stay at present.
What has that journey been like for you? How have you ever seen sustainability evolve within the area for the previous 15 years?
In 2009, issues had been very completely different. We weren’t even speaking about sustainability. It was extra about eco-friendly companies and merchandise. It was about conserving water and vitality. That was already one thing that gave the impression to be actually excessive, particularly within the Center East. At the moment, we had very easy accessibility to vitality. Low cost vitality, low-cost water. There was a research by the WWF at the moment, that established that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was the most important client per capita of water. I feel it was 550 litres per individual per day, in comparison with Europe the place it was round 250 litres. For me, that was fairly surprising.
Goumbook began to boost consciousness about these info, in regards to the significance of conserving water and vitality. To do that, we needed to join individuals to the native surroundings.
The inhabitants, particularly within the UAE, was very transient. Folks had been primarily expats, and there wasn’t a connection to the place we had been dwelling. Many individuals would inform me, “Nicely, I wish to return to my very own nation. This isn’t my dwelling. It is a desert, there’s nothing to guard and preserve right here.”
So we began with a tree planting programme. It was the primary one within the area, the place we planted indigenous bushes, explaining the fantastic thing about nature within the desert, that it is likely to be completely different from what we all know in Asia, in Europe or in the US, however it’s positively one thing value defending. Indigenous bushes are in a position to survive within the desert with principally no water in comparison with different bushes that we imported at the moment.
We’d then discuss water. The place is the water coming from? Desalination.Then we go on to speak in regards to the impression of desalination by way of vitality utilization, its impression on oceans – whereby after we desalinate, there’s all of the brine that goes again into the ocean with an enormous impression on marine life and corals.
It was a straightforward strategy to method the native inhabitants, reconnect with nature, and on the identical time discuss crucial subjects. All through the years, issues have developed, and we truly ended up internet hosting COP28 in in 2023.
Right now there’s additionally far more consciousness from a enterprise perspective. Sustainability is certainly a part of the dialog. It’s a part of technique. It’s a part of the core facet of enterprise for the UAE, for Saudi Arabia, for Qatar. So at present we will discuss sustainability in a really completely different means in comparison with 2009.
Past tree planting and consciousness campaigns, what are the opposite initiatives of Goumbook?
There are primarily three pillars. The primary is consciousness and schooling. I imagine that if we don’t know what the challenges are, we are going to by no means act.
Then we developed an entire pillar round company social duty (CSR). That is about the right way to interact staff inside an organization to create a tradition of sustainability with extra consciousness on environmental impression.
Our specialty is to take a look at the place the gaps are, the place there’s a want that nobody dares to handle and shine a highlight on a selected problem. We created campaigns round indoor air high quality, meals waste, and plastic air pollution.
Up to now two to a few years, we’ve began growing broader, long-term initiatives quite than simply campaigns.
Final yr we launched the MENA Oceans Initiative, oceans all through the entire area, in addition to the MENAT Regenerative Agriculture Programme, agricultural challenges within the area. Whereas MENA refers to Center East and North Africa, MENAT refers to Center East, North Africa, and Turkey.
Abella talking on the launch of the MENA Oceans Summit 2024, which came about in June this yr. Picture: Goumbook
Are you able to inform us extra in regards to the MENA Oceans Initiative? For the reason that COP28 summit, what have you ever achieved?
In 2023, we launched the MENA Oceans Summit. For us, it was crucial to handle the truth that COP would have an ocean pavilion for the primary time. So we thought, if we’re going to host COP28 within the UAE and have an ocean pavilion, we actually want to grasp what is occurring within the area by way of oceans.
The summit was endorsed by the Ministry of Local weather Change and Setting, and it was very profitable. We had many representatives, from the non-public sector, from the federal government, and likewise from analysis and academia. It was very clear that quite a bit is occurring within the area. There may be a variety of analysis, a variety of science. Completely different nations are taking completely different steps in the direction of defending the oceans. Nonetheless, we realised that we wanted a bit extra transparency round what is occurring, bringing collectively all of the completely different stakeholders. Past only a summit, we wanted a community, one thing that allowed the completely different companions to come back collectively and work on particular points, not simply on the nation degree, however on the regional degree.
At COP28, with the assist of the United Nations resident workplace within the UAE, we launched the community on the Ocean Pavilion. This was groundbreaking. We had been requested questions like, “Why are you doing this? What’s within the MENA area to guard?” Not many individuals are conscious of the unbelievable biodiversity, the completely different water our bodies that we have now within the area, and their significance in supporting the blue economic system. A lot of the nations within the area rely on the blue economic system, both for commerce, for fisheries, for meals safety, or for tourism. As soon as our oceans aren’t wholesome, this may create a enormous disruptions and monetary points for various nations.
This yr we had the second version of the MENA Oceans Summit. It’s very clear now that this has turn into an initiative that’s profitable at bringing collectively not simply regional companions and stakeholders, but additionally at mobilising worldwide entities and organisations such because the UN.
This was crucial as a result of lastly, we have now a voice, and we will discuss what is occurring within the area at a world degree. The summit was opened formally by Her Excellency Razan Mubarak, a excessive degree UN local weather champion who was a part of the COP presidency within the UAE. She can be supporting UN once more in her second yr at COP29 in Baku.
Let’s discuss agriculture now. You talked about the MENAT Regenerative Agriculture Programme?
The initiative focuses on analysis, knowledge and science-based options for the area. We have a look at the problem of meals methods and local weather change. The area has a really various local weather, from desert areas in within the Gulf to very intensive agriculture in North Africa. The local weather may be very harsh, temperatures are very excessive and we have now very excessive ranges of soil salinity.
So we have to perceive how we will return to a easy means of agriculture with out utilizing harsh chemical compounds, with out depleting the soil, ensuring we keep soil well being. If we proceed to do agriculture the way in which we do it at present, we’re depleting the soil with the danger of not having the ability to develop something after 50 or 60 years.
How can we have a look at the longer term if we’re not in a position to change the way in which we do agriculture at present? How can we do that if we don’t know, from a scientific perspective, what might be carried out and what needs to be stopped? There may be a variety of analysis being carried out, however we realised that for researchers, the second they printed their work, their analysis doesn’t transfer and doesn’t proceed.
Motion is lacking as a result of there isn’t that mentality of working with enterprise to commercialise the analysis. We determined to assist researchers and academia by highlighting their options, making a type of accelerator all through the area. We put collectively an unbelievable pool of judges and mentors.
For seven to eight months, mentorship is offered and there are completely different programs that individuals can take. The initiative is sponsored and supported by HSBC. Additionally it is carried out in partnership with the Europe Institute of Know-how. Europe and another nations even have the identical situations and the identical climates.
This yr, we have now three winners – all ladies. One from Saudi Arabia, one from the UAE, and one from Egypt.
All have completely different options, primarily associated to soil, as a result of on the finish of the day the agriculture is clearly about soil well being, not solely by way of meals safety, but additionally by way of local weather change.
Soil is a vital participant in carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration. That is one thing we don’t discuss sufficient about. With wholesome soils, we have now higher chances of sequestering bigger quantities of carbon.
The programme was very profitable, and we’re launching the second version in September.
We at the moment are calling for purposes from any researcher. Contributors don’t have to be from the area, so long as they’ve an answer that may be applied within the MENAT area, that may be of curiosity to us.
How are the three winners doing?
There may be a variety of curiosity from massive firms, together with manufacturing firms from the area. We’re bringing their options to implementation and teaming up with farmers. We wish to assist them convey their analysis and check them outdoors the colleges and analysis establishments.
What do you assume are among the key points in the case of sustainability within the MENA area wanting on the subsequent 5 to 10 years?
For Goumbook, we want to have a look at the social facet of sustainability and assist extra susceptible communities. I feel not sufficient is being carried out and it’s one thing we have to handle.
Broadly, we would like humanity to thrive and be wholesome. We wish to keep nature the way in which we all know it at present,
This transcript has been edited for brevity and clairty
