scholarly journals Grease the Green Wheels: A Framework for Expediting the Green Building Movement in the Arab World

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (20) ◽  
pp. 5545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mostafa Sabbagh ◽  
Osama Mansour ◽  
Abdulaziz Banawi
Keyword(s):  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Building Industry ◽  
Rating Systems

It has been over three decades since the term “sustainable development” was coined in Brundtland’s report in 1987, and 28 years have passed since the world’s first sustainability assessment method for buildings was founded by the Building Research Establishment in UK in 1990. During these three decades, many sustainability standards, codes, and rating systems were created and used to help in designing, constructing, maintaining, rating, and labeling buildings with attaining the principles of sustainability. Yet by looking at the Arab world at the beginning of 2019, one can argue that, although the Arab countries have dedicated the effort and budget to save energy, water, and natural resources, the region as a whole is still struggling to shift the paradigm of the building industry from conventional to sustainable. This struggle raises some questions; are there any challenges that Arab countries must overcome to leap forward to a prosperous sustainable building design and construction practices? Why are existing green building rating systems such as Estidama in United Arab Emirates, global sustainability assessment system (GSAS) in Qatar, and ARZ in Lebanon lagging behind the trends of green building rating systems in the developed countries? What are the coordinated steps needed to expedite this movement across the region? The current study explores the limits and potentials of the green building industry in the Arab world through analysis of the green building initiatives, academic scholarship activities in architecture and engineering sectors, and feedback from green building professionals across the Arab world. This article introduces a theoretical framework to expedite the green building movement in the Arab region; the framework is shaped by the environmental, social, and economic factors that are crucial to the transformation of the building industry from conventional to sustainable. The study seeks to support a line of research that could help governments in the Arab world catch up with the global green building trends.

Comparison Research on US-China Green Building Practice

2014 ◽  
Vol 587-589 ◽  
pp. 714-720
Author(s):  
Yun Hui Yang
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Market ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Building Industry ◽  
Advisory Group ◽  
Rating Systems ◽  
Certification System ◽  
Unit Energy ◽  
Building Practice

China's unit energy consumption of building area is two to three times higher than the developed countries with similar climatic conditions. The heavy energy burden of building industry has become a constraint to sustainable development of China's economy. Green building is the inevitable choice to change the severe situation in China. Green building is undoubtedly a great emerging market for the Chinese building industry in terms of environmental responsibilities and market benefits. LEED is operated successfully in the U.S and globally. This paper represents the comparison of US-China green building practice with respect to various aspects of the two green building rating systems and their practice in construction. The comparison was refined based on literature reviews, requests for information from certification system owners, and interviews with certification system users and members of the industry advisory group.

scholarly journals Comparison of Four Global Sustainable Building Rating Systems Carried out With Focus on Hot and Dry Climate

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hind Abdel Moneim Khogali
Keyword(s):  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Rating System ◽  
Global Rating ◽  
Indoor Environmental Quality ◽  
Water Efficiency ◽  
Rating Systems ◽  
Energy Effect ◽  
Sustainable Building

<p>Several assessment programmes has been developed worldwide on the environmental and energy effect of buildings. The aim of this study is to identify the main and sub categories of sustainable design. The researcher has investigated and compared four global building rating systems, namely leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) in USA, Emirates Green Building Rating System (ESTIDAMA) in Abu Dhabi city, Qatar Sustainability assessment System (QSAS) in the State of Qatar and Australian green Star rating system (AGBC rating system), in Australia. This paper focuses mainly on their processes, contents, similarities and differences, processes, evaluation, their development and wither these systems are applicable to all environments?</p><p>The paper outlined six main categories developed by these global rating systems being: Sustainable site, indoor environmental quality, materials, water efficiency, power supply system and innovations. Sub categories were added according to their social, cultural, economical and legislations conditions.</p>The paper recommended adding four main categories suitable to hot and dry climate.

scholarly journals The Epidemiology of Cystic Fibrosis in Arab Countries: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 490-498
Author(s):  
Samer Hammoudeh ◽  
Wessam Gadelhaq ◽  
Yahya Hani ◽  
Nadia Omar ◽  
Darine El Dimassi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Autosomal Recessive ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
Epidemiological Data ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Multiple Systems ◽  
Endocrine Symptoms

AbstractCystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic autosomal recessive disease that involves multiple systems. Both life quality and expectation are affected by the debilitating multi-system involvement of the disease which includes pulmonary, gastrointestinal, reproductive, and endocrine symptoms. Very few studies have covered the epidemiological aspects of the disease among Arab countries. To systematically review the available epidemiological literature on cystic fibrosis in order to describe the epidemiological state of this disease in the Arab world, this review used PubMed to search for relevant articles related to patients with cystic fibrosis, with no restriction on gender or age. Google scholar and the snowballing technique were used to locate further articles. A total of 17 articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. These articles were from Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates. The articles scored 1.5–6.5 out of 8 on the quality assessment. The epidemiological data reported varied based on country and type of study. The establishment of CF registries is definitely a priority in the region, as well as the need for more research involving CF patients particularly those involving the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of these patients.

scholarly journals Perceived Barriers to Healthy Eating and Physical Activity among Adolescents in Seven Arab Countries: A Cross-Cultural Study

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulrahman O. Musaiger ◽  
Mariam Al-Mannai ◽  
Reema Tayyem ◽  
Osama Al-Lalla ◽  
Essa Y. A. Ali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Healthy Eating ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Weight Maintenance ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Noncommunicable Diseases ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Males And Females

Objective.To highlight the perceived personal, social, and environmental barriers to healthy eating and physical activity among Arab adolescents.Method.A multistage stratified sampling method was used to select 4698 students aged 15–18 years (2240 males and 2458 females) from public schools. Seven Arab counties were included in the study, namely, Algeria, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Palestine, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates. Self-reported questionnaire was used to list the barriers to healthy eating and physical activity facing these adolescents.Results.It was found that lack of information on healthy eating, lack of motivation to eat a healthy diet, and not having time to prepare or eat healthy food were the main barriers to healthy eating among both genders. For physical activity, the main barriers selected were lack of motivation to do physical activity, less support from teachers, and lack of time to do physical activity. In general, females faced more barriers to physical activity than males in all countries included. There were significant differences between males and females within each country and among countries for most barriers.Conclusion.Intervention programmes to combat obesity and other chronic noncommunicable diseases in the Arab world should include solutions to overcome the barriers to weight maintenance, particularly the sociocultural barriers to practising physical activity.

scholarly journals Children’s access to beneficial information in Arab states: Implementation of Article 17 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Egypt, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 376-387 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Sakr
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Lower Priority ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Screen Content ◽  
Overall Performance ◽  
The Relationship

In theory, the multiple platforms and transnational nature of digital media, along with a related proliferation of diverse forms of content, make it easier for children’s right to access socially and culturally beneficial information and material to be realised, as required by Article 17 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Drawing on data collected during research on children’s screen content in the Arab world, combined with scrutiny of documents collated by the Committee on the Rights of the Child, which monitors compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, this article explores how three Arab countries, Egypt, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates, presented their efforts to implement Article 17 as part of their periodic reporting on their overall performance in putting the Convention on the Rights of the Child into effect. It uncovers tensions over the relationship between provision, participation and protection in relation to media, reveals that Article 17 is liable to get less attention than it deserves in contexts where governments keep a tight grip on media and that, by appearing to give it a lower priority, all parties neglect the interdependence of human rights in relation to media and children.

Energy Conservation and Green Building Design of Library Case Study on the New Hubei Library

2013 ◽  
Vol 438-439 ◽  
pp. 1746-1750
Author(s):  
Yan Li
Keyword(s):  
Energy Saving ◽  
Natural Ventilation ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Building Structure ◽  
Green Building Design ◽  
Cultural Service ◽  
Conditioning Control

As the major public buildings and cultural service institutions, libraries play an important role in the strategy of energy-saving buildings. In order to keep pace with the footstep of Western developed countries, China has launched a series of green and energy-saving building practices and achieved certain results. The New Hubei Library is a successful example, with Chinese national conditions and the characteristic of the library itself taken into consideration, and limited conditions in the design process fully made the most use of. Besides the designer has efficiently used energy-saving strategy on building structure maintenance, solar radiation, air conditioning control system and natural ventilation, finally achieved the goal of energy saving of library.

scholarly journals Education In The Arab Gulf States and the Arab World

2001 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 172-175
Author(s):  
Zeinab Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Historical Overview ◽  
The Social ◽  
Gulf States ◽  
Arab Gulf ◽  
Arab Gulf States

Education In The Arab Gulf States And The Arab World: An AnnotatedBibliography is divided into six parts. Each part contains between one toten chapters according to the topic. In the preface, the author mentions thatshe includes all references found in US libraries and the Libraryof Congress and does not include references from Arab countries. Shealso mentions that she was "selective" in her choices of what to includeand what not. For example, literature from the social sciences thatcontained a lot of stereotyping and biased information about Islam, Arabsand Arab society in general was excluded. Unpublished works alsowere not included. The author then describes her method of listing thebibliography: when there was literature available on the Arab world ingeneral, she included that, and then she would list the seven Gulf States inalphabetical order. If there were no references for a country, then thecountry is not mentioned and she jumps to the next country in that order.Part One contains only one chapter, which is the introduction. ElSannbarypresents an historical overview of the Gulf States, which is herfocus: Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UnitedArab Emirates. A map of the region is presented on page four. She surveysthe history and the present conditions of the seven states economically,politically and educationally. The rest of the chapter includes a one-pagesummary on all the topics, which are mainly the chapters that follow.Part Two comes under the heading "General Background andResources", and consists of three chapters. Chapter Two, "Context ofEducation", contains 165 entries. It starts with the Arab World (entry 1-52)followed by Bahrain (52-60), Iraq (61-76), Kuwait (77-95), Oman (96-102), Qatar (103-108), Saudi Arabia (109-154), and the United ArabEmirates, (155-165). This is the system followed throughout the wholebook. When there is no literature available on a country, it is notmentioned. Chapter Three, "Bibliographies and References", starts withgeneral references (166- 215), and then is followed by Iraq (216), Kuwait(217), Oman (218-2190, Qatar (220-223), United Arab Emirates (224)and finally educational references (225-259). Chapter Four, "Religion andEducation," lists 120 entries (260-380) ...

scholarly journals Research on psychosocial aspects of asthma in the Arab world: a literature review

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anas J. Al-Khateeb ◽  
Jamal M. Al-Khateeb
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Academic Achievement ◽  
Bronchial Asthma ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Psychosocial Aspects ◽  
Arab Countries

The importance of psychosocial factors in the management of bronchial asthma has long been recognized. This paper offers a review of research published in the English language related to psychosocial aspects of bronchial asthma in Arab countries. Several databases (PubMed, Science Direct, Springer Link, ERIC, and PsychInfo) were searched using the following keywords: bronchial asthma, Arab countries, Algiers, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine (West Bank, Gaza), Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Sudan, Somalia; United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Thirty-two studies were conducted in 9 Arab countries. Almost all studies found were published in the last fourteen years with an apparent increasing rate in the last five years. In descending order, these studies addressed: knowledge of and attitudes toward asthma, quality of life, behavioral and emotional problems and factors related to academic achievement. The main results of the studies reviewed were: (a) physicians’, school staff’s, and parents’ knowledge of and attitudes toward asthma were generally unsatisfactory, (b) in-service asthma education programs significantly impacted parent and staff knowledge and attitudes, and asthma management practices, (c) quality of life in children and adolescents was significantly adversely affected by asthma, (d) asthma was a common cause of school absenteeism, and had a significant negative impact on academic achievement of students, and (e) students with asthma had significantly higher rates of behavioral and emotional difficulties compared to students without asthma. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of these results and a call for further research in this area.

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