“Experts risk getting laughed out of the room if they say the cost of something will drop 80% in the next 10 years, even though we’ve seen it with solar.”
-Ajay Gambhir, a senior researcher at the Imperial College London Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment, discussing attempts to predict clean energy costs. [Quartz]
“The launch of Sudair Solar embodies a pivotal foundation for diversifying the energy mix and accelerating energy transition in the Kingdom, as well as transferring ACWA Power’s international expertise, knowledge and capabilities in the global renewable sector back to the Kingdom.”
–Mohammad Abunayyan, ACWA Power Chairman, commenting on the financial close of the 1.5GW Sudair Solar project that is forecast to power 185,000 homes and avoid nearly 2.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year. [EnergyLiveNews]
“Our collaboration with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, GACA, Tawakkalna and Saudi Arabian Airlines demonstrates a shared commitment to restore international air travel safely. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s acceptance of IATA Travel Pass will demonstrate how digital solutions can effectively manage both COVID-19 vaccine and test certificates. The trust that the KSA has placed in IATA Travel Pass is an example for other governments to follow.”
–Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General of the the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the trade association for the world’s airlines. The IATA represents some 290 airlines or 82% of total air traffic. [IATA]
“Where permitted, women in the Middle East stand to benefit disproportionately from access to cryptocurrency. The decentralized and anonymous nature of crypto transactions means that women will not be discriminated against based on their gender and can take control of their money without the involvement of intermediaries.”
–Amber Ghaddar examines decentralized finance can help to level the playing field when it comes to women’s finances, removing the need for intermediaries and reliance on centralized institutions that often fail to safeguard their money. [Yahoo Finance]
“The Saudi Cabinet stressed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is following-up with great interest the current situation in Afghanistan, expressing hope that the situation in Afghanistan will stabilize as soon as possible while reiterating its support for the Afghan people.”
-The Saudi Gazette, reporting on the Kingdom’s recent Cabinet meeting, chaired by King Salman. [Saudi Gazette]
“This will allow KAUST researchers to collect, analyze and use high-resolution images of the earth’s surface to draw detailed maps of terrestrial environments, as well as monitor the health and condition of vegetation, explore coastal ecosystems and coral reefs, advance precision agriculture research, and a host of other earth and environmental science applications.”
–Matthew McCabe, director of the KAUST Climate and Livability Initiative, discussing KAUST CubeSat, a collaboration with Spire Global to collect high-quality and high-resolution data across global terrestrial, coastal and ocean ecosystems for a three-year period starting from the end of 2022. [Saudi Gazette]
“Arabian groups have the lowest Neanderthal ancestry of any known non-African population; instead much of their ancestry comes from an ancient ‘ghost’ population that likely did not interbreed with Neanderthals. This finding lends weight to a recent theory about a mysterious ‘ghost’ population that may either have left Africa and stayed in the Middle East around 60,000 years ago, or remained in Africa until after the Neanderthals had disappeared.”
-Researchers at the University of Birmingham and the Wellcome Sanger Institute, along with their international collaborators, have analyzed the first comprehensive population-scale study of Middle Eastern DNA. [Genetic Literacy Project]
“Saudi Arabia currently shows low levels of social entrepreneurial activity compared to other countries, but this may be due to the lack of data on social enterprises in the country. Currently, there is an estimated one not-for-profit social organization per ten thousand people in Saudi Arabia compared to around fifty per ten thousand in Canada and the United States.”
-Dr. Ghadah W. Alharthi had conducted extensive research on social entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia. [Atlantic Council]
“Pockets of the media industry exist in the region, but efforts remain largely fragmented. We aim to change that and create the world-class media hub the region deserves and that allows it to compete with and be part of the global industry.”
-Wayne Borg, head of NEOM’s Media Hub, discussing efforts to attract TV and film production to Saudi Arabia. [Economic Times]
“Between 2020 and 2040, about 127 million young people will enter the labour force in the Mena region, facing an unemployment rate of 23 per cent. At the same time, nearly 29 million jobs are at risk of being displaced by 2030 because of automation, McKinsey says.”
–Kelsey Warner, writing in The National, discusses ways to address youth unemployment in the Middle East. [The National]
