Posted on October 14, 2026
This week, we were at the Arabia CSR Network’s Global Sustainability & CSR Forum at Dubai World Trade Centre.
The panel on Blue Economy 2030: Coastal Development & Climate Solutions brought 4 voices to the same stage – H.E. Dr Alanoud Abdulla Alhaj Al Ali from the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Maitha Al Hameli from the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, Dr Hussain Khansaheb from Dubai Holding, and Dr Philip Sanders, Sustainability & Environmental Lead at Ecocoast. Saeed Al Abbar, CEO of AESG, moderated.
The question was a simple one: how do you grow a coastal economy and protect the coast at the same time?
Three ideas that stood out
Policy as an enabler
H.E. Dr Alanoud Abdulla Alhaj Al Ali, Assistant Undersecretary at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, described environmental assessment as a shared process. Developers run their own assessment before a project moves forward, and the regulator works with them to deliver it in balance with nature.
As she put it: “We like to use the term empowering the private sector, empowering the community through policies.” Coherence, synergy and open dialogue came up again and again.
Adaptation is not static
She also explained how the UAE plans for climate risk. “Adaptation is not static,” she said. “It’s not something that you plan for an event or a risk that will happen in the future.”
A national team combines data from federal, local and private sector partners into one model. The model runs scenarios for the coastline and for biodiversity. It’s an open platform – stakeholders help build it and it updates as new data comes in. The main risks it tracks are rising temperatures, transboundary air pollutants and sea level rise. Developers get early visibility of how resilient their infrastructure needs to be.
Coastal assets can become blue economy assets
Dr Hussain Khansaheb of Dubai Holding shared how coastal development and marine biodiversity can work together. Its example was Dubai Reef, announced in November 2024. The project aims to grow fish stocks in number and diversity, and Dubai Holding added a tourism layer, linking it to the turtle rehabilitation program at Jumeirah.
On design, the developer follows regulator standards for sea level rise over a 100-year horizon. Its teams model coastal dynamics, sediment transport and 100-year storm events. For existing coastlines, they’re now testing nature-based protection, including underwater reef structures.
Leading by implementation
H.E. Dr Alanoud had just returned from the Pre-COPin Fiji and Tuvalu. In Tuvalu, the delegation visited an adaptation project protecting the coastline, so families can stay on their land and “keep it safe for the upcoming generations”.
“We lead by example and we lead by implementation as well, wherever we go around the globe.”
We already know what needs to be done
As the session closed, Saeed Al Abbar made a simple point: We already know what needs to be done.
The data is there. The modeling is there. The standards for sea level rise over the next 100 years are there. What the panel showed is that it works best when ministries, regulators, developers and specialists work on it together – from the first design to the finished project.
He also asked a question that stays with us: What principles should guide the next generation of coastal infrastructure in the UAE and the wider region?
