Launch of a “Kit” to Raise Awareness on Environment-Friendly Products for Saving Water and Energy in Abu Dhabi and UAE
A group of organizations in Abu Dhabi dedicated to sustainability, including the region’s favorite Swedish home furnishing retailer Al-Futtaim IKEA, the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (DoE), the Abu Dhabi Department of Community Development (DCD) and Khalifa University of Science and Technology have come together on a joint initiative to engage the UAE’s citizens and residents in electricity and water conservation by launching the ‘IKEA energy efficiency kit’.
The energy efficiency kit follows DoE’s short-term behavior nudging program launched in 2020 to shift patterns of water and electricity consumption in Abu Dhabi by providing key consumer personas with tips and practical advice that appeal to their personal motivations. Khalifa University will be provided with the necessary data from users of the kit to conduct research to measure its efficiency in promoting energy-saving consumer behaviors.
Vinod Jayan, Managing Director at Al-Futtaim IKEA, UAE, Oman, Qatar and Egypt, said, ‘’At IKEA, our ambition for the region by 2025 is to inspire and enable more than 70 million people to live a better everyday life within the boundaries of the planet. We are honored to contribute towards this partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (DoE), the Abu Dhabi Department of Community Development (DCD) and Khalifa University of Science and Technology. Our aim is to instill healthy and sustainable living habits in more people as they become concerned about their health and the health of the planet. The IKEA efficiency kit acts as a starting point to phase out and replace with new innovative solutions in order to contribute to a more sustainable society and safer homes.’’
The behavior nudging interventions are aligned with the goals of the Abu Dhabi Demand Side Management and Energy Rationalization Strategy 2030. To this effect, DoE conducted an extensive behavioral science-based research to understand factors influencing energy and water consumption in Abu Dhabi homes. Insights were used to design a set of interventions including a ‘bank of tips’ to nudge electricity and water use behavior, a free Energy Efficiency Advisor service through trained experts, virtual home assessments for households, a Use it Wisely digital platform, and a Self-Install Kit that contains several Do-It-Yourself water and energy efficiency items, along with a Use It Wisely leaflet for fun and engaging installation guidelines.
DoE’s Self-Install Kit aimed to raise awareness and educate the community about the impact of efficient equipment and fixtures, enticing them to adopt efficient practices and retrofit their homes with even more elaborative efficient appliances. Those kits were provided as a free reward for requesting the energy efficiency advisor services and opting-in via the Use It Wisely platform.
Following the success of the short-term interventions, DoE collaborated with DCD to design a new initiative that can furtherener increase the long-term accessibility and availability of efficiency kits to Abu Dhabi customers by working with a trusted retail partner with a proven ability to engage customers and drive sustainability goals – IKEA.
Eng. Ramiz Hamdan Alaileh, DoE’s Sustainability & Energy Efficiency Director, said: “At the DoE, we are committed to increasing adoption of energy efficient behavior and technologies to motivate households, institutions and industries to improve their water and electricity usage. We are pleased with the outcomes of our collaboration with DCD and IKEA to launch this energy efficiency kit initiative and look forward to the collaboration with Khalifa University to analyze findings and impacts and to provide recommendations for long-term energy and water saving interventions.”
Al Alaileh added: “We will continue our collaboration to ensure effective implementation of the new kit and empower Abu Dhabi to make further efforts toward energy efficiency. Importantly we will work with IKEA to provide kit customers with access to various types of educational media and easy-to-implement behavioral nudges through our Use It Wisely app, available on the Apple Store (https://apple.co/3qtS7Ea) and Google Play (https://bit.ly/2NvXlAK).
Her Excellency Dr Layla Abdulaziz Al Hyas, Executive Director of the Social Monitoring and Innovation Sector at the DCD, said: “Through the joint initiative, we want to make healthier and more sustainable living easy; we want to enable and inspire as many people as we can to make more sustainable choices every day, thus create a movement for a better, more sustainable everyday life in Abu Dhabi.
“Our objective is aligned with Abu Dhabi’s Vision 2030 that comprises dual focus areas – pragmatic thresholds and idealistic sustainability values – as well as the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Moreover, unsustainable consumption and climate change remain some of the biggest challenges for humanity, and it is our responsibility to contribute towards creating a more sustainable world. But we cannot do it alone. Everyone has a role to play in creating a sustainable reality, which is why we have joined hands with IKEA, as well as Khalifa University of Science and Technology and the Department of Energy. As part of the drive, we will conduct training sessions, challenges, and competitions, which we hope will enable us to engage with members of the Abu Dhabi community and eventually encourage them to adopt a more conscious and responsible lifestyle.”
“Even though high consumption of energy and water is often linked with harsh weather conditions that we live in, it is still possible to reduce usage significantly that will benefit everyone – individually and collectively. It will help save our environment which, in turn, will help us live healthier and better lives, while it will enable the government to save money that could be allocated to various developmental projects. The campaign can achieve its objective only by bringing about a behavioral change, which is what the campaign aims at. The drive is part of our ongoing effort to establish the foundations of environmental sustainability and support the sustainable development of Abu Dhabi by using electricity, water, and natural resources sensibly, to ensure their sustainability for generations to come.”
“We’re optimistic about the future. Through collaboration and commitment, we know it is possible to achieve amazing things.”
The multi-point collaboration for the energy efficiency kits will be the basis for collaborative research studies and publications on the technical as well as sociological aspects of energy and water efficiency in Abu Dhabi.
Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, Executive Vice-President, Khalifa University, said: “As a top-ranked university with multiple stakes in the areas of sustainability, Khalifa University is delighted to collaborate with our partners and promote behavioral change through supporting energy efficiency that ensures saving expenses while also saving the environment. Khalifa University is already part of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and joining with other partners, the university has further demonstrated its commitment to developing technologies for sustainable living.”
Khalifa University currently has several sustainability-related research initiatives, many of which are taking place at the university’s Masdar Institute. The university’s Young Future Energy Leaders (YFEL) program outreach initiative further aims to bring students and young professionals closer to government, business and other stakeholders active in alternative energy and sustainability. Recently, Khalifa University also launched a co-curricular program to teach students about innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership, with a focus on sustainability.
Clarence Michael
English Editor Specialist
2 November 2021
