Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC) has joined forces with Expo City Dubai to accelerate decarbonisation in construction while supporting economic growth.
The partnership, formalised through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed at the Cities in Action Forum 2025, underscores the UAE’s commitment to achieving global decarbonisation targets by 2050.
The collaboration will focus on developing guidelines to reduce carbon emissions, particularly embodied carbon, in real estate projects across the UAE.
Additionally, the partnership aims to deepen stakeholder awareness, explore the potential of net-zero carbon materials, and share insights on innovative solutions and challenges in the pursuit of sustainable construction.
Creating smart, sustainable cities
The Cities in Action Forum 2025, hosted at Expo City Dubai, brought together city leaders, urban visionaries, investors, and industry experts from the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and beyond.
The event served as a platform for forging new partnerships and addressing actionable strategies for sustainable urban development in the region.
EmiratesGBC played a prominent role at the forum, hosting the developers’ leaders’ forum, where CEO Abdullatif AlBitawi shared key insights from leading developers and sustainability experts on energy sustainability standards. The session was introduced by the sustainability criteria panel, moderated by Khaled Bushnaq.
EmiratesGBC, in collaboration with the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), also spearheaded discussions on how the built environment can drive climate action through resilience and adaptation.
A session led by AlBitawi focused on the zero carbon and climate resilience readiness framework in the MENA region, marking a critical step towards addressing climate challenges and enhancing regional preparedness for a sustainable future.
Another highlight of the forum was the workshop titled Women in urban planning: designing for diversity, a joint initiative by Expo City Dubai’s Women’s Pavilion and the EmiratesGBC Women’s Network.
The session explored urban planning through a gender lens, emphasising the importance of inclusivity in shaping sustainable cities.
Khaled Bushnaq, chairman of EmiratesGBC, said, “Strategic partnerships and collaborations are key to our ambitious target of achieving net zero carbon emissions. At Emirates Green Building Council we strongly believe in the power of advocacy to transform the world in our mission to build a resilient and sustainable built environment. Dubai Expo City’s model for sustainable urban living and the pivotal role it plays in the Urban Master Plan 2040, makes it the perfect partner to align on our common mission of achieving net zero carbon emissions in the booming UAE construction industry. We look forward to aligning with them to draw the blueprint for how cities can be designed to provide a resilient and sustainable future for all.”
EmiratesGBC and Expo City Dubai partner for sustainable construction
The collaboration will focus on developing guidelines to reduce carbon emissions. (Image source: EmiratesGBC)
