Day: July 22, 2022

ABU DHABI, The UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, in collaboration with International Vision Investments (IVI), announced the launch of the Jiu-Jitsu summer camp for young jiu-jitsu enthusiasts amid increased demand for participation.

The six-week camps, geared towards kids and teenagers aged 6 to 16, will run through 26th August.

The camp is taking place at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena and UAEJJ Fitness facilities in Al Bahia (Abu Dhabi), Mirdif (Dubai), and Al Salamat (Al Ain) offering boys and girls the perfect opportunity to maximise their time off by raising their levels of performance and honing their talents in the sport of jiu-jitsu.

The camps feature a range of sports and physical activities where those who want to pursue a professional career in jiu-jitsu can learn new skills through comprehensive training programmes designed in accordance with the highest standard featuring experienced and qualified trainers.

The summer camp offers separate beginner and advanced level classes, which are scheduled in four daily classes from 9 am to 2 pm, Monday through Friday. One of the camp’s most notable features is the option for participants to sign up for one week, two weeks, or its whole stay, which is six weeks, according to their convenience.

The Federation expressed happiness over the increased interest in the camp and reiterated that these activities are important as jiu-jitsu helps to foster values like loyalty, fairness, humility, self-confidence, and respect, in addition to its many physical benefits.

The UAEJJF said it expanded summer camp to Al Ain and Dubai as part of its attempts to draw the biggest number of participants at the national level.

Source: Emirates News Agency

DUBAI, The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) organised a workshop to update the National Strategy to Combat Desertification in line with its efforts to prevent and reverse land degradation and meet the UAE’s commitment to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

Held on July 19th and 20th, the gathering drew strong participation of government officials, representatives of academia, and experts from research centres with a focus on determining the outline and objectives of the National Strategy to Combat Desertification 2022-2030. They also commenced developing an action plan to involve relevant sectors in the implementation of the strategy.

In his opening speech, Dr. Nasir Sultan, Acting Assistant Under-Secretary for the Biodiversity and Marine Life Sector at MoCCAE, said, “Safeguarding its land from degradation and drought is a cornerstone of the UAE’s environmental protection drive. Over the past decades, the UAE has established an integrated legislative framework, coupled with initiatives and programmes that seek to halt desertification and expand green areas across the country.”

He noted that the UAE ratified the UNCCD in 1998. To fulfil the country’s obligations under the Convention, MoCCAE developed the first national strategy to combat desertification in 2003 that was updated in 2014. He pointed out that the workshop aimed to align the strategy with future national and global directions and targets.

He added, “The UAE’s efforts to combat desertification are not restricted within its borders but include regional and global measures focusing on addressing the driving factors of desertification and promoting the transformation of desert land into agricultural land. These endeavors have resulted in the increased adoption of sustainable agriculture practices, planting of salt- and drought-tolerant crop, and usage of treated wastewater for irrigation, as well as driving rain enhancement research, and raising public awareness about desertification and ways to prevent it.”

In its fight against desertification, the UAE continues to expand its protected areas, whose number currently stands at 49 and which span 15.5 percent of the country’s territory, and roll out tree-planting initiatives. In this context, the nation has pledged to plant an additional 100 million mangrove seedlings by 2030 – a considerable increase on the 30-million target set out in its second Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement.

Source: Emirates News Agency

DUBAI, Dr. Suhail Al Bastaki, Director of Happiness and Marketing Department at Union Coop, confirmed that consumers had interacted positively with the decision to limit single-use plastic bags since its implementation on 1st July, 2022.

He added that consumers are using recyclable and environmentally friendly bags that can be used multiple times while making a purchase.

He pointed out that most consumers are buying high-quality, environmentally friendly and multi-use bags from Union Coop, which eliminates the need to purchase single-use plastic bags for the supermarket itself.

He pointed out that this interaction indicates the completion of the awareness operations carried out by Union Coop to achieve the ultimate goal of this sustainable initiative. The cooperative continues to provide approved alternatives to single-use bags, calling for avoiding the use of plastic bags in general because of their damage to the environment and choosing a sustainable lifestyle to help protect the environment and its diversity.

He indicated that since the first day of implementing the decision to limit plastic bags, the cooperative has provided alternatives with high-quality environmental-friendly specifications. These are paper bags available at AED21 per 12 pieces approximately, and cloth bags at a price of AED3.26 per bag. The consumer can use them multiple times to make purchases, where their symbolic and economical prices have been announced previously, as their prices are considered competitive.

He also indicated that the interaction of shoppers with the decision to reduce plastic bags pushes all the target parties to continue to achieve their goal of promoting sustainable living in the Emirate of Dubai and gradually creating a sustainable environment. He pointed out that the Union Coop realised that harmony with the initiative takes a specific time as it is something new, but at the same time confirms that society in all its categories can take positive steps towards using reusable bags several times. It is a step that contributes to providing a healthy environment for all in the near future.

Source: Emirates News Agency