Pledge Session – Bee’ah & The American University of Sharjah

The Pearl Initiative launched the Business Pledge to call upon senior business leaders in the Gulf Region to make a public commitment to adhere to principles of ethical and responsible conduct when carrying out business and interacting with society. The Business Pledge allows business leaders to showcase their best practices while uniting students and business leaders to discuss the four pillars of Pearl Initiative’s Business Pledge programme.

Acknowledgements 

The Pearl Initiative team would like to thank the following organisations and individuals for their valuable input, time and engagement with our programme:

• Bee’ah
• Dr. Hashem Stietiya, Head of Environmental Consultancy, Bee’ah
• The American University of Sharjah and Dr. John Katsos
• The American University of Sharjah Students

The Pearl Initiative team would also like to extend a special thanks to PepsiCo as funders of the programme, and supporters of this initiative.

Event Summary  

Event Location: Bee’ah Head Office, Sharjah, UAE

The Pearl Initiative held a collaborative event between Bee’ah and the American University of Sharjah on the 7th of November 2018.

The event was a Business Pledge session held as part of the Pearl Initiative’s student engagement initiative, designed to provide students with the opportunity to engage with business leaders to learn more about the practical aspects pertaining to the implementation of sustainable best practices in business.

The session was delivered by Dr. Hashem Stietiya, Head of Environmental Consultancy, Bee’ah. Dr. Stietiya discussed one of the four pillars of the Business Pledge titled ‘Setting Targets for sustainable and responsible growth’, showcasing the strides Bee’ah has taken towards achieving zero waste to landfill, as a sustainable and an economical measure to sustaining life on earth. Bee’ah’s motive to reaching zero waste to landfill was driven by the Emirates 2021 Visions which aims to achieve at least 70% diversion rate to landfills across all emirates.

Bee’ah implemented this initiative by dividing it into four categories namely;

Optimised waste collection: Reducing usage of fuel, using electric cars, collecting waste only when necessary using the shortest route.
Resource Recovery: Material recovery facility, construction and demolition waste recycling facility, tyres recycling facility, metal shredding and recycling factory.  
Renewable Energy: Converting waste that cannot be recycled into energy, treating 300,000 tonnes of waste annually.
Community Outreach: Implementing reverse vending machines, Bee’ah school of environment, Smart bin sensors, use of 3-stream bins etc.
Bee’ah’s initiatives have a strong impact on the environment which in turn benefits society and helps sustain life longer with earth’s exhaustive resources. Having only diverted 20% of waste from landfills in 2007, Bee’ah has achieved a diversion rate of 76% over the course of 10 years through their sustainability initiatives.