Businesses in the United Arab Emirates are increasingly adopting sustainable practices and utilizing technology to protect the environment. This includes innovative solutions such as transforming plastic bottles into clothing and creating biodegradable abayas. In preparation for the upcoming Cop28 climate conference, which will be held in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, companies across the Emirates are responding to the call for collective action to address pressing environmental challenges. In May, 28 companies in the industrial sector signed a “climate-responsible companies pledge” at the 10th National Climate Ambition Dialogue, overseen by the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment. In line with the country’s long-term eco-friendly vision, several establishments are taking significant steps towards a sustainable future. One such business is Yello, founded by Zein Altawil, a computer science graduate at Khalifa University. Yello produces sustainable abayas, with the aim of making the garment production process more ethical and environmentally friendly. Ms. Altawil’s vision has been met with some initial scepticism, but she has since won over doubters who appreciate the profound impact of merging sustainability with tradition.
Ms Altawil expressed her aspiration for Yello to become synonymous with sustainable shopping, stating that the company is not only shaping fashion, but also crafting a legacy for future generations.
A Dubai-based company, DGrade, is contributing to the improvement of recycling rates by transforming millions of plastic bottles that are discarded each month into clothing. The team at DGrade aims to reduce the amount of plastic waste that ends up in landfills by producing high-quality yarn made from recycled plastic bottles, which replaces traditional polyester yarn. According to Emma Barber, the director of DGrade, recycled polyester manufacturing uses 50% less energy, 20% less water, and produces 55% fewer carbon emissions compared to conventional polyester manufacturing.
The process of transforming plastic bottles into clothing involves washing, shredding into flakes, melting at high pressure and extruding, before being spun into a polyester yarn. Some of the flakes are also melted into pellets and sold to companies to make recycled bottles. DGrade has collaborated with Expo 2020, Yas Marina Circuit, and Dubai’s Burj Al Arab hotel, and regularly partners with schools to promote environmental awareness. The Simply Bottles Initiative, which educates and engages schools, communities, and businesses in the collection process, is used to collect water bottles.
Rebecca Rich, the head of marketing at DGrade, stated that the company works with over 250 schools in the UAE, as well as businesses and events, to collect and recycle plastic bottles. The bottles are processed into flakes and supplied to local packaging manufacturers. DGrade provides a sustainable alternative to companies that are already producing uniforms or making clothing, rather than promoting the purchase of more products. DGrade’s factory has the capacity to recycle a billion bottles a year, and the company recycled more than 250 million bottles in 2022.A company with only two employees commenced operations, and it has since grown to employ 50 individuals, with a mission to serve as a driving force for positive change. On March 14th, 2016, Saeed Alhassan, Director of the Gas Research Center and Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, was photographed in his laboratory at the Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi by Alex Atack for The National. Saeed Alhassan is also a co-founder of Manhat, an Emirati start-up established in 2019, which is utilizing solar energy to enhance water security. The company has adopted state-of-the-art technology to produce fresh water from the ocean without electricity, by accelerating the evaporation of seawater and capturing it on the surface. Dr. Al Hassan emphasized the importance of finding ways to generate clean water while minimizing the impact on the environment. Manhat employs solar heat and evaporation processes, rather than conventional distillation methods, which have a larger carbon footprint. According to Dr. Al Hassan, operational desalination plants emit approximately 76 million tonnes of CO2 annually, and this figure is expected to rise to 218 million tonnes by 2040. Dr. Al Hassan intends to use the fresh water collected for irrigation purposes on floating farms. Water scarcity remains a significant global concern, with 2.2 billion people lacking safely managed drinking water in 2022, and 703 million without basic water services, according to the United Nations. The invention was tested in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Ports, where a prototype was unveiled. Vishnu Vijayan Pillai, co-founder of Manhat, stated that during this partnership, the company deployed its initial prototypes at Abu Dhabi Ports’ facilities and successfully validated its technology, demonstrating the ability to produce freshwater from seawater without electricity.