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Abu Dhabi-UAE: 13 March, 2013: A two-day course on the growing waste problem in the trans-developing societies was held for members of the Young Future Energy Leaders (YFEL) program.

Titled ‘Waste Management and Waste to Energy’, the course was attended by 28 YFEL members. The first day of the course covered short lectures, divided into three sessions. On the second day the course intensified the on hands-on activities, which were conducted in the Masdar Institute’s labs, where participants had the chance to experience the high-tech equipment in the cutting-edge research facilities.

Zainab Abdul Rahim Al Ali, YFEL Project Manager at Masdar Institute, said: “The waste management course is the first to mainly focus on hands-on activities. Participants were able to experiment with the theoretical material at Masdar Institute’s labs. The objective of this course is to provide an overview of the waste problem. The YFEL team consistently works on enhancing the participants’ experience and improving the quality of our activities. We are grateful to the UAE’s leadership that supports programs such as YFEL and motivates talented youngsters to excel in future energy and advanced technologies.”

The course was led by Dr. Isam Janajreh, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Masdar Institute. The first day’s proceedings covered an overview of the waste problem, review of current policy for waste management, overview of the conversion technologies, and an introduction to the waste to energy lab. The second day’s experiments were on waste material characterization, which included ultimate/elemental analysis, proximate analysis, and biodiesel/fuel assessment, in addition to other experiments.

Dr. Janajreh said, “The average daily per capita generation in developed world is about 1.6kg and varies between 0.25 to 6kg in the trans-developing countries. This course performed as a platform for YFEL members to assess the waste generation in Abu Dhabi and statistically evaluate its potential energy, by conducting experiments in the Waste to Energy Laboratory at Masdar Institute. The YFEL members need to be provided the right ingredients to develop into effective professionals. The two-day training program have equipped them and strengthened their skill sets.”

The two-day YFEL course forms part of an annual schedule of three courses on Technology, Policy and Leadership relating to renewable energy-related issues in managing and guiding peers. The courses targeted young practitioners and graduate students who aim to expand their knowledge of core issues in renewable energy technology, policy and leadership.

Shaikha Al Shamsi, a Masdar Institute student and YFEL member, said: “The various activities and lectures have enhanced my learning experience. In this course, I examined the distribution of waste generation in key countries including UAE in an attempt to evaluate its energy potential. I also reviewed the traditional landfilling practice and the new emerging trend of municipalities and moving from ’dry tomb’ landfill to a bioreactor-based technology. I also liked the hands-on activities that we experienced, as it helped to visualize the theory.”

Saeed Al Kaabi, a young professional from Tawazun and YFEL member, said: “I enjoyed the course and I learned new valuable information about waste management. This course provided me with an opportunity to gain an in-depth insight in this field. I believe that attending such a course helps widen my knowledge and experience, since it made me more aware of the waste problems through experiments in the Masdar Institute’s labs.”

Part of Masdar Institute’s Outreach program, YFEL offers young professionals and students from the UAE and abroad an opportunity to become more engaged in finding solutions to the world’s biggest challenges – achieving energy efficiency and tackling climate change. It also aims to bring young professionals closer to government representatives, business leaders and other organizations active in the area of alternative energy and sustainability.