The 21st century marks the First time in history where more than half of humans live in cities. From the earliest civilizations until the modern era, urbanization and non-agricultural activities were outliers to the human experience. Research suggests that 1 million people was the size limit on cities throughout history, even at the peak of empires, from Beijing to Rome to Baghdad. However, since the industrial revolution, that is no longer the case. The largest city today, Tokyo, is home to more than 37 million people, and there are ten additional urban areas exceeding 20 million people.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a rapidly growing field that has been changing the way we live, work and interact with technology. Over the past few decades, the rise of AI has been phenomenal, and it has revolutionized every industry, from healthcare and finance to transportation and entertainment.

“Green government” operations are operations that minimize an entity’s environmental impact, including its energy use, water use, waste and pollution generation, and greenhouse gas emissions. Likewise, “climate tech” includes technologies that are used to address climate change. While government entities across the world face tight budgets, smart investments can reduce operational costs and demonstrate how to implement climate-friendly, green activities. 

Climate change is perhaps the most important issue facing our planet today. It is an existential threat facing every single city and country without discrimination. Governments have a twofold responsibility here. First, they must wield their power to drive change across society, providing incentives and deterrents that can help citizens change habits and assets to become more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Second, governments must demonstrate these societal changes and lead by example to inspire other businesses industries. Often in today’s world, this approach includes public investments in tech solutions to help solve climate problems. The changes provide a healthy model for citizens to emulate and may encourage them to change some of their own wasteful habits at home.

Green government solutions are at the forefront of strategic discussions in 2023, particularly in the Middle East. The annual UN climate change conference took place in Egypt in late 2022 and will happen in the UAE in late 2023. In fact, to capitalize on the global spotlight, as well as emphasize the importance of inspiring collective action towards a more prosperous future, the UAE has officially named 2023 as the “Year of Sustainability”.

Many of the most effective green government and climate tech initiatives are small, simple changes that can easily be implemented. Municipal leaders need not wait for additional budget allocations or silver bullet contraptions to make headway against climate change.

Other green government and climate tech initiatives are more innovative and require more resources. This report will focus on these more ambitious projects and 21 different case studies are presented from different corners of the world, showcasing the variety of approaches different national and local governments are taking to reduce their carbon footprint as well as find new business opportunities for both private and public sector partners. This report does not endorse any specific government strategy but instead analyzes them to help different public sector entities evaluate which might be the most applicable in their specific circumstances.

A series of reports on government innovations from around the world

There are many ways to measure the success of a country, and perhaps the most common is the gross domestic product (GDP), or the total monetary value of a country's goods and services. GDP is likely to remain a vital indicator in the eyes of economists, but it does not reflect all aspects of concern to members of society.

This is due to the fact that some of the factors that determine the quality of life in a country cannot be measured in terms of financial value. Aspects of health, the nature of families and relationships, the quality and style of work, the surrounding environment, and education are of great importance in giving us a sense of satisfaction with our lives. Hence, we have to include these factors in our measurements to understand what matters to members of society.

On the other hand, there is a critically intertwined relationship between wealth and social well-being. That is, poverty causes unhappiness to people, but wealth alone does not make them happy. When members of society in a country suffer from poverty (such as Somalia, which has a per capita GDP of only US$600), the disparity in material wealth makes a big difference in the happiness of individuals. Conversely, when members of a society or country enjoy wealth (for example, the per capita GDP in Luxembourg is $96,000), the impact of income differences on the level of social welfare declines, and other factors gain a more significant influence.

The report includes local and international examples of how data analysis can be used to enhance the mechanism and efficiency of government service delivery, improve satisfaction levels and improve the quality of life among community members.

A series of reports on government innovations from around the world

The rapid changes in our current era require the need for governments to move from the analysis stage to the implementation stage quickly and proactively in line with the renewed global trends and to keep pace with rapid development through the use of innovative tools in identifying opportunities, challenges, and future directions to develop innovative ideas and turn them into plans and strategies that can be applied on the ground and ultimately reflects positively on the lives of individuals and societies. Transformation is the hallmark of 2020. In conjunction with the publication of this report, the world is facing an enormous group of challenges and changes that force us to change our basic concepts to deal properly Unconventional to contain the crisis Covid 19 - on the one hand, and to keep pace with technological developments in light of the fourth industrial revolution on the other hand, which will contribute to achieving positive outputs and effects, especially with the development of means of communication and the fading of the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds, starting with From cloud computing platforms and big data to the Internet of Things and smart government applications, and other tools that reflect the development of the language of governments everywhere around the world and reveal The nature of innovative services that adapt advanced technology to provide better services to its citizens. Unlike ever before, technology has become closely linked to the governance and operational processes in the government sector with the aim of designing innovative products, services, and policies. Several major initiatives have been launched around the world to emphasize the importance of innovation in government work. Based on the forward-looking vision of the UAE government, the country has intensified its efforts to enhance innovation capabilities in federal and local government agencies. It has achieved many achievements in this field. Today, the UAE is the most innovative country in the Arab world and one of the top three countries in the field of innovation in North Africa and West Asia, according to the Global Innovation Index 2020.

At the end of 2019, the Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Government Innovation invited all government agencies at the federal and local levels in the UAE to monitor and document government innovations in the United Arab Emirates. The number of participations exceeded expectations. The total number of submissions reached 550 innovations from 128 government agencies in the UAE. Contributions were at the level of federal and local government agencies, where the federal government agencies participated by 25%. In comparison, the participation of local government agencies at the level of the seven emirates reached 75%. These innovations provide a clear example of the active participation of government agencies in making innovation a daily practice in government work. Accordingly, a team of experts followed an accurate and comprehensive evaluation mechanism to evaluate and select the best innovations that meet the evaluation criteria previously defined in the invitation, such as modernity, reproducibility, and impact. The work team conducted field visits and personal interviews to document the innovations qualified. The report includes 25 of the most important innovations implemented from 2017 to 2020, reflecting the continuous commitment of government agencies to spread and consolidate the culture of innovation.

The report sheds light on the novelty of projects that are characterized by the orientation of teamwork rather than individual, as many of these innovations are the result of an idea that was presented by an employee in different sectors and departments and was developed and implemented through a team worked from within the government entity itself. Finally, we hope these innovations will be a source of inspiration for everyone who has the passion and desire to improve their communities and countries and adapt these innovative ideas in a way that contributes to making the government more efficient and effective.