of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces, said via translator during WFES 2013’s open- ing ceremony. “The United Arab Emirates is committed to face this challenge and is pushing forward to accelerate clean energy and adopt sustainable development.” The UAE’s motivation may be as much about itself as

saving the planet. Its oil reserves are expected to run out sometime in the next hundred years (Abu Dhabi’s sooner than that), and the government wants to be relevant in a

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greener future. “Delivering the world with important sup- plies of hydrocarbons for almost half a century,” Sheikh Mohammed told the 3,500 delegates gathered for the open- ing ceremony, “it’s natural for the UAE to invest and play an active role in diversifying the energy mix to include renew- able sources of energy.” In fact, over the past decade, Abu Dhabi has invested bil-

lions into renewable-energy projects. The emirate’s green- energy investments are organized under the umbrella of the

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