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Green Buildings prize at 1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Award

Green Buildings prize at 1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Award

Federation of GCC Chambers honors Dr. Yousef Al-Horr the Emerging CEO ~ Green Buildings prize at 1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Awards.

BARWA and Qatari Diar Research Institute Chairman & MD wins Emerging CEO Green Buildings prize
Recognition of QSAS as the Middle East first performance-based sustainability rating system

Doha, Qatar, 29 April 2010: Dr. Yousef Mohammed Al-Horr, Chairman and Managing Director of the BARWA and Qatari Diar Research Institute (BQDRI), has exclusively received the Emerging CEO ~ Green Buildings prize from the Federation of GCC Chambers at the 1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Awards in the UAE.

Dr. Al-Horr was honored the award of excellence at an April 29 ceremony at the Intercontinental Hotel and Resorts in Dubai where the Federation of GCC Chambers recognized the region top performing business leaders and organizations.

ìIt was an amazing year for BQDRI and our partners. This coming year is only going to get better as we help the construction industry implement green building with the help of our Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS). This award is proof that Qatar is leading the region in sustainable development,î said a delighted Dr. Al-Horr.

To win the accolade of being named the Middle East first ëEmerging CEO ñ Green Building, were Dr. Alhorr achievements in the sustainable buildings industry through establishing BQDRI and developing QSAS. Dr. Al-Horr leadership qualities, in addition to his astute strategic thinking, powerful strategy execution and perceptive talent management were closely assessed by a judging panel consisting of eight distinguished regional finance and commercial personalities from both public and private sector.

Aiming to address environmental challenges and empower the construction industry in Qatar and the GCC region, Dr. Al-Horr is the Founder, Chairman and Managing Director who established the BQDRI to focus on studies relating to new knowledge in sustainability and its applications.

Being an active social responsible citizen and a qualified engineer, Dr. Al-Horr believes that responsible design, construction and building operations can mitigate the negative effects of Qatar built environment. In particular Dr. Al-Horr champions QSAS as a means of reducing Qatar significant carbon emissions.

The award of ëEMERGING CEO GREEN BUILDINGSí was given on the basis of Dr. Al-Horr achievements and leadership role in developing the Middle East first performance-based sustainability rating system QSAS, allowing Qatar to take the lead in addressing local and regional issues related to energy efficiency and reduction of carbon emissions,î explained 1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit CEO Shahul Hameed Shaik Dawood.

Under Dr. Al-Horr leadership, the BQDRI directed the development of QSAS to take leadership of the real estate sector regionally, with an inclusive perspective of addressing regional and global issues related to energy efficiency and reduction of carbon emissions.

Prior to joining BARWA as President of Strategy & Investment and Deputy COO, Dr. Al-Horr worked as Assistant Vice President for Research Affairs at Qatar University, where he made positive contributions to the university development projects, assuming several challenging assignments and responsibilities.

In addition to his current work, Dr. Al-Horr promotes the concept of sustainability through his participation as a speaker in major local and international conferences organized in Qatar and worldwide. In 2009, Dr. Al-Horr gave many lectures about the sustainable building concept and the role of the State of Qatar in leading the sustainability industry in the Middle East. Dr. Al-Horr was also invited to be the Keynote Speaker at the International Real Estate and Finance Forum in London, and at MEED Conference for Green and Sustainable Buildings in Qatar, in addition to many conferences and workshops in France, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, and KSA.

“I am honored to be selected as the Middle East top emerging CEO,says Dr. Al-Horr. I’m also very thankful to all of our employees who have contributed to the success that BQDRI has experienced. Together, our hard work has helped make BQDRI a notable leader in the sustainable development industry.

QSAS has received the Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development award from the International Real Estate and Finance Forum 2009 in London and BQDRI was shortlisted for the CSR Summit Award 2009 in the UAE.

1st Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Awards recognizes business excellence and outstanding leadership. True leaders are not those who strive to be first, but those who, like Dr. Al-Horr, are first to strive and who give their all for the success of the team,î added Shahul Dawood.

As a pioneer, BQDRI has been entrusted with realizing Qatar vision for a beautifully built environment, high indoor environmental quality, and sustainable communities & developments, currently being demonstrated in projects under construction such as Lusail City and BARWA City.

Based on a clear vision and a strategy for Qatar to be a leader in the field of sustainable development, design and construction; Dr. Al-Horr and his BQDRI colleagues toil ceaselessly to create a dignified environment for all to live and work in.

Among the specific tasks of targeting the real estate market and the building industry locally, regionally and globally, BQDRI continuously strives to facilitate opportunities to introduce state of the art concepts and models in sustainability development via research, training & development, and publishing.

Key to Dr. Al-Horr success has been his ability to champion the Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS), the Middle East most comprehensive green building design rating system. Developed especially for Qatar in cooperation with the University of Pennsylvania T C Chan Center for Building Simulation and Energy Studies in the United States, QSAS allows designers to create a sustainable built environment that reduces environmental impact according to the latest international standards while addressing the specific cultural identity of the region.

Now adopted by BARWA Real Estate and Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company for all future projects, QSAS is a best of the best sustainable development system introduced following analysis of over 140 international rating systems. The BQDRI has recently announced the release of the first full version of QSAS that includes:

  • 1- QSAS Manuals
  • 2- QSAS Tool Kit Suite
  • 3- QSAS Project Management System

The BQDRI is a proud member of the United Nations Environment Program Sustainable Buildings & Climate Initiative (SBCI). The SBCI provides leadership and encourages partnership amongst all buildings and construction stakeholders to address sustainability issues of global significance, especially climate change, energy efficiency and CO2 emissions.

As part of its commitment to public awareness, the BQDRI has launched a comprehensive website dealing with issues related to sustainable development. www.bqdri.com.qa enables building professionals to check out the latest sustainable development news and download important research and advice for developers, building professionals and owners.

In support to its initiative and launch of the BQDRI website, the Research Institute demonstrated the believe in the concept of sustainability development within the construction industry through publishing the first e-newsletter for construction professionals and the public on sustainable development in Qatar to reach the globe

BQDRI, since inception, has been organizing training and development workshops assuring its committee of its ability to lead sustainability in the Qatari real estate market. Its most recent professional workshop began on Sunday 25th April, for three days, in collaboration with experts and researchers from the T.C. Chan Center for Building Simulation and Energy Studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

The 3-day QSAS professional workshop, conducted at BARWA Knowledge building supported industry professionals and engineers working in the real estate sector by empowering them with the necessary tools and means of sustainability development required for all BARWA & Qatari Diar future projects. It offered candidates the:

training to become QSAS – CERTIFIED GREEN PROFESSIONAL and secure project submission to Lusail Municipality and BARWA Real Estate,
latest knowledge and understanding of QSAS green building practices and principles, and how to apply them in Qatar,
guidance to QSAS procedures, tools, applications and assessment requirements,
necessary educational materials to support them during their practice.