Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has opened Dewa Innovation Week 2016, taking place from November 20-24 in conjunction with the 2nd UAE Innovation Week in Dubai, UAE.

The event is organised annually in adherence with the directives of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to celebrate innovators in the UAE.

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dewa toured the Innovation Week activities including the Innovation Hub, the Future Dome, and the Innovation Exhibition. The Innovation Hub features four main themes: Green Planet, Immersive Experiences, Smart City, and Connected World. The Future Dome features many activities including I-Talk sessions and Innovation Talk.

During the Innovation Week, Dewa highlights future innovations related to electricity and water. Dewa will also organise its Creativity and Innovation conference on November 24. International experts will discuss innovation in sustainability, renewable energy, and water.

In his opening speech, Al Tayer welcomed participants to Innovation Week, noting that the UAE has become one of the leading countries in innovation. He emphasised that the UAE Government is working to transform the country into a knowledge-based economy by encouraging innovation, Research and Development, launching strategies and initiatives to further develop government innovation by making it an organisational task, and developing staff abilities to make them innovative and creative.

Dewa’s Innovation Week activities include a competition for students to design, build, test and race solar-powered remote control cars. The competition promotes Shams Dubai initiative, as it will encourage the young to learn about clean energy, in a highly-engaging manner. This further establishes Dewa as a forward-thinking supporter of innovation and sustainability. The final race will take place in Q1 of next year.

Dewa will also announce the winners of the Dewa Future Utility Cup, which is a first-of-its-kind global start-up competition. The competition is the result of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Dewa and the global start-up incubator 1776, to accelerate the pace of innovation in energy. It will tap into 1776’s extensive network of over 3,000 start-ups that have participated in the 1776 Challenge Cup in 2015 and 2016.

A number of initiatives and projects that provide an innovative environment for Dewa’s staff will also be launched during Dewa Innovation Week. These include launching a smart app for Afkari for staff through the Smart Office, which provides Dewa’s employees a seamless experience when completing their tasks, to achieve their happiness.

Ebtikari was also launched to encourage inventors and designers from around the world to present their innovations using a smart platform. This includes scientific and engineering competitions for inventors, scientists, university students, and engineers to present solutions and innovations in sustainable energy, water, and other fields related to Dewa’s work.

Videos highlighting Dewa’s innovators will also be on display to highlight their achievements and recognise their efforts to be role models for others. A promotional campaign was launched on social media to invite the public to Innovation Week and through internal communications channels to inform staff about the different activities. The 2nd robotic competition for all school students in the UAE was also announced. The 1st competition achieved important results, with students designing a number of key projects.

Innovation Week features 15 interactive workshops on the future and sustainability, where experts and specialists from leading local and international organisations give insights about the best practices and latest advancements in innovation. – TradeArabia News Service