Episode #3

In the third episode of the Climate Change in the Arab World mini-series, MARCH student Bisher Tabbaa speaks with Dr. Aisha Al-Sarihi about energy politics and post-COVID sustainability in Arab cities. The conversation not only highlights the importance of economic diversification as it coincides with climate action, but also Saudi Arabia’s (both government and citizen) attitude toward climate change.

Al-Sarihi is a non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington and a research associate at KAPSARC. Her areas of research interest include political economy of environmental sustainability, energy policy, renewables, and climate policies, with a focus on the Arab region.

Masaha is a student association at GSAPP that investigates contemporary issues facing the Arab world. This mini-series consists of conversations with designers, practitioners, and scholars whose work responds to the issue of climate change, which is affecting populations worldwide with devastating impacts on the livelihoods and welfare of vulnerable communities. (This conversation was recorded remotely in June 2021.)