Universities across the Middle East must help graduates meet the growing need for green jobs in the face of the ¡°defining challenge of our lifetime¡±, a conference has heard.

Zaki Nusseibeh, chancellor of the flagship United Arab Emirates University, said education was at the heart of the country¡¯s transition into a post-oil, knowledge-based economy.

A key adviser to the founder of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Mr Nusseibeh said that, as a leading hydrocarbon producer, the country could have fallen into the trap of not preparing for a post-hydrocarbon world.

¡°But that is not what we are doing,¡± he told?delegates on the final day of the Times Higher Education MENA Universities Summit.

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¡°Instead, we are ensuring that our universities are the places where students can learn relevant skills to?succeed during the green transition.¡±

As countries struggle to keep below the 1.5¡ãC climate benchmark, Mr Nusseibeh said universities must lead in the face of the?¡°defining challenge of our lifetime¡±.

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¡°Education and skills will be the drivers of the green transition and they will also address the fears of those that see this transition as a killer of jobs and economic opportunity,¡± he said.

¡°The answer is not to stay anchored in the past but to evolve with the world, hopefully one or two steps ahead ¨C to take advantage of the opportunities it offers.¡±

Speaking at the summit, which was held at New York University Abu Dhabi, he added: ¡°By definition, the mission of higher education is never finished.

¡°That¡¯s the basis of the scientific method and of intellectual enquiry.¡±

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Sonia Ben Jaafar, chief executive of the Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education, said a shift into green skills across the region should be seen as an opportunity, not a threat.

¡°We have a very big youth bulge, which is often talked about in negative terms, like it¡¯s a problem,¡± she said.

¡°But¡­that is a young population?[and] if we can get education and opportunities into their hands that¡¯s a talent pool ¨C it¡¯s not a problem.¡±

For Dr Ben Jaafar, the importance of sustainability was not new, but the world had reached a point where ¡°it is critical that we act differently¡±.

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¡°And for us to act differently, we need to think differently. That¡¯s where the universities can shift how the next generation is thinking.¡±

However, she said, greater diversity ¨C particularly among senior leadership ¨C was needed across the region to meet the diverse range of problems that it faces.

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patrick.jack@timeshighereducation.com