QU reiterates commitment to environment conservation, sustainability   

Qatar University (QU) held on Sunday a ceremony to mark Qatar Environment Day (QED), which observed on Feb.26 every year, in presence of HE Minister of Environment and Climate Change Sheikh Dr. Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali Al-Thani and HE the President of Qatar University Dr. Hassan Al Derham.HE Dr. Al Derham said that marking QED this year is part of the University's commitment to promote environment conservation and sustainability, pointing that all societal categories are concerned with the environment.He noted that the outputs of all the environmental research presented by Qatar University were serving the environment as one of the four pillars of Qatar National Vision 2030.HE Dr. Al Derham extended thanks to Oryx Company -the ceremony sponsors- and to all the parties that participated in it; the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and the Ministry of Municipality, in addition to schools and institutions that joined the university on the occasion.For his part, Dean of QU's College of Arts and Sciences Prof. Ahmed Elzatahry said that Qatar University sees the QED as a national occasion, especially as it reflects the State of Qatar's keen attention to the conservation of the environment and nature.From this viewpoint, the Biological and Environmental Sciences department took part in the celebration by organizing contests and awareness lectures, in addition to researches and efforts of the faculty and students in the graduate studies section, he addedMeanwhile, Head of Biological and Environmental Sciences department Dr. Fatima Al Khayat said that environment is the framework in which a person lives, and it contains all the material elements in which a person finds the requirements for their living. The various environmental factors affect people and also get affected by them, she added.Dr. Al Khayat voiced the keenness of the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences to mark QED every year by organizing various events that reflect the university's attention to the environment and raise awareness among students.The Ceremony included activities related to the children's environment with the participation of the Early Childhood Center and a workshop for school students on waste reuse, presented by the Visual Arts Center, in addition a number of performances and workshops that came in line with the theme of the Qatar Environment Day.