Winners of the 2016 Zayed Future Energy Prize

A former prime minister, five schools, an Asian non-profit organisation, an off-grid energy provider and a new energy automobile manufacturer were among nine winners of the prestigious Zayed Future Energy Prize this year. The awardees were selected from 29 finalists.

Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland

Credited with driving the global multi-lateral dialogue on climate change to the forefront. In addition to serving as the prime minister of Norway for three terms, Dr Brundtland wrote the Brundtland Report in the 1980s, which focuses on sustainable international development. She was also director- general of the World Health Organisation. She currently serves as the United Nations Special Envoy for Climate Change under Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

“I will be working on issues that are identical to the vision and legacy of Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and will continue to put a lot of emphasis on renewable energies,” Dr Brundtland said.

BYD, China

BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, is a China-based public company that is also the world’s largest rechargeable battery supplier. The company is also a pioneer in the development of new energy vehicles, with its electric buses and taxis being used in 160 cities around the world.

Chuanfu,

A solar energy provider in Tanzania, with a scaleable business model that allows customer to pay using their cellphones. It has already expanded operations to neighbouring Rwanda.

Wang

founder and chairman, BYD, said: “This recognition strengthens our commitment to continue developing clean, sustainable technologies that drive communities forward. I was also given the lifetime award two years ago, and used the $500,000 (Dh1.83 billion) to assist our underprivileged employees and their families.”

Xavier Helgesen,

chief executive officer and co-founder, Off. Grid:Electric, said: “While we serve 10,000 households at present with the help of 350 door-to-door staff, we are now looking at increasing this number to thousands of staff members in order to cover the entire country.”

Lifetime Achievement Award

Large Corporation

Small and Medium Enterprises

Non-profit Organisations

Eva Wojkowska,

co-founder and chief operational officer, Kopernik, said: “In Indonesia, access to safe drinking water is a major concern. Moreover, 100 million people still reply on open fires for cooking, which promotes pollution and the incidence of smoke-related diseases. We therefore aim to distribute our sustainable solutions to one million Indonesians, and this would not be possible without the prize.”

Global High Schools