Under the patronage of the President of Yarmouk University, Dr. Islam Massad, the opening of the seminar "Green Economy and Sustainable Development in Jordan" took place. The seminar was organized by the Center for Sustainable Development Studies in cooperation with the Geography Department at the Faculty of Arts at the university. Participants included Dr. Abdul Hafez Abu Arabi, Director of Irbid Agriculture; Dr. Ziad Ghazzawi from the Civil Engineering Department at the Jordan University of Science and Technology; Ms. Hala Murad, President of Dibeen Association for Environmental Development; Engineer Qasem Rousan from the Parks Department Directorate at the Greater Irbid Municipality; and Mr. Mohammad Al-Dreizi from the Environmental Awareness and Media Department at the Irbid Governorate Environmental Protection Directorate.

Dr. Massad affirmed Yarmouk University's belief that the concept of the green economy and its widespread applications in our lives are crucial for preserving the environment and its various elements, while giving special importance to the social dimension, as it encompasses social justice and the reduction of poverty and unemployment.

He pointed out that Jordan was among the first countries to give paramount attention to environmental protection issues and addressing climate change. Eighty-six green growth projects were launched to protect the environment directly or indirectly. Furthermore, the Council of Ministers had previously approved the National Climate Change Policy for the years 2022-2050, alongside the enactment of a package of necessary legislation to ensure its implementation.

Dr. Massad stated: "Green economy issues are no longer an intellectual luxury, but have become a priority at the global level when the United Nations Environment Programme launched the Green Economy Initiative in October 2008. This initiative aimed to transform global economies onto a new path to achieve better returns on investments in natural, human, and economic capital, while simultaneously reducing gas emissions with the rational use of natural resources."

He continued: "The transition towards a green economy at the national level requires us to strive towards enhancing the Jordanian economy's ability to develop education, innovation, technology, training, and entrepreneurship. This is in addition to adopting a national policy that makes good governance and the optimal utilization of resources a national priority within a participatory framework between the public and private sectors, to drive economic growth and achieve sustainable development that meets the aspirations of young people and creates real job opportunities for them."

He noted that Yarmouk University has consistently been present in this landscape, proactively shaping its details by giving great importance to sustainable human development. The university has worked to achieve optimal investment in human capital by adopting a series of simultaneous policies and procedures, starting with moving forward in the policy of sending academically outstanding university graduates and distinguished members of the local community on scholarships, making significant structural changes in study plans by focusing on practical and field training and applied courses, and adding new academic disciplines and programs that meet the knowledge developments the world is witnessing, enhance the knowledge economy system, and meet the requirements of labor markets inside and outside the Kingdom.

At the same time, the university has spared no effort in preparing the campus to keep pace with the spirit of the age and the philosophy of the green economy through the implementation of the renewable energy project and the expansion of green spaces.

For his part, the Director of the Center, Dr. Abdalbaset Othmaneh, delivered a speech in which he indicated that today's meeting aims to research and discuss the "Green Economy and Sustainable Development in Jordan," and important topics focusing on green water harvesting, the circular economy and sustainability, environmentally friendly activities, social responsibility, and the transition towards a green economy.

Dr. Othmaneh pointed out that the concept of the green economy emerged as a proposed path to overcome the financial, food, and climate crises that coincided with the collapses witnessed in global markets during the first decade of the new millennium, including the financial and economic crisis in 2008. This highlighted the urgent need for a new economic system away from the authoritarian and consumerist practices that lead to material enrichment and the accumulation of capital and wealth at the expense of accelerating environmental risks, ecological scarcity, and social disparities.

He explained that sustainable development, with its seventeen goals, is the guarantee for the emergence of that global system within its human, political, and economic frameworks, stressing that sustainable development will not achieve its goals unless societies are connected to their roots and open to life, to emerge from their despair and misery to a time when international relations are not based on power, influence, and the subjugation of others.

Dr. Othmaneh noted that the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Sustainable Development Goals in September 2015 to express the international community's desire to achieve human security and a better life for individuals and groups throughout the world.

During the seminar activities, which were attended by the Vice President of the University, Dr. Musa Rababah, a number of deans of faculties, faculty members, and a group of students, Abu Arabi spoke about "Green Water Harvesting in Jordan," and Ghazzawi spoke about the "Project of Reusing Reclaimed Water in Jordan." Murad discussed "Community Responsibility and the Transition Towards a Green Economy," while Rousan spoke about the "My Farm is My Responsibility Initiative," and Al-Dreizi discussed "Awareness Projects and Programs and Environmentally Friendly Activities."