Why I decided to accept this position

I have been fortunate enough to have been involved with the development of Masdar since its infancy. The concept of Masdar was developed to bring about the realization of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the late President of the UAE, that Abu Dhabi be a part of the solution in terms of contributing to preserving the quality of the natural environment, one of the major global concerns facing us today and one of the most critical challenges of the 21st century.

I believe that this is the first time that a country outside of the Western Hemisphere of Europe and North America has decisively, methodically and actively engaged in becoming a leading party to the solution. This is not only commendable, but exciting and challenging and I personally feel privileged to lead a critical component of this undertaking; the development of the intellectual human capital needed to make the vision a reality.

If you look at the spectrum of activities that Masdar has undertaken, it is holistic, comprehensive and covers the whole value chain needed to address the challenges of our time. This includes human resource development, generation of knowledge through research and development, formation of incubation centers, start-ups, venture capital, collaboration with major industries and government, attracting IRENA headquarters to Abu Dhabi, establishment of the World Future Energy Summit meetings in Abu Dhabi and providing the distinguished Zayed Future Energy Prize for Environment. Frankly, one does not see such a comprehensive and unified undertaking anywhere else. This is exciting, important and critical to the successful implementation of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the late President of the UAE.

Through Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, the faculty, students and staff contribute in a significant way to the solution of this critical and challenging global problem. It is my sincere hope that together all of us will be moving towards a common goal and will advance Masdar Institute to contribute to this noble cause. Much has been done and much remains to be done.

My responsibilities

The primary duty of the president is to orchestrate the three primary functions of the university so that services of the university are provided in the most efficient and productive manner. These include oversight of:

• Academic, which is primarily concerned with the development of the intellectual capital of the institution which includes research and education provided by faculty and students;
• Administration, which is primarily responsible for facilitating the development of the intellectual capital of the institution and has the responsibility of coordinating and managing finance, physical facilities, human resources, information services and resources of the Institute,
• Outreach, which provides interaction with other universities and research institutions, with government, and with industry. Outreach allows the university to introduce and expose its intellectual assets to the potential users, and receive their inputs in formulating its academic and research agenda.

To the external community, the president represents the institution and its values, and leads the institution in its contributions to the community.

Needless to say that staying at the forefront of science and technology requires intensive use of resources – people, space and finance. The mandate of any university, and Masdar Institute is no exception, is to endlessly address the challenging societal issues, to remain futuristic and to educate the next generation of scholars and leaders.