Higher Colleges of Technology
PRE-2: Points of Distinction

The Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) has become the first Higher Education Institution in the world to achieve a 5-Star rating in the Quacquarelli Symonds’ (QS) Environment, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) category.

The UAE federal HEI’s performance was rated according to its sustainability in environmental operations, education, and research related to the UN Sustainability Development Goals. HCT’s commitment to environmental sustainability is demonstrated by its sustainable policies, Carbon Neutral 2030 plan and climate Action Plan, education and outreach programs, and the reduction in energy and resource consumption.

HCT’s submission for the Environment, Sustainability, and Governance category was evaluated on such factors as its environmental sustainability policies, its climate action plan, energy & resources consumption, HCT’s research endeavors, and its environmentally sustainable student organizations and education initiatives, such as public education and outreach.

In 2022, HCT won the “Champion of Universities and Campuses Climate Action” in the Decarbonization and Climate Action Awards (DACA), organized in Dubai in parallel with the Arab Green Summit event.
HCT has successfully developed a system-wide culture of innovation, as well as striving to enhance its organizational performance to become a sustainable organization via various strategic sustainability ongoing activities/programs that support and enrich decarbonization and climate Action on its campuses. By successful planning and implementation of the below actions, HCT has achieved 20,923.10 Tons of CO2 equivalent Annual Average GHG Emissions System-Wide reduction in 2020-2021. The list of activities/programs contributing to this significant reduction is as follows:
1. Climate Change Adaptation program: HCT recognized the importance of climate change adaptation and has signed a pledge with global universities and colleges to be carbon-neutral campuses by 2030. The plan includes actions to Reduce Consumption and GHG Emissions, Produce Renewable Energy, Buy Green Power, and buy/develop offsets.
2. Utilities water Consumption reduction activity has achieved a significant reduction in water consumption via the implementation of best practices in efficient water management and via the execution of sustainable and energy-saving projects, which, in turn, reflected in significant savings of an average of 28% in water utility consumption between 2018 and 2021. 3. Sustainable Projects activity: HCT has successfully planned and executed sustainable energy-saving projects achieving a reduction of Utilities Consumption through the implementation of best practices in efficient energy management, which, in turn, reflected in significant savings of 4.1% power utilities, respectively, between 2018 and 2021.
4. Resource Efficiency and Waste: recycling activities have been carried out on most campuses resulting in 32.589 and 41.285 Tons of recycled material, hazardous waste, and e-waste between 2018 and 2020. In addition, the supply and provision of new indoor and outdoor recycling waste segregation bins have been carried out, accumulating around 4,845 Tons of recycled material.

HCT’s management’s commitment to climate action:

This Carbon Neutral Plan outlines HCT’s path to neutralizing its greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) by 2030 and fulfilling HCT Senior Executive Management’s pledge to the Global Universities and Colleges’ Climate Commitment. This commitment is reflected in the actions of the campuses and can be evidenced in the relevant data, as well as the culture of sustainability embedded within HCT.

At HCT, the leadership plays a pivotal role in advancing the Digi-Eco-Sustainable System within diverse societal contexts within UAE. Strategy always aligns with the key national strategies. HCT’s Digi-Eco-Sustainable System prioritizes health and well-being, sustainable education, and an eco-friendly environment and contributes a net positive effect on the College community and what changes they can make to contribute more sustainably over time. They create an environment where employees, students, and other stakeholders can collaborate in shaping a sustainable future. HCT ‘s leadership understands the value of sustainability. Many of the initiatives promoted education for sustainable development within its teaching programs & maximized the effectiveness of learning outside the classroom, reduced the environmental impacts, improved energy efficiency and water conservation within HCT, and invested in capacity development. In addition, HCT has been ranked five stars in the QS Stars under the Environmental Impact Category (SDG). Winning the DACA Award is truly an honor for the HCT and a pride for the UAE. We have established a sustainable organizational system that will support decarbonization and contribute to combatting and reversing climate change and prepare HCT students and the community for a better sustainable future.

HCT received three major awards at the 2021 Gulf Sustainability and CSR Awards:
A. Sustainability in Crisis:

HCT is determined to become an exemplary entrepreneurial Higher Education Institution in the Gulf and worldwide. We aim to embed/promote sustainable activities into everything we do. Our role has been to implement the best sustainable practices within HCT and engage, via supportive leadership, with the wider UAE community by teaching, educating, and demonstrating sustainability values. In view of, below are some of the major programs successfully initiated and implemented in the last three years that positively contributed to a sustainable and clean educational environment in the UAE:
1. Digi-Eco-Sustainable Programs, including digitizing resources, and using a digital pedagogy, enable the seamless mix of online and on-site teaching and learning.
2. Innovation and learning (Incuvation) spaces establish an ecosystem for start-ups. Support, and development, defining the graduating students' direction towards entrepreneurship and leading practices in innovation.
3. Creation of a targeted approach to actively engage partners from strategic sectors enables students and graduates to be trained with the required employability skills before applying for jobs and enabling them to be of added value to employers.
4. sustainability-related curriculum courses, workshops, and training covering important sustainability topics enable staff /students to learn, acquire and implement sustainable actions, values, and practices during their learning journey and career/ personal life.
5. Sustainable Facilities and IT projects: including LED / solar lights, aerators, BMS/A/C control units, VFD panels, smart irrigation, and an online technology support platform.6. Green environmental initiatives, including planting trees, desert cleaning/recycling campaigns, Go Green initiatives supporting waste management, etc., that positively impact and contribute to a sustainable and clean environment in UAE.
B. Best Workplace and HR Practices:
HCT is committed to being a role model to higher education institutions, not only in the UAE but the entire GCC region and globally. The e-mail sent out on March 3rd of, 2020, triggered what would eventually change the way work is done daily, but it also hastened the strategies that HCT had developed years before the global COVID-19 pandemic in its efforts to implement a hybrid model. One that encompasses an ecosystem for the future of education as a whole. "The New Normal" for the Academic & Admin staff was already a proposition of things to come, of which the Efficiency, Effectiveness, Innovation, Agility, and Pre-Emptive measures were put into action in every department across HCT. All the departments of both cadres have always been the core asset of HCT and the basis upon which the HC dept. Pursues its endeavors in forever improving. Thus, ensuring that all stakeholders receive the same level of excellence and always strive to go beyond the call of duty, whatever the case. With the notion that the "Best Practices" are always in mind for everything that makes the workplace a better place overall. The policies, procedures, ventures, initiatives, and never-ending enhancements have all worked together to facilitate an easy transition from old to new and to constantly cope with any changes that might hinder or require progress.
C. Innovation in Sustainable Technologies:
Envisaging a sustainable technology of higher applied education, Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) has established a clear innovation journey for its stakeholders that encompassed national well-being, an ambitious vision of the innovation ecosystem, anticipating and adaption, embracing the ecosystem, and transformative and disruptive mindset. With this in mind, HCT shaped many creative ideas aligned with the national and international sustainability agenda to enhance the value creation model that shall be set as a guide for the future. Forecasting a new generation that is tech-savvy and ambitious towards new innovative ideas. Driving value creation within the organization, the HCT EHS department launched many projects in 2020. One of them is the opportunity to train staff and students in a different dimension utilizing Virtual Reality Technology VR EHS Training. The project addressed both value creation and value proposition in an engaging learning environment, and the project reflected four main modules that are:
* Emergency Management (Fire, Life, and Safety),
* Risk Management (Risk Assessment,
* Incident Management, Science Lab, Mechanical Lab)Adverse Weather (Outdoor Scene, Indoor Scene)
* Sustainability.