Panel Session at GMC Nov 2023 Aligned with Dubai's role as the host of COP28,HConsult media Consultancy arranged a pioneering sustainability panel last November 2023 at the "Educate stage" during the Global Media Congress 2023 at ADNEC in Abu Dhabi. This inaugural session explored environmental factors in content production, provided case studies on how media production evolved to be more environmentally friendly, and showcased international measures for a greener industry.

Moderator and panelists:  

Jamila El Mir - Senior advisor to the UN high-level champion for COP28  

Hisham Soliman - CEO, HAMA Film Productions, Egypt  

Ksenia Gordienko - Executive Producer, Founder/Managing Director, Creative Minds Consulting, UAE/ Russia  

Moderated by: Madonna Khafaja - Founder, Whitebee Media  

Instilling environmental consciousness in a younger audience holds great importance, and media stands out as an exceptionally potent tool for influencing public perspectives. Ksenia Gordienko emphasized that children's content, particularly animation, plays a pivotal role in empowering kids to embrace eco-friendly behaviours simply by enjoying their favorite shows. Ksenia illustrated this point through a brief video showcase featuring her highly successful creation, "Kid-E-Cats," currently available on Netflix. The showcase served as an example of how she incorporates and encourages sustainable practices within the storylines of her popular animated series.

Expressing his views in Arabic, Hisham Soliman, a highly respected producer from Egypt, illuminated the positive transformations within the content production industry that he witnessed over more than 35 years in his career. Historically known for its resource-intensive and wasteful practices, the film production industry has made considerable strides. Soliman exemplified this progress by underscoring the shift from heaps of discarded film scripts to more environmentally conscious digital alternatives. A pivotal achievement in the industry's journey was the abandonment of 35mm film reels, notorious for their environmental toxicity due to the presence of a dangerous chemical,  silver nitrate. This toxic substance, challenging to dispose of through burning or conventional landfills, had led to long-term contamination of water sources, plant life, and animal habitats when buried. Thankfully, technological advancements have rendered such practices obsolete, ushering in digital alternatives with significantly reduced environmental impact.

  Jamila El Mir, the Senior advisor to the UN high-level champion for COP28 highlighted the various initiatives that companies in the UAE can participate it, whether on the regional or global level. Some of the initiative she highlighted were: 

- The UN's race to zero campaign- a global initiative by the UN.

- The UAE's SME climate hub: for small and medium business to join and collectively make efforts related to environmental preservation.

- The UAE business climate responsible pledge 

- UAE alliance for climate action:   an initiative for companies that are ready to start  seriously monitoring and reporting their carbon footprint.  

It's noteworthy that while these initiatives are crucial and much-needed, governmental authorities currently do not provide immediate incentives or benefits to actively encourage their implementation, such as tax rebates or discounts. Film and TV producers argue that given the already high production costs and slim profit margins in the filmmaking industry, the additional stress of implementing environmental measures without tangible motivations like monetary relief or incentives poses a significant barrier. Producers have expressed their interest in such initiatives if they were either (a) made easily implementable by mandating filming locations to adhere to specific rules or (b) offered financial relief or incentives for environmentally conscious film production.