Call for Papers (Symposium)

*** The symposium is part of the International Conference on Sustainable Development, Social Responsibility & Business Ethics (ICSDSRBE)

Symposium

Innovative Strategies for Arid Regions: A Holistic Approach to Water, Food, Energy, and Ecosystems

April 09-10, 2025

Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait

OVERVIEW

The rapid growth of population, diminishing natural resources, and global climate change have led to increased degradation of native desert plants, affecting food security and water sustainability in arid and semiarid regions. Thus, the world is facing complex and interconnected challenges, highlighted by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs). These challenges include significant changes in ecosystem components, water, energy, and food insecurities, which threaten the sustainability of our societies. Our ability to navigate these issues hinges on our willingness to collaborate across various disciplines and sectors to envision thriving, healthy, and resilient communities while respecting the limits and health of our planet.

As nations strive to implement the UN-SDGs, there is a pressing need for innovative simulation and assessment tools, as well as governance models. These tools should effectively represent complex systems in an accessible way to assist decision-makers in creating synergies and avoiding unintended conflicts between different societal goals. Additionally, the symposium will focus on the opportunities for creating an inclusive WEF nexus Community of Practice and the role of existing disciplinary societies within this framework.

The symposium will include both invited and contributed oral and poster sessions. Contributors will be invited to submit manuscripts for a Special Issue in the Water-Energy Nexus Journal. The call for abstracts will close on February 15, 2025, with manuscripts accepted on a rolling basis until April 2025. Topics include, but are not limited to:

- Water resources & management for efficiency, sustainability, and reliability.

- Natural solutions to enhance ecosystem restoration in arid lands.

- The role of ecosystem services in enhancing water and food security

- cutting-edge scientific and technological tools such as AI to facilitate restoration

- Urban Planning, management, policy, and economics.

- Role of leadership in sustainable development.

- The tools and techniques for raising awareness of topics related to sustainability.

- Climate change impact on the ecosystem services and human well-being

- Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) applications in restoration ecology.

Thematic Series

Raising the bar on restoration success: Improving the quality of actions rather than quantity

Symposium Organizers

Dr. Meshal M Abdullah, Department of Geography, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman, Email: m.abdullah1@squ.edu.om

Dr. Ali Said Salim Al-Balushi, Department of Geography, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman, Email: buloshis@squ.edu.om

Dr. Noura Al-Nassri, Department of Geography, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman Email: noura@squ.edu.om

Dr. Talal Al-Awadhi, Department of Geography, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman, Email: alawadhi@squ.edu.om 

Dr. Sara Al-Naabi ; Department of Geography, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman, Email: s.alnaabi4@squ.edu.om

Dr. Hoda Alavinejad, Department of Business and Accounting, Muscat College, Muscat, Oman, Email: hoda.nejad@muscatcollege.edu.om

Submission Guidelines

Please submit your full paper or extended abstract (in PDF format) no later than February 15, 2025, via the conference website: https://icsdbe2025.sciencesconf.org/user/submissions. Please indicate this on the Title Page by including the following statement: "This Submission is Intended for the Symposium." 

While an extended abstract is allowed for initial submission, for an accepted submission to be included in the conference program, a full paper must be submitted to icsdbe@gmail.com by March 25, 2025. All manuscripts will be double-blind reviewed. The first page of your submission must contain the title, author(s), and contact information of the corresponding author. All submissions must be written in English.

Any other inquiries could be directed to Dr. Noura Al Nassri (noura@squ.edu.om) and Dr. Meshal Abdullah (m.abdullah1@squ.edu.om).

Publication Opportunities

Contributors will be invited to submit manuscripts for a Special Issue in the Water-Energy Nexus Journal.  

Call for Papers