The Asian Council on Water, Energy and Environment (ACWEE), one of the Product and Service Councils established under the CACCI umbrella, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Iranian Society for Green Management (ISGM), a non-profit organization registered un the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), CACCI Primary Member from Iran.

The signing ceremony was held virtually, with ACWEE Chairman Mr. Gyanendra Lal Pradhan from Nepal and ISGM President Mohammad Hasan Emami signing on behalf of their respective organizations.

ISGM President Mohammad Hasan Emami in his Message at the signing ceremony said that since its establishment 16 years ago, the ISGM has been active on green intelligence, carbon footprint calculation, water footprint calculation, green hospital, green hotel, green industry, product life cycle assessment, as well as expert training, green assessor and issuing green certification for organizations. He added that ISGM has also tried to strengthen the green culture in Iran by holding national and international conferences and producing books and articles. He said that ISGM considered it an honor to be able to influence sustainable develop at the national and international level with the support of ACWEE. “Our goal of signing the MOU is to develop common experiences and knowledge and support the economy and environment together,” he remarked.

ACWEE Chairman Mr. Gyanendra Lal Pradhan in his Welcome Statement noted that given the continuing rapid economic growth of Asian countries, the development of clean water, energy and environment is crucial for the further development of their economies. Hence, he said he was very pleased to sign an MOU with the ISGM, pointing out that the ACWEE and ISGM share the same objective: Both organizations aim to serve as platforms to help promote the interest of their members, which are composed mainly of businessmen in the water, energy, and environment sector from their respective regions, Mr. Lal Pradhan said. To achieve this common aspiration, ACWEE and ISGM have therefore agreed to come together to sign the MOU to further concretize partnership between the two organizations, he added. He said that the ACWEE certainly looks forward to working with ISGM in pursuing the tenets of the MOU that will redound to the benefits not only of their respective members, but the whole global village as well.

In his Welcome Remarks, CACCI Director-General Mr. David Hsu pointed out that water, energy, environment and green natural resources have been important subjects to mankind particularly since the start of the 20th century. The growing climate change and the recent floods and drought happening in many countries and regions around the world have further highlighted the worsening situation. Mr. Hsu added that many agencies are committed to addressing the problem or to mitigating its negative impact on the environment, and expressed his hopes that the signing of the MOU between ISGM and ACWEE will help contribute to achieving this important objective.

For his part, CACCI Deputy Director-General Mr. Amador Honrado said that as one of the Product and Service Councils of CACCI, the ACWEE plays an important role in promoting the development of the water, energy and environment in the Asia-Pacific region and encouraging business interaction among CACCI members in this sector. He thanked ISGM for reaching out to CACCI – and to the ACWEE in particular – in its efforts to have greater cooperation with other organizations in CACCI member countries with similar objectives as its own, and expressed confidence that the signing of the MOU between ISGM and ACWEE will be mutually beneficial to both organizations and to their respective members.

Under the MOU, ISGM and ACWEE agree to:

1. Facilitate interaction between their members in order to encourage strategic alliances and networking among themselves.
2. Jointly develop and promote training and capacity-building programs to enhance the professional and institutional capability of their members and other institutions that share the same objectives.
3. Co-organize, collaborate, and assist each other in conferences and forums on water, energy and environment and related topics and issues.
4. Explore other areas of cooperation such as information exchange, publications, research and studies and other appropriate endeavors deemed beneficial to their respective members.