ABSTRACT
As one of the most developed countries in the Gulf region that maintains a free-market economy with modest biological and agricultural diversity, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) may not seem the ideal case study country to consider the potential impact of the transition to a green economy on agricultural diversity. However, the UAE is one of the world’s leading countries in implementing green economy policies. It seeks to become a global hub and a successful model of the green economy. In the same context, the UAE hosted the Global Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) Conference (in March 2014) in response to the United Nations (UN) Rio+20 Declaration call to support interested countries in developing greener and more inclusive economies. The goal of the 2012 UAE initiative on the green economy is to build an economy that protects the environment and an environment that supports the growth of the economy (WAM 2012 ). Central to that is the need to build a diversi ed economy that is based on knowledge and innovation through which natural and environmental resources can be protected.
