Faculty in the Department of Geography and Urban Planning at the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) published the second issue of the International Scientific Journal for Arab Geographers. This journal is published in Canada and it was presented to Professor Saif Al Qaydi, Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, on the morning of Wednesday 18^th June, 2015. This issue was dedicated to discussing the most important geographical issues in the Gulf region generally, and the UAE, in particular.

Professor Al Qaydi congratulated colleagues in the Department of Geography and Urban Planning on publishing academic work related to the local environment. This contributes to the objectives of the college and helps in encouraging research among faculty as the university continues to focus on achieving the best global practices and standards in every field.

He added that, “The main purpose of academic work is the dissemination of information and making a contribution to researching solutions to the problems currently facing the world today. As such, research studies and journals contribute to achieving these goals and objectives. We hope that this will motivate others to continue to work hard in their particular research field.”

Dr. Khaula Al Kaabi, Chair of the Department of Geography and Urban Planning, was quoted as saying that, “the department issuing the second edition of the International Scientific Journal for Arab Geographers is evidence of the work on both human and natural geographic phenomena in the UAE. This is valuable to a whole host of researchers and decision-makers.”

Dr. Al Kaabi further described the topics relating to the UAE addressed in the journal. This included a study of transportation and urban development systems; an evaluation of landfill sites and waste management in Abu Dhabi using GIS technology, as well as monitoring vegetation in Abu Dhabi using GIS and remote sensing systems from 1973-2010. The issue also included an assessment of the Avicenna forest, a study of biomass in Eastern Crimea and an article on the Lakes National Park in Abu Dhabi.