AUS professor named UAE champion in global science prize

Dr Griffiths was among 25 national champions selected globally by the Jury of 100, an independent group of leading sustainability and planetary health experts, chaired by Professor Johan Rockström, the architect of the renowned planetary boundaries framework.

Professor Rockström said, “The 25 national winners of the 2026 Frontiers Planet Prize exemplify the diversity of research urgently needed. Spanning a range of topics, disciplines and methodological approaches, they share a defining quality: excellence in advancing our understanding of the Earth system and in unlocking new frontiers in the solution space.”

The UAE National Champion award recognises Dr Griffiths and his co-authors for a landmark study on carbon capture technologies, published in Nature Reviews Chemistry, one of the world’s most prestigious scientific journals. The research was conducted in collaboration with a team led by Dr Griffiths and Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer, Champion and Director of the Industrial Decarbonization Research and Innovation Center and Director of the Research Center for Carbon Solutions at Heriot-Watt University, along with Professor John M. Andresen and Dr Jeannie Ziang Yie Tan at Heriot-Watt University, and João M. Uratani of the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex. The paper assesses the chemical innovations needed to deploy carbon capture at scale, given that industrial exhaust gases vary considerably in CO₂ concentration, temperature and pressure.

“The emissions-intensive, or hard-to-abate, industries such as cement, steel and chemicals directly account for roughly 40 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and 85 percent of manufacturing emissions worldwide. These emissions cannot be readily mitigated by energy efficiency and electrification coupled with renewable electricity alone,” said Dr. Griffiths. “Our research evaluates five families of carbon capture technology at or beyond the prototype stage to give industry and policymakers a clear, evidence-based picture of what works, where, and how close they are to deployment. Advancing these technologies is critical if we are serious about ever achieving net-zero emissions,” he added.

“We are delighted to see our work recognised on the global stage through the Frontiers Planet Prize. This recognition affirms the importance of collaborative research, innovation and partnerships in accelerating industrial decarbonisation and delivering meaningful impact for planetary health. Our study highlights the urgency of scaling carbon capture, and this award shines a global spotlight on the innovation needed to accelerate climate solutions at scale,” said Professor Maroto-Valer.

According to the International Energy Agency and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, global carbon capture capacity must increase by more than 100-fold, from around 50 million metric tons today to as much as 6 billion metric tons annually by 2050, if the aspiration to limit global warming to 1.5°C is to be achieved. As this target becomes increasingly unattainable, carbon capture, already established in the oil and gas industry, gains importance as it is adopted across other carbon-intensive sectors that have lagged significantly in reducing their carbon emissions.

Alongside the FPP announcement of the national champions, the research was also published in a policy report developed in collaboration with the Frontiers Policy Labs, the United Nations University Centre for Policy Research (UNU-CPR), and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The report, titled From Science to Policy: Planetary Solutions in Action, highlights a range of practical, policy-based measures that policymakers can adopt to support science-backed responses to the planetary crisis.

This is the second high-profile study conducted jointly by researchers from AUS and Heriot-Watt University, following a 2024 collaboration that proposed green flight paths and the adoption of sustainable aviation fuel as strategies to decarbonise long-haul air traffic. The team is currently working on a major study focused on digital green shipping corridors.

“As a global energy leader committed to environmental sustainability, the UAE is playing a leading role in the practical deployment of carbon capture technologies,” said Dr. Griffiths. “Our research has particular resonance with the Gulf region’s decarbonisation agenda while also providing an evidence base for sustainability agendas globally.”

"This recognition also reflects the growing momentum of research and innovation at AUS. From the establishment of our Energy, Water and Sustainable Environment Research Center to my own local and international collaborative studies on sustainable solutions for emissions-intensive industries, AUS researchers are producing work with real-world impact that extends well beyond Sharjah,” he concluded.

Dr Griffiths’ win was officially announced alongside the other Frontiers Planet Prize National Champions on Earth Day, 22 April 2026. As a National Champion, he will have the opportunity to share his award-winning research at national and international conferences to help drive the systemic change needed to safeguard our planet's health. He has also been invited to attend the Frontiers Planet Prize Award Ceremony, which will take place on 18 January 2027 in Davos. The scientists awarded in this round will be considered for the prize’s USD 1 million award, which will be granted to three winning scientists later in the year.

For more information about AUS’s research and innovation, visit www.aus.edu/research.