The award showcases the Municipality's commitment to Abu Dhabi's lighting strategy aimed at adopting sustainable policies and principles, rationalizing lighting consumption and developing successful methods to implement sustainability projects at all levels and in all infrastructure in Abu Dhabi.The Abu Dhabi City Municipality has been benchmarking all projects against the lighting strategy issued by the Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport under the administrative resolution No. 39 of 2012 governing general lighting strategy in Abu Dhabi and its technical standards and specifications, which included adopting development initiatives capable of ensuring sustainability. Balanced thinking should be adopted to strike a balance between development and sustainability through optimal utilization of resources. The UAE has taken great strides to preserve natural resources thanks to the numerous initiatives launched to nurture a more sustainable economy such as the Environmental Footprint Initiative and the Green Economy Initiative.The Municipality is committed to its vision of providing better standards of living and sustainable environment for the residence of Abu Dhabi. The Municipality has worked hard to realize this objective by launching a number of key sustainability initiatives highlighted by the Sustainable Public Lighting Strategy which was approved by the Executive Council. The Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport has issued revised standards to be applied throughout the Emirate. This strategy includes lighting roads, bridges, tunnels, footpaths, squares and public parks.The Municipality's success in implementing the general lighting strategy standards in the new projects is synchronized with the future plans developed to redress general lighting attitudes, as evidenced by installing thousands of lighting units in line with the best standards and specifications.The lighting strategy brings about many benefits highlighted by reducing the total cost by about 40% over the next twenty years compared to previous standards. This policy also meets the best lighting standards worldwide, reduces energy consumption by more than 60, minimizes CO2 emissions by 75% and cuts equipment and maintenance by 40% -80% in the future The Retrofit Tech Conference and Award is an annual event aimed to review the latest developments, as well as the best regional & global practices and modern strategies in various fields. It is a unique platform to research and review edge-cutting technologies and open up Public-Private Partnership (PPP) opportunities in various investment, infrastructure and building projects in commercial, educational, recreational, health and industrial activities, among others.It is worth mentioning that the Retrofit Tech Award is granted to modern improvement practices and initiatives that proved successful at the regional and global levels. Abu Dhabi City Municipality was awarded the Retrofit Tec 2017 Award for Best Lighting Project for Yas Island Street Lighting Project and the Street Lighting Guide for Abu Dhabi emirate.The Municipality launched the Street Lighting Guide in 2016 in line with Abu Dhabi's Sustainable Lighting Strategy and Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision.The Street Lighting Project in Yas Island is the first major project to be implemented as per the updated street lighting guide, where incandescent lights in 1100 lampposts were replaced by LED lights, which reduces the energy consumption by 73%, and improves streetscape and lighting quality. In addition, the Municipality is committed to continuously improving roads and infrastructure in various disciplines to ensure a sustainable future. This echoes the vision of Abu Dhabi Government, and reflects the commitment of the Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport to create a world-class municipal system that realizes the desired sustainable development and promotes the quality of life in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.