Iman Ustadi

Iman Ustadi serves as a Deputy Chief Negotiator at the Office of the UAE Special Envoy for Climate Change and was responsible to develop the negotiation strategy for COP28 across multiple streams. She worked on the development of the COP28 political engagement plan to create the right enabling conditions that helped parties reach consensus and deliver ambitious outcomes. 

She also co-led the energy transition pillar within the office, developing the political framing around key areas, including a just energy transition, system-wide decarbonization pathways, operationalization of article 6, a mitigation implementation plan that includes the fossil fuel language, and linking these outcomes with the Global Stocktake decision. She is also a member of the steering committee for the 2023 edition of UNEP's Emissions Gap Report, which aims to track progress in limiting global warming.

Prior to joining the UAE Special Envoy, she worked on developing the 2030 sustainability strategy and vision for the oil and gas industry in the UAE, in addition to managing various projects in the sector. She received a patent for an integrated project of hydrogen production and carbon capture and storage for an ultra-sour gas production plant. In addition, she worked on the world's first commercial-scale CCUS facility in the Middle East for the iron and steel industry and managed the engagement with around 100+ key partners and stakeholders. She was seconded to international corporations such as Bechtel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to conduct feasibility studies and design policies and frameworks to implement sustainability measures in the energy sector.