• Primary Program Transportation & Infrastructure
  • Research Interests Energy Sustainability and Social Science

Biography

Lama is a research lead working under the Transportation and Infrastructure Content Center. Lama has a B.Sc. degree in computer science from Effat University and an M.Sc. degree in software engineering from the University of Oxford. Lama is a programmer, data modeler and software engineer working in data modeling and software integration. She is also part of the Geographical Information Systems (GIS) team, working in spatial analytics and modeling.

Lama was also one of the main contributors to the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB).

Publications

See all Lama’s publications
  • Books/books chapters
  • Discussion papers
  • Data Insight
  • Commentaries
  • Think20 (T20)
The Economics of Renewable Energy in the Gulf

The Economics of Renewable Energy in the Gulf

The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) has been at the epicenter of global energy markets because of its substantial endowment of hydrocarbons. Yet countries in the region have also stated their intent to be global leaders in renewable energy. This collection explores the drivers for the widespread adoption of renewable energy around the GCC, the need for renewable energy and the policy-economic factors that can create success. https://www.routledge.com/The-Economics-of-Renewable-Energy-in-the-Gulf-1st-Edition/Akhonbay/p/book/9781138351905 Contributors: Ghada Abdulla, Hisham Akhonbay, Abdullah Al-Badi, Walid Ali, Odeh Al-Jayyousi, Imtenan Al-Mubarak, Maha Alsabbagh, Omar Al-Ubaydli, Moiz Bohra, Sylvain Cote, Nasreddine El-Dehaibi, Amro Elshurafa, Bassam Fattouh, Stephen Gitonga, Steve Griffiths, Marwan Khraisheh, Walid Matar, Daniah Orkoubi, Rahmatallah Poudineh, Shreekar Pradhan, Antonio Sanfilippo, Anupama Sen, Marilyn Smith, David Wogan, Lama Yaseen, Karen Young.    

17th October 2018
Policy Options for Reducing Water for Agriculture in Saudi Arabia

Policy Options for Reducing Water for Agriculture in Saudi Arabia

As populations and economies grow, a megatrend that will increasingly affect both developed and emerging economies is the policy trade-off between managing water resources and achieving food security objectives. This policy trade-off is very relevant in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which represent some of the most water scarce regions of the world and are also intent on achieving food security through domestic agriculture production. We offer a case study on the policy options for reducing water consumption while maintaining food security and farmer welfare in the GCC’s largest country, Saudi Arabia. Specifically, we explore how crop substitution can reduce aggregate water use without compromising the current level of food security or farmer welfare. Additionally, we assess the potential social implications of crop substitution options in order to better understand the political feasibility of various policy choices. The results suggest that if water usage is to be minimised while maintaining food production and farmer welfare, then the primary candidates for reduction are crops or livestock with large water intensity and low revenue and/or low production. Eliminating these types of crops would yield higher water savings than moderate reductions across a large portfolio of crops at the lowest political cost. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-10-6695-5_12

23rd January 2018
Policy Options for Reducing Water for Agriculture in Saudi Arabia

Policy Options for Reducing Water for Agriculture in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia relies almost exclusively on aquifers and desalination to provide its water. Roughly 87 percent of these water extractions are used for agriculture, and so any policy to improve the sustainability of water resources cannot ignore this agriculture dimension.

5th March 2016
Multidimensional Bargaining Using KTAB

Multidimensional Bargaining Using KTAB

This paper (Multidimensional KTAB) is a technical discussion paper designed as a follow on to An Introduction to the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis using one-dimensional spatial models (Unidimensional KTAB). It extends the original framework of KTAB to explain the analysis described in the recently released KAPSARC discussion paper Reforming the Role of State-Owned Enterprise in China’s Energy Sector: An Analysis of Collective DecisionMaking Processes Using the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (Chinese SOE Reform).

24th December 2015
Reforming the Role of State-Owned Enterprise in China’s Energy Sector: An Analysis of Collective Decision-Making Processes Using the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB)

Reforming the Role of State-Owned Enterprise in China’s Energy Sector: An Analysis of Collective Decision-Making Processes Using the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB)

What are the prospects for reform of the Chinese energy sector? This question is the subject of much debate both inside and outside China. Since coming to power in November 2012, China’s new government has issued a series of statements on reform, clearly an important part of the country’s continuing ‘great revival’. Despite this, some experts have been unconvinced by the pace of economic reform. What reform means for the energy sector is even less clear. There are competing views on how, and to what extent, the energy sector and energy policy will be reformed, but they all share various potential biases resulting from incomplete data and “not knowing what we don’t know”.

6th July 2015
An Introduction to the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB)

An Introduction to the KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB)

The KAPSARC Toolkit for Behavioral Analysis (KTAB) is freely available, state-of-the-art software that has been designed to enable the rigorous and systematic analysis of collective decision-making processes (CDMPs). KTAB is being designed with three types of users in mind. The program code is available directly for computer programmers. Power users will be able to construct their own specific models based on the existing structure, and applied users will be able to access pre-built models through a simple graphical user interface. Collective decision-making processes are those in which a group of individual actors interact to arrive at a single decision. Common examples include the deliberations of corporate boards. These processes have usually been studied in a purely qualitative fashion, but there is a growing body of evidence which suggests that computer models can deliver additional insights. KTAB is being designed to unlock these additional insights for a broader range of analysts, but its release is also hoped to extend the awareness of computer models as a route to the investigation of CDMPs, and to prompt a wider acceptance and uptake of a quantitative approach to such analyses.

7th May 2015
Efficiency in Motion: The Potential of the Newly Launched Bus System in Riyadh

Efficiency in Motion: The Potential of the Newly Launched Bus System in Riyadh

Public transportation is an essential component of a functional, well-planned transportation system. It provides a cost-effective, convenient mode of commuting within a city, especially in densely populated cities such as Riyadh. Riyadh, which has the highest level of traffic congestion in Saudi Arabia, experiences an approximately 86% increase in commute time during peak hours on weekdays (Riyadh Traffic Report 2022). The introduction of a large-scale public transport system offers an opportunity to reduce traffic congestion, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions (Chen, Chen, and Wang 2021). Additionally, such a system plays a crucial role in connecting people to employment, education, healthcare and other essential services, promoting social equity and economic development.

10th March 2024
Urban Transportation Challenges in Saudi Arabia: Micromobility as a Solution to First and Last Mile

Urban Transportation Challenges in Saudi Arabia: Micromobility as a Solution to First and Last Mile

The transportation sector plays a significant role in global carbon emissions and environmental challenges. On a worldwide scale, the aggregate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions attributed to transportation amount to approximately 14.3% of total emissions. Notably, road transport emissions made a substantial contribution, comprising 12.6% of overall transport emissions in 2019.

24th December 2023
The Race to Offset Emissions from Airlines— How Is It Developing?

The Race to Offset Emissions from Airlines— How Is It Developing?

As a sector, aviation accounts for an estimated 2% of global energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, with the International Energy Agency (IEA) indicating that the growth in aviation in the last decade has been faster than that of roads, rail, or shipping. The pandemic has provided a unique situation in which the airline industry was brought to a halt due to pandemic measures restricting mobility.

3rd September 2023

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