Fatima Al-Zahra

Saudi Arabian environmental advocate driving renewable energy adoption in the Middle East

Fatima Al-Zahra is a groundbreaking Saudi Arabian environmental scientist and activist whose work has significantly impacted renewable energy policies in the Gulf region. Born in 1992, she pioneered the first community solar initiative in Riyadh through her nonprofit Solar Change, which now powers over 15,000 homes. Her 2022 TEDx talk "Sunrise Over the Desert" has been viewed 2.3 million times.

Al-Zahra's 2023 breakthrough came with the creation of the Gulf Renewable Energy Consortium, connecting 8 Middle Eastern countries in shared solar projects. Her team's 2024 report "Desert to Watts: Scaling Solar in Arid Regions" is required reading at MIT's energy program. She's currently advising UAE's 2030 energy strategy while launching wind turbine projects in Yemen.