🗺️ Roadmap
30-Day Study Plan
A structured, day-by-day path from current state to interview-ready. Hour-paced for someone with a full-time role — total commitment ~1-2 hours/weekday + a deeper Saturday block.
Daily commitment
1–2h
Saturday deep dive
3–4h
Total time
~50h
How to use this plan
Each day has 1-2 deliverables. Don't skip the Saturday deep-dives — they're where the connections form. By Day 30 you should be able to handle every question on the Interview Prep page without looking at the answer.
Week 1 — ESG Frameworks Foundation
Days 1–7
Day 1 · Mon
Read the dashboard + bookmark the gotchas. Skim every page. Note the 10 things to memorise. Then read ESG Frameworks § Materiality cold. Write the GRI vs ISSB vs CSRD answer in your own words from memory.
Day 2 · Tue
GRI Standards deep dive. Memorise the 3 Universal + 4 active Sector standards. Write the 5-step materiality assessment from memory.
Day 3 · Wed
SASB + TCFD legacy. Memorise TCFD's 4 pillars + 11 disclosures. Practice saying "TCFD-aligned via IFRS S2".
Day 4 · Thu
ISSB IFRS S1 + S2. Jurisdictional adoption table cold. Q&A 3, 4 from Interview Prep without the answer.
Day 5 · Fri
CSRD + ESRS + Omnibus April 2025 changes. Remember: Wave 2 FY2027 (not FY2025). UAE companies in scope: DP World, ENBD, Aldar.
Day 6 · Sat (deep)
3-hour deep dive: read CDP + UN SDGs sections; download a real CDP A-list response (Microsoft or Unilever) and read 20 pages. Then run all 10 ESG framework Q&As cold without looking.
Day 7 · Sun (rest)
Light review only. Open the Glossary; flashcard mode A→E.
Week 2 — Carbon Accounting Core
Days 8–14
Day 8 · Mon
GHG Protocol suite. Scope 1 sector examples (O&G, real estate, FS) from memory.
Day 9 · Tue
Scope 2 location vs market — the most-tested concept. Memorise UAE grid factor 0.42, all 8 quality criteria for I-RECs.
Day 10 · Wed
All 15 Scope 3 categories cold. Know which is biggest for O&G (Cat 11), banks (Cat 15), real estate (Cat 1+13).
Day 11 · Thu
Emission factors hierarchy + AR6 GWPs. CH4 fossil = 27.9. Practice base year recalculation answer.
Day 12 · Fri
PCAF — 7 asset classes, 1-5 data quality, 33% facilitated emissions. Sign up for Persefoni Academy free Climate Fundamentals cert.
Day 13 · Sat (deep)
4-hour deep dive: SBTi — 42% by 2030, Corporate Net-Zero Standard, FLAG, why upstream O&G is paused. Then download GHG Protocol Stationary Combustion Excel tool, work through a UAE refinery example.
Day 14 · Sun (rest)
Run Q11–Q20 Carbon Accounting Q&As cold. Glossary F→M flashcards.
Week 3 — UAE Regulations + Companies
Days 15–21
Day 15 · Mon
Federal Decree-Law 11 of 2024 + Cabinet Resolution 67. Penalties cold. Enforcement date: 30 May 2025.
Day 16 · Tue
UAE Net Zero 2050 + updated NDC. SCA disclosure rules — there's no threshold. Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge.
Day 17 · Wed
Estidama Pearl + Al Sa'fat + LEED in UAE. Know what triggers each. ADGM FSRA + DIFC DFSA sustainable finance.
Day 18 · Thu
Companies: ADNOC, Masdar, TAQA. Net Zero dates, who leads, flagship projects. Tailor profiles to roles you target.
Day 19 · Fri
Companies: EWEC, DEWA, Aldar, Mubadala, ADQ, MAF. CBUAE Climate Risk Principles + ICAAP integration.
Day 20 · Sat (deep)
3-hour deep dive: read the actual Decree-Law 11/2024 PDF on MOCCAE. Read the latest Aldar Sustainability Report (IFRS S2). Skim Masdar's most recent green-bond prospectus. Goal: real artefacts in your head.
Day 21 · Sun (rest)
Run Q21–Q28 UAE Regulation Q&As cold.
Week 4 — Energy + CCUS + Software
Days 22–30
Day 22 · Mon
UAE energy mix cold: 38–40 GW, 62% gas, Barakah 5.6 GW, solar 6.5 GW. 2030/2050 targets.
Day 23 · Tue
Solar tariffs cold: Al Dhafra $13.20, Khazna $12.88, MBR Ph6 $16.20. IPP procurement process at EWEC.
Day 24 · Wed
District cooling — IPLV, Empower 1.7 m RT, Tabreed 1.4 m RT. Etihad ESCO model.
Day 25 · Thu
Al Reyadah chain end-to-end. ADNOC's 10 Mt/yr by 2030. Habshan COD 2026.
Day 26 · Fri
Capture technologies (post-combustion / pre-combustion / industrial / DAC / mineralisation). Cost stacks $/tCO2.
Day 27 · Sat (deep)
4-hour deep dive — software setup: install IES VE home-use license, sign up for One Click LCA Academy (free badge), download openLCA + free ELCD database. Build a simple Dubai office model in IES VE. Free Persefoni Academy cert if not done yet.
Day 28 · Sun
Hydrogen strategy cold: 1.4 Mt by 2031, 15 Mt by 2050. Blue/green/pink colours. Fertiglobe / Ta'ZIZ / Khalifa Port.
Day 29 · Mon
Mock interview day. Pick 10 random Q&As across all categories. Time yourself — 2 min per answer. Record on phone, listen back, fix weak transitions.
Day 30 · Tue
Final dry run. All 40 Q&As. Glossary cold. Top-10 numbers cold. Sleep early.
Beyond Day 30 — strategic upskilling
If you have more than 30 days, layer these in:
Certs worth paying for (USD 100–250 each)
- LEED Green Associate — USD 200 (entry credential UAE recruiters look for)
- Microsoft PL-300 (Power BI Data Analyst) — USD 165
- Microsoft MS-080 (Sustainability Specialty) — USD 165
- Excel Expert MO-201 — USD 100
Free certs to add to LinkedIn
- Persefoni Academy — Climate Fundamentals
- One Click LCA — Carbon Expert
- Salesforce Trailhead — Net Zero Cloud trailmix
- Microsoft Learn — Sustainability paths
- Workiva University — Carbon and ESG Reporting
- openSAP — Sustainability with SAP
- Kaggle Learn — pandas + Data Visualization
- UN CC:Learn climate courses
Higher-ROI paid programs
- GRI Certified Sustainability Professional — ~USD 1.4k
- PQP (Pearl Qualified Professional) — ~AED 4-6k local UAE training (essential for AD-track)
- Mostadam Professional — KSA-facing roles
Portfolio plays (free, self-led)
- Build a UAE energy mix dashboard in Power BI / Python from DEWA/EWEC public data
- Run a Scope 2 inventory for a fictional Dubai SME in Excel + show market-based vs location-based
- Whole-building LCA in One Click LCA for a Dubai office case study
- Push to GitHub or PDF portfolio — link from LinkedIn
After 30 days you should be able to
- Answer any of the 40 Q&As cold without looking
- Quote 30+ specific numbers (capacities, tariffs, dates, penalties)
- Walk through any UAE flagship project (Al Reyadah, Khazna, Habshan, Hail/Ghasha)
- Tailor every answer to the company you're interviewing with
- Have at least 2 free certs on LinkedIn (Persefoni + One Click LCA)
- Have hands-on time in IES VE + openLCA