Nada El Shanawany and Nabat Are Restoring Nature, One Ecosystem at a Time

Growing up in Egypt, Nada El Shanawany developed a deep love for nature, spending countless hours exploring the Red Sea and marveling at its vibrant marine life.

As a child, she never imagined that her passion for the environment could translate into a career. Eventually, this deep-rooted fascination led her to study marine biology and later forge a career dedicated to ecosystem restoration.

Her journey began in environmental consultancy, where she spent years advising developers and construction companies on mitigating the ecological impact of urbanization. She worked to ensure that growth didn’t come at the expense of nature, helping industries find solutions that allowed development and biodiversity to co-exist.

Today, as the Operations Manager at Nabat, an Abu Dhabi-based climate tech company, Nada focuses on spearheading holistic strategies for mangrove restoration through precise environment mapping, seeding, and monitoring. Her focus is ensuring that Nabat’s conservation efforts are tailored to each ecosystem’s complex needs.

“We’re not just planting trees or restoring mangroves, we’re rebuilding entire ecosystems,” she explains. “From soil health to biodiversity and water quality, every element must be considered to create a thriving habitat.”

Nada coordinates with scientists and policymakers and develops plans to maximize ecological impact. Her work involves designing restoration frameworks, analyzing environmental data, and securing partnerships with stakeholders to drive conservation initiatives forward.

She believes that true restoration starts with understanding the root causes of degradation.

“If we intervene without knowing why an ecosystem has collapsed, we risk repeating the same mistakes,” she says. By analyzing environmental stressors and historical land use patterns, her team crafts long-term solutions that break cycles of destruction and foster lasting resilience.

Nada is also a strong supporter of seeing ecological restoration beyond species-specific conservation. She emphasizes that true restoration efforts must account for entire ecosystems, integrating economic, social, and environmental benefits.

“It’s not just about carbon abatement,” she explains. “These benefits extend to economic gains, improved biodiversity, and natural defenses against coastal erosion. Ecosystems are complex, and you can’t simply look at one aspect.”

She also points to the essential role of technology in scaling Nabat’s restoration efforts.

“Ecology and tech are threads of the same fabric—technology drives large-scale ecological solutions, while nature’s brilliance sparks tech innovation. From microscopes revealing hidden organisms and fundamental life cycles to AI and drones now restoring ecosystems, and from fly-inspired helicopters to the mangrove’s natural salt filtration process inspiring the design of desalination plants, the two evolve in tandem.”

The company’s multi-sensor, AI-powered drones and radar help survey habitats and monitor growth, while customized seeding drones focus on targeting planting in areas that need it most. Nabat’s technology is powered by experts at the Technology Innovation Institute.

Nada’s passion for ecosystem restoration extends beyond her professional mission. She frequently participates in fieldwork, immersing herself in the landscapes she strives to protect. Whether diving into coral reef restoration projects or collaborating with local communities on sustainable land use practices, Nada remains deeply connected to nature.

“Restoring biodiversity has a positive impact on climate change, so it’s a very dear topic to my heart,” she says. “It impacts my life, my family’s life, and future generations.”