Comet-ME co-founder Elad Orian gets a supportive handshake from Bill Clinton.
It is indeed exciting to report on mammoth solar projects, gigantic desalination plants and world-embracing electric car developments, but the Green Prophet – in the spirit of the biblical prophets one might say – also takes special pleasure in sharing news about individuals and communities that are working to make the world better one small step at a time. Comet-ME (Middle East), an Israeli-Palestinian partnership working to bring renewable energy (solar and wind power) to impoverished Palestinians in the southern Hebron hills, is one of these compelling projects.
In its December newsletter, Comet (an acronym for Community Energy Technology) describes its latest two projects: a 1 KW solar system and 1KW wind turbine in the community of Wadi Gkheish, an isolated community of 50 people located south of the Jewish settlement of Susiya; and a 1.6 KW solar system in Beer al-Eid, a community of four families. Comet has now completed a total of 11 installations, providing 100 KW daily to 1,000 people.
In the newsletter, Comet’s co-founder Elad Orian also shares some of his impressions from the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative in September. The meeting took place in New York City – quite a different setting than Comet’s area of activity in the West Bank. Orian: “Probably most important for us was getting to meet and talk to various other groups around the world doing renewable rural electrification, which was very interesting and humbling, seeing all these people who have been working on the issues for much longer. We do hope to form some long term partnerships to share knowledge and maybe implement joint projects.”
:: Comet-ME
Read more on Green Prophet about Comet-ME:
A Solar-Powered Comet Lights Palestinian Villages
Interview With Elad Orian: Building Wind and Solar Energy for Palestinians With Comet
Sustainable Energy Non Profit, Comet-ME, is a Finalist in the BBC World Challenge
Author: Ira Moskowitz
When his kids were small, Ira would point to litter on the ground and tell them: “That makes me angry!” He still gets angry about pollution, waste and abusive treatment of our world, but is encouraged by the growing awareness of environmental issues and has been following the latest developments in cleantech with great interest. Ira grew up in the green hills of western Massachusetts and moved to Israel in the early 1980s after completing an MA in Middle Eastern Studies. He has worked as a software developer and journalist, and translates works of Hebrew fiction and non-fiction to English. Ira is trying to age gracefully, but refuses to surrender his youthful belief in the potential for change, including a collaborative future for the peoples of the Middle East. To contact Ira, email ira (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
Comments are closed.