Before now, the environment has been glaringly absent from Egypt’s political agenda, but our friends over at Almasry Alyoum have compiled a fantastic list of would-be parliamentarians who seek to change that.
Until now, the environment has never been on Egypt’s political agenda, but today’s parliamentary elections – albeit fraught with undue complexity and fears of corruption – could usher in a new era of nature representation. Almasry Alyoum environmental journalist Hoda Baraka (whose images of Siwa inspired the antidote to bigger, better, more) has sent us an excellent roundup of the different parties and individuals with a green platform who will seek election to Egypt’s parliament today. Hit the jump for a quick look at what kinds of issues are on the table and the people who are raising them.
Following is a bulleted list taken from Hoda’s post at Almasry Alyoum. Please visit them for a more detailed analysis.
PARTIES:
The Green Party of Egypt:
- Founded in 1990
- 3,000 members
- 3 candidates out of 22 will run
- Priorities include water conservation, renewable energy, scientific research, green education.
Freedom Egypt Party (Misr Al-Hurriya):
- Formed in May 2011
- A liberal platform that promotes social justice and equality
- Prepared 5 major policy papers outlining their long-term environmental program
- Priorities include: sustainable water management, agriculture and food security, sustainable consumption, waste management, and habitat loss reduction
The Nour Party:
- A salafist party.
- One of 14 Islamist parties
- Part of the Islamist Alliance
- Priorities include: water pollution – including from illegal pesticide use – and subsequent disease, industry cleanup, alternative energy, and promotion of scientific research.
Magy Mahrous:
- Running in Cairo’s Ninth District
- A member of the Social Democratic Party
- The SDP is part of a liberal coalition called the Egyptian Bloc
- Priorities include: water use, air pollution, renewable energy. She is also proposing to restructure the Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs so that it becomes more effective.
Mahmoud Salem:
- A member of the Free Egyptians Party
- Also part of the Egyptian Bloc
- Expresses concern about the survival of homo sapiens
- Priorities include: sustainable agriculture, clean energy, and health.
Gameela Ismail:
- Running in Cairo’s sixth district
- A member of the Tomorrow Party
- Believes that happiness is crucial to Egypt’s overall health.
- Priorities include: urban planning, the creation of more green spaces, and the eradication of concrete buildings along the Nile.
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
