Although the massive 3,300,000 sq m King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh will feature a variety of “green” initiatives, this is definitely sustainable architecture Saudi style. We applaud any individual or organization that seeks to green up their portfolio, and Saudi Arabia is no exception. Really, it’s difficult to blame the Kingdom’s residents for striking […]
Jerusalem belches out its untreated waste to area of beauty, holy sites Mohammed Nakhal is normally a calm man, but he’s seething now. The stench of raw sewage is overpowering. It is rushing by, down the biblical Kidron Valley through the Judean Desert toward the Dead Sea where even you know what floats. Nakhal, an […]
Green Prophet visits a kibbutz going green, after a destructive wildfire. They’re planting oaks and hardwood to resist the next fire. The 2010 Carmel Forest wildfires said to have been the worst such fires in Israel’s history, not only burnt down more than 3,036 hectares (7,500 acres) of forest and brush land and killed 44 […]
Find out what it takes to build your home and neighborhood, and then find out about the latest developments in earth architecture. Which is better? You be the judge. Most people agree that having shelter is one of the most fundamental human needs, but for more privileged communities around the globe, a basic necessity has […]
Jørn Utzon spent time in Morocco, where he admired the traditional architecture. The Kasbah du Toubkal south of Marrakech is a sterling example of the design and materials commonly used. In the late 1940’s, long before he experienced the honor of seeing a building he designed named a UNESCO world heritage site, Jørn Utzon traveled […]
A fusion of traditional Islamic architecture and modern sustainable design, Gaza’s new green schools will cost the same to build as their less-sustainable counterparts. We recently reported that Gaza is slated to receive not one but 20 zero-energy eco-schools, and now we have a better sense of what they will look like thanks to a […]
Radionika Arhitekture from Croatia won an international design competition to design Instanbul’s Disaster Prevention and Education Center, which is hoped to create more public awareness about earthquakes in particular. In the last two months, two large earthquakes in Turkey claimed a total of 670 lives – deaths that might have been prevented with better disaster […]
In time, students living in Gaza Strip will no longer be vulnerable to the politics du jour. In an unprecedented move, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has unveiled plans to build as many as 20 zero-emissions schools throughout the Gaza Strip, which will rely entirely on renewables for their energy supply. The agency […]
Saudi is pulling out the pom poms to protect OPEC oil-producing nations from losing money as climate change negotiations start at the COP 17 circus in Durban. It’s that time of year again, when delegations suit up for the circus that has come to typify the United Nations Climate Change Conferences. Rich, polluting countries unwilling to […]
Dutch designer once planned for outer space, but this closer to home Hydropolis never got off the ground in Dubai. There have been some pretty crazy Real Estate projects built in the United Arab Emirates, like the world’s tallest building the Burj Dubai. Most of the hair-brained construction projects over there are unsustainable – Burj […]
Join a design contest and network with Jordan’s LEED-minded professionals. Sometimes a simple link with like-minded souls can jump-start connection to fascinating places. As an American architect with a strong environmental bent, recently relocated from Dublin to Amman, it’s taking some time to find my professional sea-legs in Jordan. Idle Google-ing, fueled by cups of […]
Inspired by the Arab Spring this past summer, Israelis from a rainbow of different ethnicities, political leanings and backgrounds banded together to form a protest movement unlike any in recent history. Their tent cities influenced the Occupy Movement in the world. As the Arab spring spawned protests by the disenchanted across the Middle East, Israelis […]
This Israeli mall, Ir Yamim includes a round tank in foreground for rain or AC runoff water Mid East Green building projects like those in Abu Dhabi’s much publicized Masdar City, green building construction plans for Saudi Arabia, and a newly completed green building in Amman Jordan are indications that a number of countries in […]
We interview urban designer Wassim Melki who envisions a sustainable future for Beirut’s skyline. Beirut is almost completely bereft of public green spaces. Satellite images show expanses of grey apartment and office blocks and a depressing lack of trees or any other kind of greenery. But architect and urban designer Wassim Melki has a plan […]
While many architects look to concrete as a cheap building material, Guilhem Eustache chose natural materials used by local Berbers for hundreds of years. Looks good, don’t you think? Morocco is a magical country full of exotic scents, argan oil, eco-Kasbahs, and challenging mountain trails, but capturing this essence in a building is no easy […]