Cities

Radioactive Church in Tokyo Dangerous as Chernobyl Dead Zone

Praying in a Tokyo church could expose you to radiation levels higher than Chernobyl dead zones. In the same manner that Japanese authorities failed to...

Upcycling soup cans into forts and shelter

We are big fans of reusing perfectly good materials like waste glass, which can be turned into beautiful glasses, and this incredible pavilion in...

Bezalel, Israel’s Art Academy, Shops Imported for Local Architecture

A starchitect from Japan? As Israel's oldest and leading arts academy, shouldn't Bezalel be a locavore when it comes to hiring architects? The Bezalel Academy...

Masdar Opens First Baseload Solar in Spain – Gemasolar

Now Masdar builds solar with a 75% capacity factor, almost as much as nuclear Masdar, the holistic and progressive renewable energy company from the...

A Thousand Student Scouts Clean Jeddah Shores

Jeddah's beaches have notoriously been used as a local sewage dump. But almost a thousand patriotic students swept the corniche clean for Saudi Arabia's National Day to stand by keeping the country litter-free.

Desertec Plans Get Boosts from MENA and EU Renewable Policies

For both the interim Mediterranean Solar Plan and Desertec, the creation of renewable policy and renewable job skills development in both the potential energy-supplying countries...

Foster + Partners Seek LEED Gold for Kuwait’s New Solar-Powered Airport

When complete, Kuwait's massive solar-powered airport will be the world's first LEED Gold passenger terminal. Regardless of whether we believe that Foster + Partners' numerous...

Which Solar Technologies Will Have the Most Investment Appeal?

Government policies in the US and Spain jumpstarted CSP - what will happen now its over? In the last few years, according to Logan Goldie-Scot,...

Next for MENA Nations: Desertec University

University degrees in renewable energy are among the practical first steps towards realizing the visionary desertec program. A new university degree program is being funded...

UN: Urban Trees Needed Everywhere

Tighten your city's green belt on World Habitat Day: Plant trees everywhere, in cities all over the Middle East. When we think of treehuggers, and...

Greenstone Revolutionizes Lebanese Building Industry One Green-Roof Villa at a Time

This may look like an ordinary villa on a hill, but it's not. This villa is part of a growing movement in Lebanon that...

Jerusalem’s Bus Station – A Pollution Death Trap for Workers and Shoppers

Shop till you "drop" at the Jerusalem bus station. Working in a congested bus station, especially one like Jerusalem's Central Bus Station is not...

King Abdullah Gives Saudi Women the Right to Vote – Just to Battle EthicalOil.org

Saudi King Abdullah announced on Sunday that he was giving women the right to vote and run in municipal elections. What a coincidence. One week after it seemed that Canadian oil was going to beat the Saudis to the gigantic American market by making an inane comparison between the relative ethicality of the two fossil fuel purveyors, since Saudi women can't vote, King Abdullah has given Saudi women the right to vote. Suddenly now, dirty energy lobbying group EthicalOil doesn't have a marketing leg to stand on.

Ormat Gets DOE “Solyndra” Loan Before Tea Party Shuts Down Program

Three geothermal projects totaling 113 MW from Israel's geothermal giant Ormat got approvals just in time to get US government support under the Recovery Act Section 1705 loan guarantee this week. Nevada has some of the best geothermal potential among the US states, but has barely begun to develop it: the 113 MW will increase Nevada's geothermal power production by nearly 25%. Under the same program as Solyndra if Ormat Nevada Inc could line up an investor with up private financing by September 30th, under Section 1705, the US Department of Energy would provide a US government guarantee to back the loan in the unlikely event that Ormat was not able to repay its investors. However the loan guarantee has been anathema to the party that now controls the US congress (Utility-Scale Renewable Projects Become a Casualty of Republican Hostage-Taking) and will end this week.

No, Canada – There is No Ethical Oil

Lobbying group EthicalOil.org is challenging Saudi Oil on the basis of women's rights. A Canadian lobbying group is claiming that Canada's oil is somehow more...

Hot this week

Bricks and Minifigs, and the Future of Circular Play

A second-hand LEGO marketplace keeps plastic bricks circulating for years instead of ending up forgotten in basements or discarded in landfills. It gives children access to building materials at lower prices. It extends the lifespan of a product that was originally designed to last generations.

HelloFresh’s pride prepping ad raises a bigger question: we are we still outsourcing dinner?

The backlash against HelloFresh's Pride Month marketing campaign has sparked a wider conversation about food, labor, sustainability, and whether consumers should reconnect with local farmers, butchers, and home gardens instead of relying on subscription meal kits.

Regenerative Wool or Greenwashing? Zentera Responds to Critics

Zentera responds to questions about ZQ wool, animal welfare, regenerative farming, ethical fashion and the fallout from PETA's New Zealand investigation.

The Ocean’s Hidden ‘Dark Web’ Is Being Fished Before Scientists Understand It

Deep below the ocean's surface, in a dimly lit region known as the twilight zone, millions of fish are being caught every year. Scientists say the consequences are largely unknown.

Barnacle glue could fix coral reefs, inspire new advances in building and medicine

Aalto University researchers create a protein-based adhesive inspired by barnacles and mussels that works underwater and could aid coral reef restoration.

Topics

Bricks and Minifigs, and the Future of Circular Play

A second-hand LEGO marketplace keeps plastic bricks circulating for years instead of ending up forgotten in basements or discarded in landfills. It gives children access to building materials at lower prices. It extends the lifespan of a product that was originally designed to last generations.

HelloFresh’s pride prepping ad raises a bigger question: we are we still outsourcing dinner?

The backlash against HelloFresh's Pride Month marketing campaign has sparked a wider conversation about food, labor, sustainability, and whether consumers should reconnect with local farmers, butchers, and home gardens instead of relying on subscription meal kits.

Regenerative Wool or Greenwashing? Zentera Responds to Critics

Zentera responds to questions about ZQ wool, animal welfare, regenerative farming, ethical fashion and the fallout from PETA's New Zealand investigation.

The Ocean’s Hidden ‘Dark Web’ Is Being Fished Before Scientists Understand It

Deep below the ocean's surface, in a dimly lit region known as the twilight zone, millions of fish are being caught every year. Scientists say the consequences are largely unknown.

Barnacle glue could fix coral reefs, inspire new advances in building and medicine

Aalto University researchers create a protein-based adhesive inspired by barnacles and mussels that works underwater and could aid coral reef restoration.

Jaakko Torvinen finds that the next green building revolution is misfit trees

Crooked, forked and curved trees are often treated as second-class timber. They are considered less valuable, and not suitable for load bearing walls or support systems in building. If a tree trunk is not straight enough to become a saw log, it is frequently diverted into pulp production or burned for energy. Now, new research from Aalto University could help change that.

Black fathers live longer than non-fathers, new study

Researchers found that fatherhood was associated with lower rates of early death among Black men, while early fatherhood was linked to poorer long-term health outcomes.

Dan Zaslavsky’s energy tower dream is rising again in Iran and China

The Energy Tower idea never made the leap from drawings and engineering studies to full-scale construction. But nearly two decades after most people stopped talking about it, the concept is quietly evolving in two unexpected places: China and Iran. The concept let dreamers dream and doers do - figuring out more pleasing designs and engineering.
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