To continue feeding its addiction to Iranian oil, Turkey exported eight times as much gold to Iran in the first five months of 2012 versus 2011. In March, the United States and the European Union imposed sanctions on Iran in response to its uranium enrichment program. Later that month, Iran was cut off from […]
On his first visit to Ethiopia as President of Egypt, Mohamed Morsi stressed his country’s desire to peacefully negotiate with other Nile Basin countries regarding a longstanding dispute over Nile River water rights. That Morsi visited Addis Ababa at such an early stage of his presidential term reflects his determination to maintain Egypt’s annual share […]
Gas is 15 cents a liter (60 cents a gallon) in Saudi Arabia: the government is fighting to keep both high standard of living and long-term energy security Saudi Arabia has been aggressively looking for anything and everything that can provide energy. Whether it is to maintain its status as the largest exporter of crude […]
Like Egypt, Israel, and the Palestinian territories, Lebanon has been slammed with energy shortages this summer. In some parts of the country, outside of Beirut, people are often without power for twelve hours a day. These cuts have inflamed the local populace, sometimes resulting in tire-burning protests that further degrade the environment. But help may be […]
Japan is seeking Israeli clean tech experts to help rebuild Fukushima, which was devastated by both an earthquake and a tsunami last year. The Japanese company in charge of rehabilitation recently sent a delegation to Israel looking for experts and entrepreneurs, especially in the fields of water management and recycling. According to the company’s liaison […]
Israeli settlements and restrictions on water and land are jeopardizing the possibility of peace – UK charity Oxfam says I have written in the past about the messy and controversial place where politics and the environment meets– especially between Israel and Palestine. However, it’s hard to ignore the political and ecological implications of the Israeli […]
Israel’s Heliofocus caught Canada’s attention Last week Canadian Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver came to Israel and met with numerous Israeli leaders of clean-tech and environmental policy, including Uzi Landau, Israel’s Energy and Water Minister, Shalom Simhon, Israel’s Industry, Trade and Labor Minister; representatives from the solar company HelioFocus and researchers at the Technion- Israel […]
A relief to the environment as Israel allots money to upgrade poorly services sewers in Arab towns. Last Wednesday, Israeli Energy and Water Resources Minister Uzi Landau announced the government is allocating NIS 355 million to improve the sewerage systems in Arab neighborhoods across Israel. In recent years, the neglected and dilapidated sewer infrastructures in […]
The Dan Region Wastewater Treatment Plant, known in Israel as Shafdan, is among the thirty projects from around the world chosen by the UN as global role models for how local authorities can deal with environmental problems.
Libya is one of the countries with which Turkey signed a rapid oil supply deal after the United States threatened to sanction countries that purchased oil from Iran. In March, U.S. President Barack Obama approved sanctions on buyers of Iranian crude oil, effective starting in July. The announcement threw many of Iran’s international customers into […]
“Can I talk to you?” a man named Hashim asked as I stooped to take photographs of government workers cleaning up last night’s party mess. Revelers marching through Tahrir Square, surrounding streets and the 6th of October Bridge cheered and set off giant firecrackers well into the early hours of the morning following the announcement […]
On Tuesday thousands of Turkish women and activists sent government ministries a petition protesting the bill proposed by the conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP) that would ban abortions not taking place between the fourth and sixth week of pregnancy. Turkish law currently allows abortion until the tenth week. With dwindling environmental resources and rampant […]
After SodaStream erected a cage full of Coke’s trademark trash in South Africa’s OR Tambo International Airport, the 20th such installation built around the world as part of the Israeli company’s marketing campaign, the powerful soda giant pulled out the big guns and hired litigation lawyers Adams & Adams to demand its removal. Coke’s lawyers […]
Renewing Africa’s Energy Future is the theme of an International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) side-event scheduled to take place today at the Rio +20 conference underway in Brazil. Co-hosted by the government of Mozambique, this high-level meeting aims to spark a renewable energy revolution throughout the African continent, which supports 15% of the world’s population […]
Racism in Lebanon has rarely been an openly discussed theme in the media. Now racism and migrant abuse are garnering visibility. Racial intolerance in Lebanon and the Middle East, is indeed a pervasive problem which especially affects migrant domestic workers and refugees. In Lebanon, manifestations of racism and human right abuses are unfortunately prevalent and […]