Set a reminder to set back your clocks this weekend, as we welcome back (for the hundredth time) Daylight Savings Time. This biannual tradition, established in 1918 America, sees much of the world get robbed of an hour sleep as clocks spring forward at 1 AM on Sunday, all to give us an extra hour […]
OK, so we know quite a bit about Israel; start-up capital of the universe; uber-friendly to vegans; and offering a portfolio of natural and historical wonders that could take a lifetime to fully explore. Here are a few more interesting facts about the Holy Land that you can impress your friends with: 1. An Israeli […]
Plans were announced today for the new Deira Mall in Dubai, which will be the largest in terms of leasable space in the entire United Arab Emirates (UAE). Development of the largest mall in the Middle East presents a blank canvas on which the developers could paint a green masterpiece, but there is not a […]
A new report published by Siemens predicts that the share of renewables in the Middle East energy mix will triple over the next 17 years. That’s the good news. The bad news is that natural gas will remain the dominant power source in the region.
The move towards carrying out business online has seen many companies all over the world change their way of working in recent years. Among the advantages of doing this is the fact that online business is often kinder to the planet. There are a number of good reasons for believing that making this switch could […]
Coincidental with millions of Americans mummifying their leftover Thanksgiving turkey in cling film, a new study by researchers from Israel’s Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) says treated excrement from turkeys and chickens can provide an alternative source of energy when converted into combustible solid biomass fuel. Poultry poop biomass fuel can also reduce greenhouse […]
It would seem everyone, except the US President, is firmly behind trying to reduce the world’s carbon footprint. Two of the planet’s largest suppliers of fossil fuel have recently announced big investment plans for the use of solar power in their respective countries. In Dubai: According to the Bloomberg news service, Dubai is planning to […]
The idea that Brits love their tea is proving to be full of beans. The average Londoner drinks 2.3 cups of coffee a day, and the resultant spent coffee grounds end up in landfills which damage the environment, and – given the British landfill tax – is a costly means of waste disposal. Now those grinds […]
On a recent screening of CNN commentator Fareed Zakaria’s GPS commentary show he asked why China’s progressive renewal energy policies is taking that country into the 21st Century; while the USA’s current energy policies is retreating it back into the 19th. The GPS program pointed out China’s advances in the field of renewable energy, particularly solar and wind energy […]
Solar powered flight has been in the news ever since the sun powered Solar Impulse 2, piloted by Swiss adventurer Bertrand Picard and his associate Andre Borschberg, flew around the world in 2015 to 16. This flight, relying solely on wing mounted solar panels, took over a year to complete before finally landing in Abu Dhabi in […]
From the dawn of time, humans have needed light. The sun and fire were our first necessities for being able to scavenge for food during the daytime hours and to provide illumination in the dark nights. But as time progressed, the need for more than a simple flickering fire became necessary. This is where the […]
At least 60 people were killed by an avalanche of debris in an Ethiopian landfill on Saturday night. Mountains of trash at Koshee Garbage Landfill near Addis Ababa collapsed in a massive landslide, destroying the makeshift shanties that lined its slopes and killing scavengers who earn a living sorting trash for resale. One resident told […]
Solving solar power has enabled this renewable energy technology Smart Flower to create Middle East solar projects for West Bank farmers and other energy poor locations. It is also providing solar power for curing post-revolution darkness in countries like Yemen. While many solar energy projects involve covering large open areas with solar array panels, smaller personal solar energy equipment […]
Lithium ion batteries, used to power electric cars such as Tesla Motor’s high priced electric sports cars, as well as a host of other electric devices, have been talked and written about as possible solutions for providing alternative power sources for homes and small businesses. Electric cars powered by these batteries, or battery packs to be more correct, […]
Imagine a beautifully designed tree that you can place outside your house or look at in public spaces and that, when blown by the wind, produces enough energy to light your place up. That’s right; wind turbines can now have a different size and be harmonically integrated within the landscape. So instead of the huge […]
Today's smart investors can tell you the difference between a seed bank and an investment bank.
Say hello to the “Anthropocene”, a new geological epoch brought about by humanity’s impact on planet Earth. A team of geologists say that ash from fossil fuels, plastic waste, rising seas (which are triggering a dramatic increase in upland erosion), and radioactive particles littered by nuclear bomb tests are all contributing to permanent changes in Earth’s rocks. […]
This is an issue of global concern. Climate change, urbanization, and resource depletion (more mouths to feed, burn wood in stoves for, graze more cattle for) is still happening at a fast an alarming clip, influencing our planet’s ability to store CO2 emissions, and protect diversity. We hate scare tactics, but put it into scale […]
Dams tame wild rivers, they prevent floods, irrigate crops and generate billions of watts of renewable hydroelectric power. But some 25 miles from Raqaa, Syria the Daesh (aka ISIS) don’t see the Tabqa dam as a source of green energy. They see it as a military base, a prison and weapon of war.
A new breed of companies are showing how innovation can be scaled for both business opportunities and global good. Led by resolute and independent thinkers, these companies are making dents in conventional ways of thinking to defy and fight for global change. The Katerva Award identifies 10 of these companies as finalists annually in its […]
The World Bank, the biggest provider of public finance to developing countries is not gambling on our future! It has just earmarked 28% of its 2016 budget for projects that mitigate climate change, according to a statement released on Thursday. All of its future spending will take global warming into account, and all projects considered for […]
‘Everything in moderation’ is good advice, especially when it comes to sunshine. Humans know this, especially in the Middle East, mastering all means of shading devices, and protective clothing. But what if you are an organism without access to sunscreen? Two scientists at Israel’s oldest university have discovered how bacteria protect themselves from overexposure.
Despite the forecast of dire effects of global warming in the Middle East, oil producing countries like Saudi Arabia have continued to keep oil production at high levels. Located in one of hottest regions on earth, the Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia has also expressed high interest in building nuclear power plants, despite being a country rich in solar energy potential. […]
Morocco has activated the Noor I concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, the first part of a three-phase development in the Sahara Desert intended to supply more than a million homes with electricity by 2018. The 500,000 crescent-shaped solar mirrors of Noor I, which sits on thousands of acres of desert terrain near Ouarzazate, will generate up to 160 […]
In a region where the renewable energy market is still small, despite a natural and seemingly perpetual gas shortage, one startup is making big strides. KarmSolar is an Egyptian company dedicated to bolstering solar energy use. It is now the first company in Egypt with official permission to sell solar power off-grid. The Egyptian Electricity […]