International Space Station view of Dubai Light Pollution on February 22, 2012. Can we change the world by switching off for an hour? People from all over the world are encouraged to turn off their lights for Earth Hour, which takes place on Saturday March, 31 2012 at 8:30 pm local time (check the Earth […]
Sorry folks, but nothing on this earth is sustainable, even words. Brian argues the dire need for new words to replace ‘sustainable’ in our eco-English vocabulary. Peak oil came and went in 2008. Everyone knows this– with the possible exception of some US presidential candidates and one wildcat oil prospector in Cairo, Illinois. Most Green […]
Plastic is pervasive and so are the carcinogenic chemicals that leach from them. The rapid growth and urbanization of the United Arab Emirates is associated with increased uses of plastic in every aspect of modern life. In 2008, the World Health Organization voiced concerns that rapid urbanization may be negatively impacting people’s lives. Rapid growth […]
Zahed Sultan is an internationally-celebrated musician from Kuwait who also happens to promote sustainability! Zahed Sultan is one of the most visible musicians in the Arab world. Not only does he enjoy a massive following on regional social networks, but he is also internationally recognized. One of his tracks was included in the Hotel Costes […]
SlutWalk started in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in April 2011 in response to the slur of a Toronto Police officer who suggested that women could remain safe by avoiding dressing like ‘sluts.’ Since then, the movement has spread across the globe as a worldwide protest against aggression and rape. Activists are reframing the dialogue, calling on […]
Dr. Mohamed Kassas was a leading pioneer of Egypt’s environmental movement and a beloved mentor. Dr. Mohamed Kassas was active until the end, says Mindy Baha El Din, Manager of Nature Conservation Egypt. Just yesterday Christians packed the St. Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo to bid farewell to their patriarch Pope Shenouda III, and today environmentalists throughout the […]
Miriam found much good will but only dawning eco-awareness in Israel’s religious leadership. “I came today, not to say anything new – but to learn.” So the Greek Orthodox Archbishop, Dr. Elias Chacour, began the Interfaith Climate and Energy Conference that took place yesterday, March 19, in Jerusalem. The conference was organized by the Interfaith […]
A story about a Morocco sex shop turns out to be a hoax, but is the idea of expanding sexual freedom finding fertile ground in the region? Sex is natural. We wouldn’t be here were it not for the ability to procreate, and for most people in the world, physical intimacy and pleasure are desired […]
No better place to do a reality check on our environmental vision than Cairo’s Manshiet Nasr neighborhood. Its local inhabitants, the Zabaleen (Arabic for garbage pickers and recyclers) started closing our material cycles thirty years ago, something we even now barely find necessary. They know that what is without value for most, isn’t useless per sé. […]
Goldfish have made up a small part of the Iranian New Year festivities for thousands of years, but some activists want this practice to end. A longstanding Zoroastrian tradition, the Iranian New Year known as Nowruz is a time for spring cleaning, visiting friends, banishing the old, and preparing for the new. Beginning at the […]
Among other eco-conscious Church leaders, the Archbishop of York has gone vegan and fair-trade for the duration of Lent. Lent, the pre-Easter season of reflection and self-examination, began this year on February 22nd and finishes on Saturday, April 3rd. Believing Christians set aside time for prayer and religious acts. One Lenten tradition is strengthening self-discipline […]
Want to support a cable company that cares about the planet? True, a lot of environmentalists promote reading over television. A nice intimate dinner and good chats with friends over a night at the movies. And of course we know it’s the better way to let our kids play outside before we let them switch […]
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) issued a special alert on the food security situation in Syria this past week, voicing serious concern over the state of food security, especially for vulnerable groups, because of continued civil unrest since March 2011. According to the Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics, inflation increased between June […]
Swifts return to nest at Judaism most sacred site When the swifts came back to Jerusalem’s Western Wall last week there was rejoicing as bird watchers and the religious welcomed them home to Judaism’s most sacred site. The common swift, which spends is entire life flying or sitting its nest, returns from wintering in South […]
Ahead of Rio +20 join the interfaith climate and energy conference in Jerusalem next week. Can mobilizing the world’s faithful save the planet where activists without faith have failed? Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders will be speaking out on climate change next week, while conveying their shared visions on renewable energy at the Interfaith Climate […]