Superior repair skills in developing nations mean that broken electronics can be mended and reused – a much greener alternative to recycling A couple of months ago, I wrote about the death of my laptop and my predicament over what to do with it. I had become wary of sending broken electronics to developing countries […]
Instead of occupying Wall Street, solar power activists occupied rooftops yesterday. The Occupy Wall Street protest may be dwindling down, but it has inspired other movements around the United States and the world. One such offshoot, which took place yesterday, is Occupy Rooftops. Led by Solar Mosaic, an organization that tries to promote the spread […]
Aquaculture, especially in ponds, may help preserve ocean fish species Catching wild fish in the sea is now threatening to deplete many fish species from the world’s seas and oceans, including illegal tuna fishing in the Mediterranean Sea. With world population figures now topping 7 billion, an increasing demand is being made for fresh fish […]
Nabil Hirbawy from Siwa, Egypt lost an eye to his craft, but that hasn’t dampened his passion for carving salt rock into beautiful works of art! Nabil Hirbawy was polishing off a small salt sculpture when a small piece of it struck him in the eye, leaving him partially blind – not only physically, but […]
Students from the American University of Cairo designed SLIDES – a solar-powered modular home that is slated to compete in next years Solar Decathlon, but lack of financial support could keep this groundbreaking project from being realized. When students from the American University of Cairo were accepted to compete in the 2012 Solar Decathlon design […]
These women in the Siwa oasis near Libya are trained in the traditional craft of weaving Kleem (rugs). Tafline takes a rare inside look at their work. You might have already read about the first part of our journey where our bus kept breaking down on the road to Siwa. When our host Yehia secured […]
Israelis discuss the problem of getting nuclear neighbors. In a small region like the Middle East, a single country’s decision to build nuclear power can easily spill over borders. At a panel last Monday, Israeli energy experts spoke on the risks and benefits of nuclear power, noting that even if Israel avoided the risks of […]
This was the plan: leave at 8pm Friday night from Turgoman station in Cairo. Arrive in Siwa at 5.30am and meet my friend Gwen from France at the Siwa Inn Hotel. Bestow copious hugs and kisses before finding Vivek, a Couchsurfing buddy who traveled from Alexandria. And then, after introducing my friends, relax in this […]
In memory of the murdered Nigerian environmental activist who campaigned against Shell, we look at the importance of environmental action in the Middle East On the 10th of November 1995, Ken Saro-Wiwa who had campaigned against the environmental devastation caused to the Niger Delta by oil companies such as Shell, was hanged by the Nigerian […]
If you live in a crazy polluted Middle East city, carbon monoxide pollution is the opiate of the masses, according to new study. I dream about living in a car-less city like Vauban. But my love affair with the Middle East keeps me dreaming. Rampant with air pollution, every fall cities like Cairo get covered […]
The City of the Dead in Cairo isn’t known for its fertile soil, but Liveinslums is working to change that with an awesome mini urban farming initiative. Although everybody seems to understand that population growth is exploding, and that space – particularly in cities – comes at a premium, the extent of our vulnerability to […]
Polio, a crippling virus which lingers in polluted water sources is not a dead virus, says an Israeli researcher. It is in Israel, Gaza and Egypt. But some current vaccines may be deadly. I know women in Israel who were unsure about vaccinating their kids against polio. The nurse practitioners there said that polio is […]
Renewable Energy professionals from Europe and Egypt (and Green Prophet!) took a field trip to Egypt’s first solar-thermal plant 90km south of Cairo! Brimming with the kind of energy that infuses a school field trip, roughly 80 professionals from the renewable energy industry packed into two large buses outside the Semiramis International Hotel in Cairo […]
Get your weekly dose of green news snippets from the region It’s been another great week of green news coming from the Middle East. We hope you managed to catch our interview with Green Hajj expert Dr Husna Ahmed, our coverage of the quake-proof straw houses as well as Tafline’s time at the Desertec conference […]
Sheikh Ali Gomaa is the Grand Mufti of Egypt issuing environmental fatwas. Sheikh Ali Gomaa is the Grand Mufti of Egypt since September 2003 and one of the highest ranking and respected religious authorities throughout the Sunni world. He holds the second highest religious position in Egypt, after that of Sheikh al-Azhar. As the Grand […]