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Measuring And Reporting On Your Organization’s Sustainability Performance

Business

Bhok Thompson

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February 14, 2023

Measuring And Reporting On Your Organization’s Sustainability Performance

*A corporate sustainability course can help you take the rights steps on the green path.*

Implementing a corporate sustainability strategy is an excellent first step. However, once this strategy is in place, the real work begins. Organizations must measure and track their performance against key sustainability indicators to ensure the sustainability strategy is being effectively implemented.

Measuring and reporting on an organization’s sustainability performance can be challenging. However, to ensure the success of a corporate sustainability program, it is essential to have a clear understanding of how performance is tracked and reported.

In this post, we will discuss how to select the right metrics and KPIs, establish baselines for performance tracking, generate useful reports to communicate sustainability performance, and develop an effective process for measuring and reporting.

To explore related topics in more detail, consider registering for a corporate sustainability course where you can develop the skills necessary to understand and manage sustainability performance in organizations. This can be an invaluable experience that helps you understand the complexities of measuring and reporting on corporate sustainability performance.

What is Corporate Sustainability?

Starting with the basics, corporate sustainability is the practice of integrating economic, environmental, and social considerations into a company’s decision-making processes.

It involves understanding and managing an organization’s performance across all three dimensions:

Economic

This involves integrating sustainability into the core business strategy and making decisions that consider the long-term financial impacts of investments and activities.

Environmental

Waste, energy and water usage, pollution control, and natural resource management are some of the most important environmental considerations. It also includes mitigating climate change impacts and considering the environmental impact of the products produced.

Social

This includes workforce safety, diversity, employee engagement, consumer protections, and community relation initiatives. Social sustainability also includes considerations around ethical sourcing and supply chain management.

Once an organization has established a corporate sustainability strategy, it is crucial to measure and report on performance, including any successes or failures. Measuring sustainability performance will help the organization understand its progress and identify potential areas for improvement.

Why Measure and Report on Sustainability Performance?

Measuring and reporting on sustainability performance is essential for any organization that wants to ensure the success of its sustainability program. It provides an understanding of how well a company is doing regarding its sustainability goals and helps identify areas for improvement.

Additionally, it allows companies to assess their progress against external standards and benchmarks, demonstrate accountability to stakeholders, identify risks and opportunities in time to take corrective actions, and ultimately build stakeholder trust.

How to Select Metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

office workers, startup wework New York, recycling — *What are your green KPIs? Take your team to the next level by involving them*

When measuring and reporting on corporate sustainability performance, selecting appropriate metrics and KPIs is important to capture the desired data points.

Some standard metrics used for tracking corporate sustainability performance include energy usage per unit of production, greenhouse gas emissions per employee, waste recycling rate, and water usage rate.

KPIs are metrics used to measure the performance of a business against specific goals. Examples include water usage intensity, energy efficiency, employee engagement, and customer satisfaction.

To be sure you’re choosing the right metrics and KPIs, it’s essential to consider the goals you want to measure and then select metrics that will accurately capture relevant data points. You can also research industry standards to see what other organizations are tracking. For example, if your business is a manufacturer, you might look at industry-specific benchmarks.

Establishing Baselines for Performance Tracking

When measuring performance, it is important to establish baselines so that progress against sustainability goals can be tracked over time. Establishing a baseline involves setting targets for each metric or KPI being measured and then tracking improvements relative to those targets.

Baseline targets should be established based on an organization’s current performance level and desired future state, considering any constraints such as budget or personnel resources. It is also important to ensure that the chosen metrics are applicable across all business units in order to maintain consistent reporting standards.

Generate Useful Reports

Once an organization has established metrics, KPIs, and baselines, it can begin generating useful sustainability performance reports. Reports should clearly communicate results, provide detailed information about individual performance indicators and offer insights into trends or underlying causes of progress or decline.

Additionally, reporting on sustainability performance is vital for demonstrating accountability to stakeholders as well as building trust in the business.

Develop an Effective Process for Measuring and Reporting

Finally, organizations must develop an effective process for measuring and reporting on corporate sustainability performance. This involves creating a framework that outlines how data will be collected, who will be responsible for monitoring performance, and how results will be communicated. This process should also consider any legal and regulatory requirements to be met when reporting on sustainability performance.

For example, if an organization operates in multiple countries, it must ensure its reporting process complies with local regulations. Additionally, organizations should determine how often they will update their sustainability performance metrics and establish a timeline for completing reports. Finally, if they use outside consultants, they should consider how often these individuals need to be engaged for the process to run smoothly.

Strategies for Measuring and Reporting Your Organization’s Sustainability Performance

Now it’s time to put all this into action.

Here are some strategies for measuring and reporting your organization’s sustainability performance:

Identify and track metrics relevant to your goals
Establish baselines for tracking progress over time
Generate useful reports to communicate results effectively
Develop an effective process for monitoring performance
Incorporate legal and regulatory requirements into reporting standards

By following these strategies, organizations can accurately measure and report on their sustainability performance to identify risks, opportunities, and areas for improvement. Doing so allows them to ensure their efforts are making a positive impact and helps them build trust with stakeholders.

Final Thoughts

To effectively measure and report on sustainability performance, organizations must take the time to identify the most relevant metrics, establish baselines for tracking progress over time, and develop an effective process for monitoring performance. Additionally, they should consider legal and regulatory requirements when designing their reporting process. Through these strategies, organizations can accurately assess their current position and progress toward sustainability goals.

By measuring and reporting on corporate sustainability performance, organizations are taking a crucial step toward creating a more sustainable future. With this information in hand, businesses can make informed decisions about how to best manage resources and drive positive change. In doing so, they will be able to contribute to a healthier planet while also remaining competitive in the ever-evolving marketplace.

Here’s How To Implement The Four Pillars Of Employee Engagement

Business

Bhok Thompson

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February 14, 2023

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<strong>Here’s How To Implement The Four Pillars Of Employee Engagement</strong>

work place barbecue in Austin, Texas — *If you throw a party for your work team and they are vegans, don’t make it a barbecue. Know the sustainability values of your team to boost moral and retain good people.*

Are you looking for ways to improve employee engagement in your organization? If so, you’re not alone. Many companies struggle to engage their employees and boost morale. Luckily, a few key strategies can make a big difference. This blog post will share four pillars of employee engagement and how you can start implementing them in your business today. Doing so can create a more positive work environment and improve productivity levels company-wide. Let’s get started!

Define what employee engagement means to your organization.

Employee engagement is a crucial part of our organization’s culture. We value employee growth and satisfaction, and employee engagement is vital to accomplishing this. We provide employees with the resources, guidance, and honest feedback to foster employee success. To ensure employee engagement remains central and the highest level of productivity is achieved, we use employee engagement tool such as surveys which gauge employee opinion and the effectiveness of policies. Through this process, we can make timely changes that create a positive working environment for our employees.

Assess where your company stands in terms of employee engagement.

Assessing employee engagement is essential to the success of any business. A comprehensive employee engagement tool can help organizations identify areas for improvement and provide feedback on employee satisfaction. This enables enterprises to eliminate silos and improve employee loyalty, leading to higher performance levels within the company. Employee engagement tools can also create more effective communication between the business and its workforce, allowing companies to attract and retain quality talent. Taking the time to assess employee engagement will ultimately lead to better morale, productivity, and profitability.

Create a plan to improve employee engagement at your organization.

Improving employee engagement at our organization is an important goal. To achieve this, we should focus on providing clear communication between all departments, establishing meaningful and frequent employee feedback, and offering employee engagement tools. Communication between departments should stay consistent to ensure employees understand the company’s vision. Additionally, employee feedback needs to be considered to ensure their ideas are heard and acknowledged. What do they think about solar energy, greenhouse gases? Climate change? Are you doing enough in that area to satisfy the ecologists among you? Finally, employee engagement tools can play a crucial role in keeping employees motivated and engaged, including employee surveys or online workshops. With this plan in place, your organization will benefit from higher employee engagement levels.

Implement the plan and track progress over time.

Taking the first steps toward successfully implementing any plan can be daunting, especially if employee engagement is necessary. To ensure success, having an employee engagement tool that tracks progress over time is vital. This not only lets you know how far along the plan is in being executed, but it also allows you to make any changes if needed quickly and easily. Using this kind of tool will help keep your team informed and up-to-date with the most accurate data points possible as they strive to achieve their goals.

Celebrate successes and learn from failures along the way.

As life progresses, we must recognize our successes and learn from our failures. A helpful employee engagement tool to consider is celebrating successes and reflecting on mistakes along the journey. Doing so can be a powerful motivator for employees; feeling accomplished for a good outcome or taking away valuable lessons from an unsuccessful result will help keep individuals focused and provide them with a sense of purpose. Celebrating successes and learning from failure can be an excellent method to foster employee growth.

Employee engagement is a process that requires ongoing effort and vigilance from every level of your organization. By taking the time to assess where you are today, define where you want to be, and create a plan to get there, you’ll be well on your way to improving employee engagement at your company. And as always, remember to celebrate your successes and learn from your failures along the way!

Is testing mainly for digital transformation?

Tech

Bhok Thompson

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February 13, 2023

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Is testing mainly for digital transformation?

Hyzon hydrogen fuel bus — *Hydrogen energy may be the future. Currently it costs more to produce than it’s worth but testing, testing, optimising, testing again. This is how energy becomes cleaner and greener.*

Every industry has been going through massive changes within the last few years. They are molding themselves rapidly to align themselves with the constant demand for better service and products. The IT industry is no different. Product needs, market circumstances, development processes, and developing codebases are some of the shifting parts of it. Constant movement is essential for software development teams in every facet. Digital transformation testing is making significant progress now.

What is digital transformation?

Since the digital transformation process will take on various forms inside various organizations, defining it as a whole might take time and effort. Nonetheless, digital transformation is the pervasive use of digital technology throughout an organization. It dramatically changes how organizations function and the value they provide to their consumers.

More than that, digital transformation is a shift in mindset. It demands regular questioning of the current quo, frequent experimentation, and a willingness to learn from setbacks. This sometimes necessitates cutting down tried-and-true business methods and welcoming a fresh approach.

Major forces influencing the evolution of testing

When software fails, it may have a devastating effect on finances. Businesses look for new testing practices and higher standards to save costs, improve quality, and shorten testing times. In addition, the testing environment is changing because of the developments in the testing business to deal with specific testing domain needs.

Software testing has evolved to focus on responding quickly and efficiently to the ever-shifting demands of the market. Agile software development is the main reason behind it and is undoubtedly becoming increasingly popular. Thus businesses should have testing and quality assurance procedures tailored to this methodology.

Technological advancements define businesses in the modern era. Cloud computing, mobile technology, and analytics are all being used by companies to engage customers more. It is essential to have specialized equipment and cutting-edge testing solutions to fulfill demand in these fields. Better ROI is the goal.

Every end-user expects a flawless experience every time. Customers anticipate that companies will do an excellent job from the start, as poor quality may cost money and resources and damage a company’s brand. It is now fundamental to the software development life cycle (SDLC). Thus businesses must pay close attention to detail to identify and meet all the criteria for each project.

Companies are making concerted efforts to elevate the quality of their software creation and testing procedures. Existing quality assurance techniques could be more efficient and effective. But often, they need to catch the zero defect aim for the deadlines despite substantial investment in testing.

Current procedures need to adequately describe test requirements, resulting in missing, erroneous, confusing, or unstable conditions, which can negatively impact the overall project. Furthermore, they rarely detail verification techniques to track requirements and test results effectively.

Another area that needs to be addressed in traditional test methods is test planning and scheduling. Often, test case descriptions are mistaken for test plans. Even when attempted, scheduling seldom results in enough time to conduct all necessary testing, mainly when the process is carried out manually. The fact that testing is frequently performed too late in the development cycle, which has severe consequences in terms of time, money, and quality, is the most annoying problem.

When businesses try to employ commercial testing tools, they often choose the wrong ones or don’t use them effectively. It’s tough for testers to use these tools since they need to be entirely adequate. Organizations must have adaptable testing models with the appropriate instruments and a sufficient degree of process maturity.

Transformation of testing and QA

Digital transformation testing aims to increase efficiency and reduce overhead expenses by adopting a “shift left” methodology throughout all testing processes. This allows businesses to reap cost and quality savings year after year.

Improving product quality while decreasing development costs and risk for businesses are the primary goals of transformation. A robust method integrates numerous processes and process aids with tools and procedures to hasten the transition from the present to the desired state. The first step is to provide a complete answer by combining the creation of a methodology based on standardization, optimization, improvisation, and automation.

MBT, or model-based testing, is a powerful test transformation strategy for developing and automating tests by the desired behavior (often functional) model.

MBT increases coverage and performance to new heights. Developers can include quality into test requirements, speeding up the various stages of testing and allowing for earlier issue identification. By automatically creating and running test cases, MBT drastically cuts testing times. As a result, it saves money while dramatically improving the reliability of the tested system.

An in-depth analysis of the test criteria is the first step in this process since it reveals previously unknown information and aids in documenting the finer points of the test’s specifications. Specifications or behavioral criteria are then used to guide the automation of the test model. It speeds up the process of automatically creating test cases and makes it possible to update test scripts in real-time to reflect any changes in the accompanying documentation. As a result, new test cases are not required.

Testing beyond digital transformation

ecoppia like a roomba for solar panels — *A solar powered Roomba that cleans solar panels. They were tested for thousands of hours and are still tested to see how small tweaks make more energy*

Implementing a digital transformation is a process that can have far-reaching effects and necessitates adjustments across many groups and departments. The difficulties posed by these shifts might be either technological or organizational. Many businesses find that modifying their testing procedures is one of the most challenging and time-consuming improvements they must make.

Digital experience monitoring is another way to think beyond digital transformation. It is a branch of performance analysis that aids in enhancing a digital agent’s behavior and operational experience while interacting with an organization’s application and service portfolio.

Conclusion

Testing is not limited to digital transformation. As IT is one of the fastest evolving industries, software testing needs to evolve with the same. For the big picture, invest in a tool like HeadSpin. Its AI-based testing insights will help you make faster decisions and improve your product anytime from anywhere in the world.

The half billion nuclear kitty litter incident

Brian Nitz

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February 13, 2023

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The half billion nuclear kitty litter incident

nuclear waste and kitty litter — Workers at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico used organic cat litter to clean up nuclear waste. The litter triggered chemical reactions that later caused a drum to burst. US Department of Energy

We’ve all made this kind of mistake. A friend asks you to pick up some organic chicken and you buy free-range eggs, or your spouse asks for a dozen flowers and you bring back a dozen bags of flour. It’s worse when you are ordering items online and in a second language. Ever order one eggplant and receive one dozen? These things happen to the best of us. But imagine being the person who caused a nuclear accident by ordering the wrong kitty litter?

It happened in February 2014 at a nuclear weapons waste processing facility for the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Anyone involved may be trying hard to forget that it ever happened. The confusion began with a typo in a request for “kitty litter/zeolite clay.” (Zeolites can also be used in energy storage as I wrote here).

At some point this was replaced with kitty litter (clay). This was further transformed into an order for organic cat litter, specifically the sWheat Scoop brand which the manufacturer claims is 100% wheat. Now while the word organic has a folk meaning to environmentalists and hipsters at your local cafe, to chemists it means something more specific.

nuclear energy, kitty litter waste — A two-letter typo led to a $500 million nuclear accident that exposed 22 people to radioactive contamination. Oops. Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, NM. Photo by (US Department of Energy)

According to the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) hyperglossary, the organic definition –– in the context of chemistry and materials, organic refers to a materials based on carbon (a chemical element abbreviated as C). Additional elements that are commonly found in organic materials are hydrogen (H), nitrogen (N), oxygen (O), phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S).

An unrelated and confusing definition of organic is used most often in reference to “natural” foods. For example, a simple definition of “organic produce” is fruits or vegetables that have been raised without the use of pesticides or herbicides. Of course, many pesticides and herbicides are actually themselves organic (using either or both definitions of “organic”).

Materials that are not organic are usually referred to as inorganic.

sWheatScoop kitty litter may have fit both the chemist and hipster definition of organic. But it was not what the nuclear waste chemists were looking for. To further confuse things, zeolite is not a clay even though it contains many of the same elements as clay and has some related properties. Zeolite takes in water by adsorption into a porous microstructure while clay slips water molecules between atomic sheets an a process called adsorbtion. (Apologies to autocorrect, yes adsorbtion and absorption really are two different things.)

So the boss’s request for zeolite clay might as well have been a request for a magic-colored unicorn, it doesn’t exist in this universe. Such is the imprecision of human languages in our complicated world.

Don’t try this at home

Green Prophet recently covered the possibilities of using Zeolite for energy storage and this amazing mineral has many more tricks up its sleeve. But while it might seem obvious that anything capable of detoxifying cat pee would be equally effective for nuclear waste disposal, this isn’t necessarily true.

The problem with using 100% organic wheat-based organic kitty litter for your nuclear waste disposal instead of zeolite (non-clay) kitty litter has to do with its reactivity and flammability when confined in a barrel with plutonium, americium, uranium and nitrate-based processing chemicals when compared to zeolite. It doesn’t help that all of this takes place deep underground in an abandoned salt mine where there is much more salt and nuclear waste than there are people to watch it.

So the problem wasn’t discovered until barrel #68660 burst, releasing radiation into a ventilation system. It is believed that several hundred nuclear waste barrels were contaminated with the wrong kind of kitty litter. The cost of the cleanup is said to have been more than half a billion.

So the next time you think you’ve had a bad day, think of this story and imagine how much worse it could be. And be careful with off-label uses of kitty litter.

Is deflation really a good thing

Bhok Thompson

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February 13, 2023

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deflating a hot air balloon — *Deflating a hot air balloon or an economy.*

Even if deflation appears to have a positive effect on household budgets for consumers, it is more dangerous for the economy than inflation. Deflation is the opposite of inflation and means a fall in prices. If there is no more price increase, one speaks of stagnation.

Deflation can become a dangerous downward spiral for an economy. To combat deflation, central banks lend cheap money to banks. These should stimulate investments by granting cheap loans, which in turn should create jobs and thereby strengthen purchasing power and increase demand.

Definition of deflation

What is deflation? When there is deflation, the prices of goods in the market fall. So, the value of money is increasing – people can buy more with their money. However, what sounds good at first has serious disadvantages. In fact, with inflation, money loses purchasing power.

Let’s understand the causes of deflation before we talk more about its serious consequences.

Causes of deflation

Deflation can occur when a central bank reduces the money supply too much as part of its monetary policy. Another reason can be that companies produce too many goods and there is an oversupply on the market.

Deflation is often favored and accelerated by reduced spending by private households and companies. In difficult economic times, people prefer to save. You don’t know if the future won’t get even worse. Companies are also cutting back on their investments.

Deflationary spiral

The monetary policy of the central banks is based on the optimization of the so-called magic square. This regulates the interaction between:

Full employment,
Price stability,
Balanced foreign trade
Steady economic growth.

It is the development and interaction of these factors that lead to deflation. When economic growth falls, the employment rate tends to fall as well. Rising unemployment leads to a drop in demand for goods. However, since companies have to sell, they are initially forced not to raise prices, which, together with rising unemployment, leads to falling wages. If demand continues to fall, stockpiles are formed. In order to reduce this, a price reduction must take place. The downward spiral has thus begun.

Consequences of deflation

Inflation results from rising demand and drives economic growth through higher production figures. During deflation, productivity falls, and there is no economic growth. Only foreign trade still offers a solution in this situation. Since prices in one economic zone drop significantly during deflation, companies may be able to deliver cheaper than their competitors in other economic zones with higher price levels.

Approaches to fighting deflation

When deflation occurs, there is a lack of demand, which usually results from high unemployment. So, the first step would be to create new jobs. These arise when companies have funds to make investments. For this purpose, the banks have to grant loans on more favorable terms.

The central banks can take the step of increasing the liquidity (free reserves) of the banks. In theory, banks can provide a credit on more favorable terms once they receive sufficient cash reserves from central banks. This gives companies the opportunity to create new jobs through investments. More jobs increase the purchasing power of the population and lead to increased domestic demand, which in turn means an increase in the production of consumer goods due to increased demand. This will stimulate economic growth again.

The banks have a key role in handling this situation since the central banks themselves are not allowed to lend to the economy. However, this cycle cannot be broken if private credit institutions remain reluctant to lend money.

Is inflation better than deflation?

qatar climate change qatar cop18 — *Qataris and climate change*

Central banks consider an annual inflation rate of two percent to be healthy. A moderate price increase signals that there is a steady economic growth. Rising personnel costs, as one of the drivers of rising prices, demonstrate a certain degree of employment, which in turn means demand. Japan suffered from the effects of deflation in the 1990s, and today confirms that this was the most difficult period in the Japanese economy. The recovery period lasted longer than the period of deflation itself.

Some environmentalists talk about negative growth or deflating economies to stop climate change and carbon emissions but if people can’t afford basic necessities such as heating a deflating economy might be worse than an inflating one. Companies respond to falling prices by slowing down their production, which leads to layoffs and salary reductions.

Making organic sourdough from ancient wheat he grows

Karin Kloosterman

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February 13, 2023

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hagai and the bread — *Hagay Ben Yehuda is taking matters into his own hands and making bread from ancient grains. He cultivates about 5 acres of land he plants with ancient grains.*

We feel what happens to food prices and our lifestyle when conflict broke out in the Ukraine and Russia. So much of our daily lives are interdependent on the global village that countries, and people, know they need to start thinking more locally to support food traditions and the culture they love. On one side of the spectrum you have China building 8-story vertical pork farms, and on the other, thankfully you have individuals leading a new kind of sanity, like Hagay Ben-Yehuda. He is making bread by hand using ancient grains.

The baker from Kibbutz Einat, just outside of Tel Aviv and who works with the Volcani Institute, an agricultural research center, has become famous for his sourdough bread (follow our recipe from our in-house baker Miriam) made from locally-grown ancient wheat.

While the emmer wheat was native to the Levantine area, and helped usher in this region as the breadbasket of civilization, in recent decades all of Israel’s wheat, except for religious customs, is typically imported from America.

Funny, in the religious Jewish culture that devotes so much of its prayers and blessings to bread that these “blessings” have been brought from far and away lands, farmed on pesticide-intense mono-culture farms, and brought on ships.

But that’s changing thanks to a slew of bakers in Israel and no doubt the world, bringing on their own change loaf by loaf. But at a cost. Because local farming and hand baking doesn’t come cheap in one of the most expensive countries in the world. While the cost for fancy sourdough bread in Israel is rather high, about $9 or $10, customers are willing to pay for it as a commodity they can’t live without.

Ben Yehuda says that as a fifth generation baker “bread is an inseparable part of my family, of my memories and in general of who I am.”

wheat hunters, hagay the bread — *Wheat hunters*

Emmer wheat is one of the wheat he uses. It’s known as the “mother of wheat”, as it is the wheat used for bread in Biblical times and was then rediscovered growing wild near Mount Hermon, on the borders with Syria and Lebanon, by the 1940s.

Other strains of ancient wheat from the region include jaljuli, hourani, abu fashi and dubiya samra – all grown locally for millennia in the Levantine area, but by the 1960s already replaced by imported common wheat which is cheaper and for some easier to digest, but much less good for the body.

Ancient wheat emmer — *Israeli ancient wheat*

Making a few hundred loaves a day, mostly going to Tel Aviv Ben Yehuda says he wants people to have the right memories from childhood, and does it as a labor of love. He says: “For the past for years I have been sowing ancient wheat varieties that were once grown here in the land of Israel in order to bring back the flavors and textures that originally belonged to this land, thus producing bread and local culture in the full sense of the word.

::Hagay and the Bread

Zaha Hadid refugee tents

Design

Karin Kloosterman

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February 13, 2023

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Zaha Hadid was an Iraqi and Middle Eastern woman architect, a starchitect legend who died too soon. She was the first female architect (and first Muslim) to win the prestigious . But the firm behind her name and iconic feminine language carries on. While we don’t love that Zaha Hadid‘s firm is behind the obnoxious ski resort in the Saudi Desert we do love that they have partnered for a nobler cause to bring more humane life-sustaining shelter to refugees who need homes.

There are millions of refugees in the Middle East and as we see after an earthquake in even politically-stable countries like Turkey where thousands of died and hundreds of thousands are now homeless, quick and safe and human shelter can be needed overnight. We wrote about 10 different kinds of shelters we hate to love and want to add Zaha Hadid’s to the list.

A joint venture between Zaha Hadid Architects and the Qatari foundation Education Above All Foundation (EAA), the newly donated tents will serve as schools, clinics and emergency shelters. The tents, modular and weather-proof, are designed for use in schools, clinics and emergency shelters in refugee and displaced communities.

Education Above All is founded by Sheikha Moza bint Nasser Al-Missned is one of the three wives “called consort” of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former Emir of the State of Qatar. She is also the co-founder and chairperson of the Qatar Foundation.

Three tents are already being used as schools for hundreds of displaced Pakistani and Syrian children in Pakistan and Turkey. The newly donated structures will be used as schools, clinics and temporary shelter for displaced communities in Syria, Turkey and Yemen.

Fifteen tents will be given to IOM, of which 10 will serve as schools and five as health clinics in Turkey and Yemen. In Syria, Qatar Red Crescent will receive 12 structures that it will serve as shelters for displaced communities in Syria according to press material.

Weather proof and allowing for daylight to enter, the tents are modular structures that can be easily moved and re-assembled, incorporating components that can also be upcycled or recycled for sustainability, thereby making them ideal for displaced populations.

A central enclosed space in the 12 metre-long by eight metre-wide module will primarily serve as a classroom for up to 45 students. Sail-like forms surround the space and give shade.

Unfortunately refugees in the Middle East oftentimes find themselves in permanent states of homelessness, giving them time to plant gardens. Their homes are usually no more than ragged tents and boxes.

With more than 70 million people displaced in their own countries or living as refugees, and half under the age of 18, the EAA saw a critical need for suitable infrastructure that could serve as classrooms, temporary housing, and medical centres for displaced children and their families.

The Qatar Foundation is supported by an endowment funded by the country’s enormous hydrocarbons revenues. The size and details of the endowment are unknown. The foundation is governed by a seven-member board of trustees and a board of directors.

The joint project will place 27 tents in Syria, Turkey and Yemen and will house schools for children to learn.

“Together, we developed a robust, cost-effective, and lightweight modular architectural system with fabric envelope to build structures that can be adapted in many variations to meet the conditions and lives of displaced children and children on the move,” said Zaha Hadid’s project architect Gerry Cruz.

“We hope that these newly donated tents will bring safety, learning and play to thousands in Yemen, Syria and Turkey.”

This Tu B’Shvat, Meet FIG

Lifestyle

Paz Faigenbaum

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February 7, 2023

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Tu B’Shvat Sameach, happy birthday, and happy new year to the trees! I write this from my farm in Ein Kerem, in the Jerusalem Forest, as the trees awaken from dormancy. The almond flowers are showered across the landscape – a Matisse painting of pinks and whites dotting the hills. The first signs of Spring.

As the outer landscape awakens from her slumber, our inner landscape does the same. All organisms are affected by this stirring, this emergence from hibernation – bacterial, plant, human…even organizations! This Tu B’Shvat, I’d like to introduce you to FIG (Food Integrated Gardens), my permaculture education, consultancy, design, and landscaping business.

Permaculture is a holistic environmental design system where we draw inspiration from patterns in nature to create functional design. Check out www.foodingardens.com if you’re looking for support in designing a landscape that is full of plant-food, plant-medicine, and features that heal and regenerate the earth, instead of depleting it. At FIG, we’ve worked on incredible projects, both in Israel and abroad, from conception and design, through installation. Seeing our clients’ ideas come to life, from dream to reality, is my favorite part of the work.

FIG is also a non-profit. We address environmental, social, and spiritual needs through educational programs, workshops, retreats and festivals. Our educational programs include a Shmita Permaculture Design Course (next one starts February 22nd until March 22nd – more info here!) apprenticeships, gardening programs, farm tours, youth-at-risk programming, and workshops.

We also convene six annual festival gatherings (Elul, Tu B’Shvat, Yom Kippur Chanukah, Pesach and Shavuot). These events are set in nature and connect participants to the Earth, to deep, joyful, embodied Jewish practice, and to one another. Each event culminates in a community work day and tangible, lasting permaculture project.

Gatherings take place at Har Hayot, our farm and home base, on 60 dunams (15 acres) of land in Ein Kerem, Jerusalem. Our permaculture farm is a living model of how to create a resilient landscape nourished by agricultural Jewish roots. We practice regenerative agriculture and have established a drought-tolerant food forest as an outdoor classroom. Our free-ranging goats and donkeys prevent forest fires and our honeybee hives ensure robust pollination. Through our programs, Har Hayot is becoming a green gathering point for urban-dwellers, a community resource, and a source of inspiration, spiritual renewal, health, and creativity in Jerusalem.

Our next event, taking place this Friday, is our Tree Faces Tu B’Shvat Festival. As of this writing, tickets are still available. I will be leading a tour of the food forest on the farm, where we will plant native, heirloom plants and fruit trees. We will make and plant seedballs, practice breathing tree meditation and Chi Kung, learn some Tu B’Shvat torah, dance, sing, and draw along with incredible local musicians, DJs, artists, and dancers. We’ll enjoy delicious hot food and an elixir bar stocked with special herbal winter remedies to keep us healthy and vital.

Can’t make it to the event but still want to support a greener, more sustainable Jerusalem? Sponsor a tree! We are purchasing only native heirloom trees and companion plants, which act together form guilds, the basis of our food forest. A food forest is a diverse planting of edible plants that attempts to mimic the ecosystems and patterns found in nature. It features a synergistic design in which the various layers of the forest work in harmony to promote soil health, clean air, water retention, biodiversity, and habitat for species. With the help of our goats and donkeys, our food forest even acts as a bulwark against forest fires. It also fights climate change, drought, and flooding. Lastly, the food forest produces abundant, local, delicious food! It provides its own pest control, creates its own fertilizer and protects itself from pernicious weather. You can sponsor a tree for yourself, for future generations, or in honor or memory of a loved one (we’ll e-mail them to let them know).

The trees will be planted on our farm, Har Hayot, in the Jerusalem Forest, on February 10th.

This Spring, as we emerge from a season of inward orientation, I hope to meet and connect with you. Whether in person, at the Tu B’Shvat event, or online, by sponsoring a tree, we would love to partner with you. To hear about future FIG happenings, join our mailing list.

On behalf of FIG, I’m wishing you a fruitful season. Keep connecting to your roots and harvesting fruits!

Run at the Middle East’s oldest marathon in Dubai

Karin Kloosterman

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February 7, 2023

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Marathons are a sustainable way to explore the Middle East. We have the best marathons in the Middle East list here, some easy some extreme and ultra. But want to try the oldest marathon in the Middle East. In Dubai?

The Dubai Marathon is the largest mass sporting event in the Middle East, according to event organizers. It’s an annual road-based marathon hosted by Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since 1998. The marathon is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. In 2007, it was announced that the 2008 marathon would become the world’s richest long distance running event in history, with one million dollars offered as a prize for a world record and $250,000 for first place for both men and women.

This year top cash prizes still attract the world’s best runners. Participants from the past claimed that while the architecture is beautiful, and the weather is great for Europeans looking for a bit more heat in the winter, but most of the race takes place through flat and somewhat boring scenery.

This year in the women’s race, it is Ethiopia that dominates the men’s elite field with a clutch of international champions set to fight it out for the title when the 2023 Dubai Marathon returns to the running fold on February 12.

While Tsegaye Mekonnen, the 2014 Dubai Marathon champion, boasts the field’s personal best time of 2:04:32, he will face a number of talented and experienced compatriots including 2022 Rome and Linz Marathon winner Fikre Bekele, former Rotterdam Marathon champion Abera Kuma and Gebretsadik Abraha, a winner in Marrakech, Prague, Guangzhou and, most recently, in Ljubljana.

And they face a challenging new 42 km route that will take them from Expo City Dubai out on to some of the city’s most modern highways, past Dubai Investments Park and Jumeirah Golf Estates, before returning to finish in front of the iconic Wasl Dome.

Wasl Dome, Dubai — *Wasl Dome, Expo Dubai*

Still just 24, Fikre Bekele – known as Fikre Tefera until a few years ago – has competed in just six international marathons during his career, winning five and finishing fourth in the other. While his first two wins came in 2018 in Vadodara and Bilbao, the following year he was the surprise winner of the Frankfurt Marathon where he outkicked his rivals with 300m to go.

Bekele returned to action after the pandemic in 2022 with another two impressive victories winning in Rome (2:06:48) before securing his personal best of 2:06:13 in Linz, Austria – on both occasions he smashed the course records.

Like Bekele, Abraha comes to Dubai full of confidence as his most recent race was probably his best ever. In October he won the Ljubljana Marathon in Slovenia in a time of 2:06:09, finally improving a personal best he had set a decade earlier. Last year saw him run three marathons, winning two of them with that triumph in Ljubljana following on from victory in Lens in France.

Abera Kuma is another of the many Ethiopian world-class athletes who have made their marathon debuts at the Dubai Marathon. In 2014 he produced a fine performance in a top field and finished tenth in 2:09:53. He ran his second marathon in Berlin, where he improved by almost four minutes, taking third place in 2:05:56, which remains his second fastest time at the distance.

His big marathon victory came in 2015 in Rotterdam, a sustainable city where he also clocked his personal best of 2:05:50 three years later, finishing in second place just six seconds behind the winner.
Held under the aegis of the Dubai Sports Council, the Dubai Marathon will start and finish for the first time at Expo City Dubai.

Runners who have yet to register and who would like to compete in the Marathon, the 10km Road Race or 4km Fun Run can still register up until February 11 only at the official website dubaimarathon.org.
The 2023 Dubai Marathon is supported by adidas, Dubai Duty Free, NORQAIN, the Channel 4 Radio Network, Al Ameen, the Dubai Sports Council, Dubai RTA, Dubai Police and Dubai Municipality.

Visiting local breweries in The Netherlands: a guide

Cities

Bhok Thompson

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February 6, 2023

0

sustainable beer tours, amsterdam, by bike — *You can do a sustainable beer tour in Amsterdam, by bike.*

The Netherlands is a country full of beauty, history, and culture. From the iconic windmills to the canals of Amsterdam, it has something for everyone to enjoy. But there is more to the Netherlands than just its beautiful landscape – it is also home to some of the best breweries. The unique beer-making tradition of the Dutch, as well as all the breathtaking sites, make this land amazing.

Many breweries here make unique and delicious brews, and visiting them is an excellent way to experience Dutch culture. And you can enjoy the places by driving through the scenic roads with Car Rental BB&L. They offer reliable and trusted car rental services for your trip, with different cars available for your suitable needs. If you are touring inside Amsterdam, however, cycling is the way to go.

Breweries in the Netherlands

Oedipus Brewing

Oedipus Brewin located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands offers a variety of craft beer styles to enjoy. Established by four friends, the brewery is primarily known for its unique labels like Thai Thai and Mama. It has its taproom and private beer-tasting options with personal tours organized professionally for its guests. To add to the beer taste, you can find the world’s best burgers from the chef here to relish. Visitors can mingle in the spacious brewery while enjoying their favourite beverage.

Brouwerij Troost

Whether you’re visiting for a weekend or planning an extension, the best Dutch craft beers at Brouwerij Troost can be one of the most rewarding experiences you’ll ever have. With over 3-4 branches spread all over the Netherlands, the brewery offers an exceptional experience to its customers. The seats are placed between the tanks, giving you a closer experience of the brewery. Filled with fun, delicious drinks, and unforgettable memories, it is a must-see place to visit.

Bird Brewery

Bird Brewery offers a unique atmosphere and creative brewing experience. Visitors can take part in beer tastings and enjoy the tasting room of Bird Brewery within the Diemer Forest. It offers over 20 speciality beers and a special menu that one can enjoy with nature sounds and bird watching outside. It also has a brew lab that allows visitors to taste test batches or new batches, or even those who love the process can try their hands on brewing.

Butcher’s Tears

Butcher’s Tears is a new and well-known brewery in Amsterdam-Zuid’s industrial space. It offers an array of distinctive brews specially invented for its customers. You will find the place crowded with enthusiastic locals and tourists. The tasting room is open on Sundays and Wednesdays for guests to relish the new flavours. It is also renowned for live music and games offered there for its customers.

De Bierfabriek

This world-class brewery is a host to some of the best house-brewed beers. Along with this, the brewery also has a restaurant that offers mouth-watering delicacies in barbecue style. The place is welcoming for friends and family, making it a perfect setup for any event or gathering. It is a delightful experience to try when visiting the Netherlands. It is a place to enjoy the varieties of beer and the best food in town.

Crocodile mummies found along the Nile

Karin Kloosterman

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February 1, 2023

0

crodocile found mummies, mummy crocodiles, Egypt — *The crocodiles found are believed to be sacred*

The secrets of ancient Pharaohs and Egyptians still have the power to astonish: a new research paper chronicles the discovery of 2,500 year crocodile mummies, preserved in a ritual dating back to the time of Sobek, a fertility deity worshipped by ancient Egyptians.

The mummies, which look like they could crawl out of the mud at any moment, are likely from two different species found in the region at the time. They were found in a tomb at Qubbat al-Hawa on the west bank shore of the Nile. If you want to dig into the science of the discovery it is outlined in PLoS One.

Crocodiles always played an important role in the Egyptian culture. Linked to a deity, they were also a food source and an important medicine –– their fat was used to treat aches and pains and balding. While mummified animals from other species have been found regularly such as ibises, baboons and cats, this is the first time adult crocodiles were found. “To hear you have 10 crocodiles in a tomb. That’s special,” said Bea De Cupere, an author of the study.

The study began back in 2018 when researchers found small tombs under a trash dump from the Byzentine era. Sandwiched between the dump and and four human burials (from 2100 BCE) were the crocs. Doesn’t this news just make you want to get out in the world, in the Middle East especially and explore? While there are many active sites and digs in countries like Israel, Egypt and Jordan, consider what’s happening in Saudi Arabia. Ancient sites now opening to the world and archeologists needed to explore them.

How dolphins and people fish together

Karin Kloosterman

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February 1, 2023

0

dophins leaping for fishers, fishermen in Brazil — *Researchers have confirmed how people and dolphins benefit from a centuries-old practice of fishing together in southern Brazil.*

Researchers have just confirmed what fishing together means for Brazilians and dolphins. They studied a centuries-old practice of dolphins and people fishing together in southern Brazil and learn it’s a symbiotic relationship which is now under threat.

The researchers report how bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus gephyreus) find schools of fish and herd them to the shallows, where the fishers stand and wait. The dolphins even use signals, usually by making a sudden deep dive, so the fishers know the perfect time to throw their nets.

When the process works in harmony, the fishers are more successful and in turn, their nets separate individual fish that are easier prey for the dolphins.

Unfortunately, the traditional practice is on the wane: artisanal fishing methods are dying out, and some fishers are turning to modern gear, such as trammel netting, that actually kills dolphins.

In the research paper, the scientists propose two possible conservation actions that are targeting fishers’ behavior that could prevent the erosion of this century-old fishery, thereby safeguarding one of the last remaining cases of human–wildlife cooperation.

In areas like the Red Sea in the Middle East, dolphins are disappearing and the situation will get worse once cruise-ships start landing on Aqaba’s shore and once Saudi Arabia starts building its mega-sites on the sea, like The Line and Sindala Islands. The Sinai Peninsula on the Egyptian side is a sane and safe place to go see wildlife at sea. Go while you still can. Message me for ideas of where to go.

Looking for more? A book called Lo-Tek, Radical Indiginism can help future researchers, fisher-people and low-tech lovers of the earth, permaculture, regenerative agriculture, refashion and preserve what the planet needs. If you buy the book through the link above a small part of the sales will go to Green Prophet allowing us to keep writing good news stories like this one. The research paper on the fisher study is on the link below.

:: PNAS

Managing global water rights, a Texan perspective

Water

Green Prophet Guest

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January 31, 2023

0

Environmental artist and sustainable designer Pablo Solomon lives in Texas, but he has roots in the Middle East. We need a spiritual transformation to change our planet’s greed, he says in response to Saudi Arabians not responsible for dry Arizona water wells. Below are Solomon’s ideas on safeguarding America’s and our planet’s water:

Water rights, ownership, stewardship, etc. are among the most complex issues we face.
Like almost all other laws we have, if people were honest, moral, fair and not so damned greedy no water laws would be necessary.

However, greed and exploitation seem to be part of the dark strand of human DNA? I contend that the big sin that Adam and Eve committed was as much greed as disobedience. God gave them everything they needed and only wanted them to refrain from one fruit—but no– they just could not resist.

I live on an historic ranch in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. We are in a region of Karst Topography which means limestone with a lot of springs and caves. However, we do not have the bountiful layers of underground water that you find along the coastal regions of Texas unless you drill very deep wells.

Our ranch has a wonderful spring. We drink the water and it is both tasty and healthful. It comes out of the ground at about 68 F year around–which in the 100 F Texas summers is a delight. We use only what we need and thank God for every drop. We collect rainwater and reuse our greywater. We have natural grasses that are drought resistant. We do not over-graze. When properly managed– cattle, goats and sheep can live in harmony on the natural grass and plants.

People by the hordes are leaving the deplorable conditions of the Texas big cities and those of other states created by mismanagement, over taxing, crime, pollution, etc. This in addition to the thousands a day crossing the border with Mexico.

This puts a strain on everything from water to education to health services to first responders, etc. Our area is trying to adjust and deal with this rapidly changing situation. It is hard to grasp just how fast this is happening. Big ranches are being bought up and divided into subdivisions. The very wealthy are putting in resorts and wineries.

So water is the big issue. Not only from new wells, but also from properties along rivers that have water rights going back 300 years to Spanish land grants that were reserved when Texas became an independent Republic in 1836 and when it joined the Union in 1845.

So some Texas counties are requiring wells to be registered and monitored and—of course—taxed.
This is a dilemma for those of us who hate government interference, believe in personal freedom and personal responsibility– but recognize that the greed of some is putting the total water supply in danger.

So I continue my battle to promote natural agriculture: growing crops where they should be grown –– not where enormous amounts of water must be provided from underground sources. Texas cities are expanding over some of the best farmland on the planet. Houston, which sits on the world’s best soil and has an abundance of rain now stretches 100 miles from one end to another and still expanding. This is pure ignorance.

We must desalinate sea water, collect dew, recycle water, etc.

The Native Americans lived by the springs on our ranch for at least 8,000 years and those down the road for at least 13,000 years. They did so by taking only what they needed and living in harmony with the land. Now people are watering their yards in deserts, pumping millions of gallons a day to process aluminum, polluting the rivers. While new technology will find some bandaids for the water crisis, it will take a spiritual revival to change greed and stupidity.

Wim Hof and cold water swimming

Health

Brian Nitz

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January 31, 2023

0

Wim Hof practicing his breathwork in the snow

“Are you going in?”

“The tide is good and the waves aren’t too big but…I never swim alone.” Whether it’s memorized as a mantra or sung as a gospel spiritual, the first rule of sea swimming is, “Never Alone!”

“We are here.”

There went my last excuse. There are plenty of real and imaginary reasons to avoid sea-swimming, from jellyfish to sharks to yuck! But we hadn’t had recent heavy rains or sewer overflows, jellyfish come with warmer water and overfishing has forced sharks to look elsewhere for food.

I hadn’t met these swimmers before but Eastern-Europeans come here more often in midwinter. One Eastern Orthodox tradition is to cut a cross-shaped hole in the ice for a baptism on January 19th. According to the Orthodox calendar this is when John the Baptist baptised Jesus in the river Jordan.

I regularly meet sea-swimmers from Ireland, Australia, Scotland and Ethiopia. Some barely wade in past their ankles, others swim several kilometers in training to cross the English Channel or from Scotland to Northern Ireland. Some are triathletes, others swim because they can’t walk or run. One confident swimmer sets her cane, folding chair and thermos mug a few feet above the water’s edge. She plans her swim so that a rising tide makes it easy for her to exit the water and warm up with a cup of tea. Sea-swimming was part of the new normal that came with Covid-19. It was safer than going to the gym or disco during a pandemic. We had a beautiful natural setting, healthy social distance, fresh air and fitness. It was the perfect activity except for one thing. It was cold.

Traces of diamond dust snow sparkled in the streetlights as we walked down to the rocky shore. I jog to this little beach so I seldom bring dryrobes, wetsuits or other bulky gear. But even us minimalist swimmers appreciate a towel, warm beverage and a swim safety buoy. A small flashlight inside the buoy’s waterproof cargo chamber turns it into a floating orange lantern like the Japanese Toro Nagashi which guide the souls of the dead.

“You have a light? We don’t go out far in the dark.”

“Neither do I but the light is nice don’t you think?”

“Beautiful.”

The stars were bright with temperatures below freezing which meant the water would be warmer than the air. Even so, the first moments can be painful. Sharp, someone had once called it. As if shards of ice were forming on the dark water of this sea whose Latin name Mare Hibernicum translates roughly to “Sea of Winter.” Temperatures in the Irish Sea range from 5°C to 15°C and Global warming is likely to make this part of the world colder.

We didn’t stay out long. Some cold water swimmers use the rule-of-thumb of 1 minute immersion per degree celsius. A 3mm wetsuit just about doubles this time. Not so much cheating as increasing the “comfortable” time between overcoming the cold-water shock and the onset of hypothermia for long enough to relax or swim for a few minutes. It’s like diving to depths where the bottom time is short. It isn’t impossible as long as we stay within our limits. sheet of ice, wim hof, cold water swimming in the UK, images of the sea, going in for a swim

We shared a warm cup of tea afterwards. The conditions are different every evening so we learn the patterns of the tides. Here when the moon is new or full, swimming is best at midnight and noon. A few days later a half moon means the tides are lower and better for swimming near sunrise and sunset. If you try this, find someone who knows local conditions and patterns of wind and tide.

“Have you heard of Vim Hof?” The man in a coffee van asked. “Wim who?” No I hadn’t heard of him. I was introduced to this thorough charity swims and practicing for a kayak capsizing class during Covid-19. I didn’t swim in the cold sea for any particular health benefits but because it was cold and it was there. It was even within our 5k Covid-19 lockdown range.

The coffee van man went on to tell me that he throws bags of ice into a bathtub in his garden. I was reminiscing about a geothermal tidepool in the Black Sea and wished our little swimming hole was heated. Maybe I’m a fair-weather cold-water swimmer.

Lord Byron is usually given credit for the popularity of sea-swimming for his swim across Turkey’s Dardanelles Strait from Europe to Asia. He was inspired by the legend of Leander who drowned while trying to swim to a guiding light held by his lover Hero on the far shore. Lord Byron was by no means the first. Plato believed that swimming was as important as reading and that cold water was better for health. There is some truth to that, cholera, red tide and jellyfish are among the hazards associated with warmer water. But there may be other health benefits Wim Hof and others are only beginning to understand.

Vim “The Iceman” Hof shares his knowledge and experience in breathing techniques, cold therapy and commitment. It’s hard to argue with someone from the Netherlands who held the Guinness World Record for swimming beneath ice, full-body contact with ice and a barefoot half marathon on snow and ice. He promotes health benefits of cold which contradict everything our grandparents told us about cold such as “You’ll catch your death!” The true story behind the 2017 film “12th Man” is a reminder that, as Vim Hof puts it, “You are stronger than you think you are.” This becomes clear after the first time you push through the wall of cold and come out the other side. It’s always a good idea to ask your doctor about any new physical activity but when I asked mine he said, “Sea swimming? I never see those people!”

There are many theories about these benefits, increased immunity and “brown (good) fat”, improvement in mood, and reduction of anxiety. All of this is difficult to measure in a double-blind study because it’s so obvious that cold water is cold. Water conducts heat away much faster than air. Most people experience cold water shock which causes their breathing and heart rate to spike. Over time, this becomes less of a shock- or at least a more familiar shock. The cold-water anti-anxiety theory says that the cold-water shock response makes our heart and breath rate rise, we gasp on the edge of panic just as we would with anxiety or a panic attack. By overcoming this reflex, we learn to overcome its other causes. The improved mood may have come from the exercise, being outdoors among a group of people who share this unusual pastime.

A group of swimmers in Gaza meet through the winter in the Mediterranean. Cold is relative. Mid-winter sea temperatures in that part of the Mediterranean rarely fall as low as the highest summer temperatures recorded here in the Irish Sea.

This time the high tide came near noon. There was a crust of ice on brackish tide pools but the Irish Sea was relatively warm. My swim watch showed 8°C but the skin of my wrist is usually a degree or two above water temperature. Once when I told an old-timer that it was 10°C he responded with disgust and disbelief. He used to come down here for a dip in the sea every day but a medical condition limited him to warmer months. 10°C seemed like sauna temperatures to him. “Swimmin Wimmin” later posted that the group training to swim from Dover to Calais reported the temperature at 7°C and as I write this, another cold snap brought sea temperatures back down to 5°C or lower. I waded past the stones thrown up by the most recent northeastern storm and splashed in, trying to balance the shock of throwing myself into deep water against the slow torture of introducing inch by inch of myself to the sea as I waded into water that grew deeper much too gradually. This is where even one meter waves can help. Trying to sneak into the sea? Surprise! Now you’re up to your neck.

Going into the cold water, wim hof, cold water swimming in the UK, images of the sea, going in for a swim — *Here I go*

The shoreline bluff cast long shadows in the December light. I swam out into the sunlight and around the buoy which marked a safe passage between the rocks to our narrow spit of sand. I swam back to shore and paused for a moment before going ashore to dry off. It was only when I was putting my hat and shoes back on that I remembered Wim Hof’s advice. Breathe in deeply but do not force my exhaled breath. Surely by Wim Hof’s standards I was doing it wrong, but that’s ok. I sipped some hot lemon ginger tea and jogged home to warm my feet and hands. I appreciated the hot coffee and warm shower more than ever before.

January’s seasonal produce celebrates nettles and sage

Food

Miriam Kresh

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January 30, 2023

2

Rainy, muddy winter brings out the best of January produce in the Middle East.

Our hot summers seem far away right now, but Middle Eastern winters are all too short. With ever-present water problems, we treasure every drop of rain and rejoice in the sight of succulent greenery springing up everywhere.

Wild edibles are at their best now. Leafy greens like Jerusalem sage, found in Arab markets, give you green energy to get through the brief cold season. Explore the shuk with Green Prophet and see what winter brings to the Middle Eastern kitchen.

Root vegetables like white and sweet potatoes, carrots, parsley root, turnips, radishes, and celeriac are full and fat. Purple carrots may be found in Arab markets. Try our Moroccan carrot salad with these purple carrots. Fennel bulbs are full and sweet now as well.

When root vegetables are excellent, a simple cooking idea is to chop them into coarse chunks, turn them over in olive oil and your favorite spices with salt and pepper, and roast in a medium oven till done. Spices like paprika and cumin lightly accent the earthy flavor of the vegetables without detracting from their sweetness. Turnips should be peeled before cooking, as their peel is bitter.

Leafy greens are beautiful and inexpensive now too; Swiss chard and lettuce for example. Notable in Arab markets is Marmia, or Jerusalem Sage, pictured below. The Middle Eastern Jerusalem Sage is not a cooking herb nor the decorative garden plant also known by that name, but Salvia hierosolymitana, an edible broad leaf suitable for stuffing. We have a Jerusalem sage recipe here.

Artichokes continue to flourish and come down slightly in price. Look for the tiny wild artichokes, Akub, in the coming few weeks – in hilly regions and Arab markets everywhere.

Vegetables. Although peppers and tomatoes are best and cheapest in hot weather, there are plenty of both in the markets now. For a foretaste of summer, make some Muhamarra pepper spread. Onions are looking a little sad, but there are plenty. Just choose each one carefully and don’t oversupply yourself, as they’re ready to sprout the minute you get them into your warm kitchen. Local garlic is sprouting freely; here in the Middle East we’re resigned to discarding some of the garlic we stored away to dry last spring.

Fleshy orange pumpkins, zucchini, and local squashes are good now, as are big purple eggplants. These big eggplants are excellent stuffed with bulgur, as in our recipe. The standard winter vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, and cabbages are dependably in good shape and with average prices.

Fruit. Strawberries have appeared, but their flavor is weak and they’re expensive. Not worth buying yet unless you can’t resist an early taste of springtime. Citrus fruit continues strong: lemons (and now’s the time to make our salty preserved lemons), oranges, loquats, clementines. Persimmons are in the markets, as are some passiflora.

Avocados are wonderful right now, although they’re a fruit that’s most often treated as a vegetable. Apples, being an autumn fruit that stores well, continue abundant and sweet. Avoid the imported varieties currently in the markets: they are juicy but flavorless. Who needs imported when local is so much greener (and sweeter), anyway?

hamutal dotan srawberries — Hamutal Dotan goes strawberry picking and then cans her jam. Learn how.

Herbs enjoy cool weather too. Fresh za’atar, oregano, and mint are good for using fresh and for drying. Watercress, sage, thyme, sorrel, parsley, coriander leaf, rocket, arugula, and basil are prime for flavoring foods and sauces. Mint is lovely now too, great fresh in tea and for drying.

Foragers’s Notes: Seek edible and medicinal herbs now; their best time of year has already started. Nettles are in full flush. Pick them carefully and hang upside down in small bunches to dry. Any soup or stew is improved with nettles, and a tea of 1 tsp. dried, crumbled herb per cup water, covered and left to cool for 4 hours, brings hemoglobin up (drink 1/2 cup 3x daily).

nettles with pink hipster background — Nettles make a great rinse for the hair and are replenishing in tea. Pick them before they flower like this.

Young milk thistle leaves also need care in picking as their prickly edges cut. But they’re a nutritious, valuable and free vegetable. Scissor off their edges before cooking. Mallows and chickweed are soft-leaved, abundant, and easy to eat. Cape sorrel, with its sour flowers and leaves, is still a favorite with small children (and grandmothers). Wild mustard can be seen everywhere now.

The tender young leaves and flowers are very good, if you like a sharp mustard flavor, especially with fish. Herbs with no great culinary but good medicinal value are out now too: cleavers, fumaria, shepherd’s purse, marigolds.

Edible or Toxic? Look for edible mushrooms after a rainy day, but always – always – be guided by a trustworthy and experienced mushroom hunter.

People sicken and die of mushroom poisoning every year. Mandrakes are beginning to push their rosettes up, but I advise admiring, rather than eating, their purple fruit when it does ripen in spring. It is toxic to a degree.

mushroom hunting and identification — Hunt for mushrooms with an expert. Only eat if you can ID them in a book and if your mushroom expert is certain they are safe. Raven Littleone is a mushroom expert we trust.

Recipes using these delicious winter vegetables on Green Prophet:

Hot topics

Finance

Marketing

Politics

Strategy

Hot topics

Finance

Marketing

Politics

Strategy

What is Corporate Sustainability?

Economic

Environmental

Social

Why Measure and Report on Sustainability Performance?

How to Select Metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Establishing Baselines for Performance Tracking

Generate Useful Reports

Develop an Effective Process for Measuring and Reporting

Strategies for Measuring and Reporting Your Organization’s Sustainability Performance

Final Thoughts

Define what employee engagement means to your organization.

Assess where your company stands in terms of employee engagement.

Create a plan to improve employee engagement at your organization.

Implement the plan and track progress over time.

Celebrate successes and learn from failures along the way.

What is digital transformation?

Major forces influencing the evolution of testing

Transformation of testing and QA

Testing beyond digital transformation

Conclusion

Definition of deflation

Causes of deflation

Deflationary spiral

Consequences of deflation

Approaches to fighting deflation

Is inflation better than deflation?

Breweries in the Netherlands

Oedipus Brewing

Brouwerij Troost

Bird Brewery

Butcher’s Tears

De Bierfabriek

Rainy, muddy winter brings out the best of January produce in the Middle East.

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