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Abu Dhabi puts great effort in giving sea turtles their rightful home

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hawksbill sea turtle

Some people make injured sea turtles human-engineered solutions like this turtle that got new flippers but most sea turtles are just getting caught in fishermen’s nets or choking and dying from plastic without us even noticing. World sea turtle populations are steadily declining, but at some amazing sites in Abu Dhabi we still have hope. 

Energy-aware Dubai airports pre-empted Earth Hour – why not all year?

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Dubai Airport Earth HourDubai International Airport (DXB) switched off all non-essential lights across its three terminals for 24 consecutive days to mark this year’s Earth Hour.  It’s sister airport, Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International, located 20 miles south west of Dubai, did the same. 

Abu Dhabi’s Masdar appoints new leaders

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Masdar CEO and Chairman
Masdar CEO Sultan Al Jaber is moving on to “greener” pastures, according to a statement released by Abu Dhabi investment giant Mubadala. The firm has appointed Al Jaber as its chairman; Masdar’s new CEO has been identified as Ahmad Belhoul.

Turning words into energy at ‘Powering the Middle East’ in Jordan

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Powering the Middle East, renewable energy, energy summit, Jordan summit, renewable energy, government and private sector meet, PPP, Middle East energy, Many conferences end in handshakes and no action, but Powering the Middle East aims to close deals. This two day summit in Amman hosted by HRH Prince Assem Bin Nayef from Jordan will connect energy and water players in the private sector with government officials capable of turning words into real projects. 

Retractable Mashrabiya sunscreens for secret Middle East media towers project

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REX, Media Headquarters, mashrabiya, solar gain, middle east, arab architecture, arab design, LED lights, blooming sunshades
New York’s REX architecture studio has designed a pair of skinny media towers that feature ‘blooming’ Mashrabiya sunscreens that protect against excess solar gain. Mashrabiya is an old Arabian architectural practice to passively cool hot desert buildings.

Pomegranates and oranges take this cake! A recipe

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pomegranate cake recipe

Coming up on my fourth year of taste-testing my way through Jordan – where the seasonal foods of the Levant pack a triple punch of being delicious, healthy and affordable – I amp up the smart-eating quotient by always avoiding desserts, filling up on marvelous mezzes and entrees because regional sweets leave me flat.

Phenomenal time lapse video makes Doha look like magic

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Want to see a city on “speed” grow? This time lapse video captures Doha as it expands rapidly for the 2022 World Cup  in soccer. 

No male escort? Sheesha extinguished for Saudi Muslimahs!

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Arab-ban-on-female-shisha-smoking

Restaurants and cafes in Jeddah have posted signs warning women that if they want to be served sheesha, their mahrams (male guardians) must be at their side.

Glowing highways make it look like we’re driving through eco-fairytales

Smart-Highway-glowing-lines-Studio-Roosegaarde

Glow-in-the-dark roads recently debuted on a 500 meter stretch of Netherlands highway!  Brought to you by the guy behind glow-in-the-dark trees.  He’s been burning the candle at both ends – not so much to increase light levels, more to roll out new applications of his natural luminescence designs.

Israeli designs fashion hats good enough to eat

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maor zabar hats

An Israeli costume designer has created a series of hats that look good enough to eat, serving up 3-course millinery that pretty much covers soups to nuts. File this under “silver linings” – Maor Zabar cooked up his headpieces after being diagnosed with Crohn’s disease.  

3-D technology gives birth to lab-grown vaginas

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lab-grown vagina

Dubious developments allow us to print 3-D gunsgrow “hamburgers” in a petri dish, and design environmentally responsive haute couture. Now a new application of technology radically transforms the human experience!  Four women have had new vaginas surgically implanted; organs fully lab-grown.  

Paraplegic sea turtle lived without flippers for 4 years, then he got these

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israel turtle flippers

A turtle that washed up on a beach in Israel was found with his two left flippers dangling hopelessly by his side – they had been severed by sharp fishing lines. The Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Michmoret named him Freedom and kept him for four years.

Google Earth reveals 10-year impact of 39 square mile desert mangrove project

Dredging, Richard Allenby-Pratt, abu dhabi, mangrove, desert mangrove, environmental photography, environmental investigation, environmental degradation

The ‘historical imagery’ function on google earth is particularly helpful in tracking changes to landscapes since about the turn of the millennium when satellite imagery became commonly available.

Dubai unveils lamp-shaped ‘Aladdin City’ towers

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aladin-city-dubai

Three lamp-shaped towers make up the new Aladdin City that is being constructed in Dubai as part of an effort to boost the city’s profile ahead of the 2020 World Expo. I wonder what the genie thinks?

Sand and Salt Siege film to highlight Tunisia’s eco struggles

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A Siege of Salt and Sand

A Siege of Salt and Sand (trailer), a new documentary film about Tunisia, promises to be an important motivator in redefining the current political agenda towards adapting to climate change and mitigating environmental issues in Tunisia.