Home Blog Page 295

Ten months, 7000 miles of earth, a bike, and a Tunisian passport

4

Tunisian cyclist environmentIn 2010 Arafet Ben Marzou, like an increasing number of Tunisians, began to reach his personal limits of frustration when he saw his home country digress towards a political, religious and economic system that was draining Tunisians from their liberty, thoughts and creativity. 

DIY chocolate fruit-nut clusters for Purim baskets

1

purim chocolate clustersThe Jewish holiday of Purim 2018 begins this coming Wednesday night, the 28th of February, and continues through Thursday the 29th. In Jerusalem and other ancient walled cities, the holiday is called Shushan Purim and occurs on  Thursday night, the 1st of March, through Friday.

Dubai’s huge green mosque polishing off for eco-Muslim masses

0

dubai-first-green-mosqueConstruction of the first eco-friendly mosque in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is nearly complete and Tayeb Al Rais, secretary-general of the Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation said the green mosque will soon open its doors to worshipers.

Tel Aviv hosts first-for-world Vegan Congress, without the blood

2

Vegan-friendly IsraelVeganism has gone viral in Israel – the number of devotees doubling in the past two years!  With over 2% of the population off meat and dairy, it’s perfect timing for animal rights activists to join up with no-animal-product eaters at an inaugural congress of the vegan movement, held last Friday in Tel Aviv.

Would you use glowing plants or glo-pigs to replace street lamps?

3

Bioglow plantBiotechnology company Bioglow has developed the world’s first autoluminescent (light producing) plants. The US-based company’s vision is developing ornamental plants that serve as green alternatives to electricity-consuming lights. These guys take “green” literally.

Reusable, stackable emergency shelters for Syrian refugees in need

3

refugee shelter design exo

Our breakaway story about collapsible woven shelters (click here) designed to restore dignity to refugees around the world was so popular, we decided to look around for similar projects.

Cue Exo emergency shelters by Reaction Housing, which has partnered with the Maram Foundation to deliver short-term security to Syrians in need.

Egypt’s ghostly abandoned theater – litter writ large

3

sinai theaterOn the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, tucked in the dusty foothills of an Egyptian mountain range, sit hundreds of seats in an abandoned outdoor movie theater. The arrangement is eerie, like a long-ago movie set awaiting Fellini to shout, “Azion!”

Dream green awards for oil companies

0

RS2093_manifa_satellite_20100706_0

Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil and gas producer and most valuable company estimated at $10 trillion USD, pockets three of the six environmental awards during the 2014 Offshore Arabia Conference & Exhibition, in Dubai. Did we hear right?

Gaza fisherman’s rated-X catch hidden by Hamas

13

God-Apollo-found-in-Gaza-seaAn ancient bronze casting of Greek god Apollo, hooked from the sea by a young Gaza fisherman, was seized by police and vanished from public view. Tug-of-war over a valuable artifact – or – coyness over risqué rendering of his frontal assets?  Authorities are as silent as a statue as to when it will reappear.

Watch 20 strangers kiss for the first time [video]

strangers-kiss-first-time This video gives you an amazing fly-on-the-wall experience when 20 people, complete strangers, kiss for the first time. Their reactions are priceless.

100 million trees dry, rather than green, the UAE’s western desert

Richard Allenby-Pratt, eco-art, photography, western desert, greening the western desert, desalination

In an attempt to ‘greenify’ the UAE’s Western Region desert, (some claim in the hope of creating a milder micro-climate in the UAE) more than 100 million trees have been planted, often as buffer zones like the one depicted, and irrigated, mostly, with precious groundwater. 

Egypt runs to Saudi for help over Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam

11

Ethiopia, Grand Renaissance Dam, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Gulf countries, Sudan, Ethiopia, Nile River, water issues

When all else fails, run to wealthy Saudi Arabia. That seems to be the prevailing thought among Egyptian officials at a loss to resolve the ongoing dispute with Ethiopia over Nile water rights. 

Iraq’s first coral reef in cold, polluted water shocks scientists

3

Iraq, first coral reef, war, pollution, Euphrates, Tigris, Shatt al-Arab River, Persian Gulf, global warming, climate change, nature conservation, marsh arabsScientists exploring a cold, polluted, and murky river mouth in southeastern Iraq were shocked to discover what is thought to be the country’s first coral reef.

Solar-battery eco-boats clean up stinky Sharjah lagoons

0

solar boats clean sharjah lagoonsThe Middle East’s first solar-powered boats set sail in Sharjah last month, each able to extract up 500 pounds  of floating debris from the city’s lagoons. This new fleet joins the existing “green machines” used by Bee’ah, a leading Middle East waste management company.

Collapsible woven refugee shelters powered by the sun

125

Abeer Seikaly, Woven Shelters, refugee housing, solar powered refugee shelters, nomadic dwellings, Kuwaiti design, humanitarian aid, social design, humanitarian designMore than 40 million people worldwide have been displaced from their homes and left to find shelter in strange lands. Maybe they find a tarp, or a tent, but their quality of life almost always remains dismal. To close this gap in need, Jordanian-Canadian architect and designer Abeer Seikaly designed a new kind of shelter.  One that allows refugees to rebuild their lives with dignity.