Summer Solstice Wattage Waste Watch
Here is a summer solstice challenge for northern hemisphere Green Prophet readers. How many outdoor electric lights are shining at the sunny sky during the longest days of your summer?
IKEA and UN Unveil Prefab Solar-Powered Refugee Shelters
The ongoing Syrian conflict has put refugees at their highest number since 1994 – a terrible year for the people of Rwanda and Yugoslavia; this year – in time for World Refugee Day – IKEA and the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) have unveiled a solar-powered home.
Ron Arad Immortalizes Six Fiat 500s by Crushing Them for Israeli Art Exhibit
Israeli artist and designer Ron Arad has expressed his love of Fiat 500s in a curious way as part of an art exhibition at the Holon Design Museum near Tel Aviv: he crushed them, then he embalmed them, and now they are hanging on the wall of an art gallery in his birth country.
4 Ways to Green Your Gold
Middle Easterners blessed with oil wealth love to flaunt their gold. Don’t be surprised to find gold bars sold at dispensing machine in Dubai or driving around Abu Dhabi as white gold Mercedes. But there are ways to green your gold. Gold is not just a stable element on the periodic table, it is also used […]
Refutrees Scratches Eco and Social Itches with Refugee Projects
Today is World Refugee Day. Some good news for a change: Refutrees is a new non-profit that’s turning the traditional aid-centric model of development on its head. These self-described “creativity agents” place particular focus on people displaced over the long-term. They’re currently working on projects for Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank and Lebanon.
New Hairy Stocking Fashion Thwarts Mingling Between the Sexes
Women weary of ogling men can now deflect attention with a pair of hairy stockings. The fuzzy fashion accessory is a runaway hit after pictures were posted on Sina Weibo, the Twitter of the Orient.
Turkey: Whopping 9GW of Solar Projects Submitted in Five Days
While political unrest continues to simmer in Turkey, elsewhere business continues apace. The country recently invited expressions of interest to participate in a Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) clean energy pricing scheme for solar energy generation projects larger than 1MW. Within a mere five days, 500 applications poured in.
Dubai Green Store Dubbed “World’s Most Sustainable Building”
Gundeep Singh used to own a yacht and a porsche before he turned over a green leaf to open what is now known as the “world’s most sustainable building.” Located at Sheikh Zayed Road in Al Barsha, Dubai, The Change Initiative stocks an array of eco-lifestyle products and recently earned LEED Platinum from the USGBC.
Venomous Lionfish Set to Invade the Mediterranean – Are You Ready?
A new “invasive species” of marine life may be on its way to the Mediterranean – one that is both attractive as well as unpleasant – and even poisonous. Known as the Lionfish or Pterois Miles, this colorful and exotic looking fish has already invaded both the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean.
THIS Miswak Toothbrush Founder to Launch Middle East AIGA Design Chapter at Beirut Design Week
The founder of THIS – a small design company that is distributing a contemporary version of the Miswack, an organic, biodegradable, all-natural toothbrush that could potentially render both toothpaste and toothbrushes obsolete – is launching a Middle Eastern chapter of the AIGA design hub at the upcoming Beirut Design Week.
Israel Solar Setback as Siemens Fires 150 from Solel Plant
Siemens, Germany’s giant electronics firm, appears to be in final stages of pulling out from its investment in Israel’s Solel Solar initiative. The four-year project began in 2009, when Siemens entered into an agreement to buy the Israeli solar company. The beleaguered solar energy projects company received what seems to be a death knell. Siemens […]
Taksim Redux? Lebanese Protest Over Loss of Beirut’s Ancient Jesuit Garden Park
In a Middle Eastern city with paltry green space, residents gather to object to new development that will destroy one of their few public parks. Sound familiar? Spin the globe, but this time stop at Beirut in Lebanon.
Environmental Protests of the Middle East Show Eco Awareness in Arab World
During the last six years, the words energy security, water security, and food security could be found a lot in the Arab media. Since most of the Arab media is controlled by the Arab regimes, the appearance of these items shows that the environmental awareness of the Arab regimes has been on the rise.
Qatar’s Eco-Fashion Design Winners from World Environment Day
World Environment Day festivities came to a close on Friday, June 7 in Qatar as participants in the celebration’s green competitions were crowned winners. The message of the celebration is to save resources for future generations, an important message for the emirate hooked on natural gas and cheap non-renewable resources.
Eco Tour the West Bank With The Abraham Hostel in Jerusalem
Now “Abraham” in Jerusalem will take those interested to meet Palestinians in the West Bank.