Subscribe
type here...
Subscribe
Home Blog Page 425

IRENA to Pitch Morocco as Africa’s Renewable Energy Pilot at Rio+20

Tafline Laylin
-
1
IRENA to Pitch Morocco as Africa’s Renewable Energy Pilot at Rio+20

solar energy, desert, MASEN, Rio+20, IRENA, Morocco, AfricaRenewing Africa’s Energy Future is the theme of an International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) side-event scheduled to take place today at the Rio +20 conference underway in Brazil. Co-hosted by the government of Mozambique, this high-level meeting aims to spark a renewable energy revolution throughout the African continent, which supports 15% of the world’s population that in turn consumes a mere 5% of its generated energy.

As part of their negotiations with leaders throughout Africa, IRENA is pitching Morocco as the continent’s pilot country. Which makes sense given that MASEN is set to announce the winner of a tender to design, finance, construct, operate and maintain a 160 MW CSP plant near the southern city of Ouarzazate. Although the Solar Impulse journey has stalled, delaying the announcement, Saudi’s ACWA consortium seems set to win.

Continue

Morocco solar energy deals led by Saudi Arabia

Susan Kraemer
-
0
Morocco solar energy deals led by Saudi Arabia

Shams 1

ACWA rumored to win the contract to build a 160 MW CSP project in in the south of Morocco.

“We are going to opt for the offer made by the consortium of ACWA,” a source close to Morocco’s solar energy agency MASEN told Reuters. The source asked not to be named pending an official announcement due later this week.

ACWA Power International also investing in wind energy in the Middle East is the Saudi-based developer, owner and operator of utility-scale water and power projects. Traditionally, the power had been produced by fossil fuels, for example for the oil-powered water desalination that Saudi Arabia is dependent on.

But in a turnaround on fossil energy for the Saudi company, ACWA has become a world leader in bids for CSP projects. Since CSP is a form of solar power that uses the same “back end” – a thermal power plant –  as a coal or gas or oil plant does to make electricity from turbines driven by steam, the expertise a fossil energy company brings is adaptable to this form of renewable energy.  The solar field itself that removes the need to burn fossil energy to make heat, accounts for about half the scope of the project, and can be developed by solar partners.

For this $500 million project ACWA has teamed up with the Spanish engineering firm Aries Ingenieria Y Sistemas and TSK Electronica y Electricidad for the design, finance, construction, operation and maintenance.

The news follows the success last month of the ACWA bid to build the Bokpoort CSP project 600 km west of Johannesburg, South Africa in its selection as a preferred bidder.

Related: Saudi Arabian Solar Chosen by South Africa

ACWA says that it plans to make solar development part of its portfolio, to reach 5 percent, over the next two years. Saudi Arabia itself now plans an extraordinary amount of solar power, with $109 billion slated for the development of enough solar power to power a third of its domestic consumption of electricity, which is growing so fast that it threatens to take down its ability to export oil. The Kingdom says it wants to grow this solar economy domestically, and has taken steps to begin that, with the first ever poly-silicon refining.

More energy news:
Tour One of the Largest Solar Thermal Projects on Earth
Masdar Awards $600 Million Contract for ‘World’s Largest’ Thermal Plant
Low Carbon Economics Aligns With the Sharia Law of Islam

 

Lebanon’s Finally Looking at Racism and Human Rights Abuses in the Face

Linda Pappagallo
-
3
Lebanon’s Finally Looking at Racism and Human Rights Abuses in the Face

abused woman lebanon
Racism in Lebanon has rarely been an openly discussed theme in the media. Now racism and migrant abuse are garnering visibility.

Racial intolerance in Lebanon  and the Middle East,  is indeed a pervasive problem which especially affects migrant domestic workers and refugees. In Lebanon, manifestations of racism and human right abuses are unfortunately prevalent and perpetuated due to the limited legal assistance provided to victims, the weakness and the indifference of civil society factors in dealing with these phenomena, and the absence of a criminalizing and binding law that controls racist practices and human right abuses.

The first step in reforming and creating a system that supports its victims and criminalizes offenders is creating awareness. This is something that has been largely missing in Lebanon. But thankfully racial intolerant practices are now  being unearthed and awareness is being raised through hunger strikes and movements like the Anti-Racism Movement (ARM) which highlight several examples of racist practices such as tourist resorts that place signs banning  “radios, foods and maids” and that deny entry of customers because of their skin color.

Continue

SeaOrbiter: Construction to Start on Renewably-Fueled Research Vessel

Tafline Laylin
-
1
SeaOrbiter: Construction to Start on Renewably-Fueled Research Vessel

SeaOrbiter, ocean, research, clean tech, renewable energy, solar-power, biofuel, NASA, Jacques Rougerie

After 12 years of finalizing details and garnering institutional support for his deeply ambitious ocean-going research vessel, Jacques Rougerie has announced that construction on the SeaOrbiter is slated to begin in October. Currently the center of attention at France’s Expo 2012 exhibit in Yeosu, South Korea, the $43 million vessel will also be the world’s tallest ship at 58 meters. Half of it will be submerged underwater to allow scientists to conduct close research of the planet’s most unexplored spaces and the entire project will be powered with renewable energy.

Continue

Like Us on Facebook and Win an Organic Cotton Dress

Tafline Laylin
-
32
Like Us on Facebook and Win an Organic Cotton Dress

Green Prophet, MuMu Organic, Facebook, organic cotton, fair trade, competition

It’s summertime, which means the ladies can finally break out their planet-friendly dresses and strut the streets in style, so we are giving you a chance to win the dress of your dreams from Greece’s very first organic clothing line. MuMu Organic is giving away one beautiful, handmade cotton dress made with the finest fair-trade materials (you get to choose) and a 50% discount on goods purchased from their e-shop to the first five Green Prophet readers who comment on this post.

How does it work?

i. First, tell us in the comment section at the end of this post why you think that buying organic clothing made in accordance with fair-trade principles is so important. 

ii. “Like” us here on Facebook and help us get to 6,000 likes by July 15th

 iii. Sign up here for our newsletter to get the best in environmental news from the Middle East and North Africa.

MuMu Organic was started in the beautiful Cyclades islands in 2009 by designer Athena Bentila and artist Roland Wakker. Their 100% organic cotton dresses are adorned with solid colors, playful patterns, charming colourful dots, and a very fine thread work pattern. They are available for purchase online and can be shipped anywhere in the world. Make sure to sign up for their newsletter for access to stay abreast of their awesome green happenings.

In order to be eligible to win the competition, readers must comment on this post, “like” us on Facebook and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Our judges will pick a name out of a hat and the winner will be announced on July 20, 2012. Although this one is for the ladies, gents are welcome to apply too. If you win, your significant other will thank you for the rest of the year!

To make it as easy as possible for you to enter, we suggest that you click on our Facebook and newsletter links so that they open in a new tab. Thanks for reading and good luck!

Emirati Student Designs a Green-Roofed Mosque Minus a Dome or Minaret

Tafline Laylin
-
7
Emirati Student Designs a Green-Roofed Mosque Minus a Dome or Minaret

green roof, eco-mosque, solar-power, architecture, religion, green design, sustainable design, eco-design

We are at the edge of one of the most important epochs in religious architecture. Architects working on mosque designs are bound by energy and resource constraints in addition to escalating temperatures and the threat of rising seas, but they are also restricted by the expectations of tradition. Which is what makes Suhail Mohammed Suleiman’s graduation project so remarkable.

Although mosques have not always had minarets, it’s uncommon to find a contemporary mosque in the Muslim world that does not bear the familiar spire from which the adhan is called five times a day. But Suleiman eschews the status quo, calling for rooftop gardens and solar panels instead. And he has dedicated his project to Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed – Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi in the hopes that it will be built on Saadiyat Island.

Continue

Does Wasted Groundwater Contribute to Rising Sea Levels?

Brian Nitz
-
0
Does Wasted Groundwater Contribute to Rising Sea Levels?

city water fall

Measuring sea levels in the face of global warming isn’t easy, but it’s important to understand on a global scale

Can wasted water contribute to rising sea levels? The answer is a global climate mystery.  Given the known increase in average global temperatures, the thermal expansion coefficient of water and the known loss of polar ice, the sea level should rise should be predictable.  But the actual rise is slightly higher than predicted. I’ll explain how this works. 

Continue

Sun-Believable Solar Nanotechnology Paint May Revolutionize Renewables

Faisal O'Keefe
-
1
Sun-Believable Solar Nanotechnology Paint May Revolutionize Renewables

robotic painter nanotech
Paint researchers at University of Notre Dame go green, and not just ‘cause they’re the “Fighting Irish”

A team of scientists and engineers led by Professor Prashant Kamat is generating energy from solar paint.  Building on recent advances in semiconductor nanocrystal research, they’ve developed a one-coat solar paint for designing quantum dot solar cells.

Energy is created when this paste, made of semi-conducting nano-particles of titanium dioxide mixed with cadmium sulfide or cadmium selenide, is applied to a conducting glass surface and annealed at high temperature. Cadmium is a highly toxic metal historically used as a protective coating for steel and as an ingredient in creating red, orange and yellow pigments. This spreadable liquid mimics traditional paint, it’s applied via brushwork or spray painting.

Continue

Google Resorts to Going Green With Trash Talk

Faisal O'Keefe
-
1
Google Resorts to Going Green With Trash Talk

google earth day logo
Gmail offers recycling tips. Apparently, they’ve been doing this for years.

What rock have I been under? I was doing some email spring cleaning during an especially snooze-inducing conference call, and there in my Gmail Trash file, up popped a random recycling tip.  Newspapers can be reused as wrapping paper for gifts. I’ve been painting the New York Times classified for decades in lieu of Hallmark’s pricey wrapping, so this naturally appealed. But I’m fairly immune to advertising pop-ups, so it’s curious that this caught my eye.

Apparently, Google doesn’t monetize space reserved for Web Clips in their Gmail Trash folder. Instead, it offers clever enviro-tips and recycling facts in that folder’s top bar.

Continue

All Electric Renault Spotted in Netanya, Israel

Maurice Picow
-
8
All Electric Renault Spotted in Netanya, Israel

israel electric car better place100% electric and driving around Israel: nothing plainer than that!

I’ve seen a Better Place Renault Fluence ZE all electric car in the suburban community of Ramat HaSharon, and more than five months after Better Place put 100 electric cars on Israeli roads I spotted another Renault Fluence ZE car in the city of Netanya. This spotting was in the south Netanya Sapir Industrial Zone, not far from that city’s IKEA furniture and accessory store.

Continue

Amman School Grows Tomorrow’s Activists

Faisal O'Keefe
-
4
Amman School Grows Tomorrow’s Activists
education, environment, Amman, Jordan, activism

Graduation by Demonstration is a school assignment on steroids.

Educators Michael Gohde and Molly Van Cleave dreamed up this novel project over three years ago as a means to exercise all the skills in an 8th grader’s backpack.

Middle school lays the foundation for high school. Kids learn to write. Really write. They learn to dig in, conduct serious research to support their ideas.  They tap into facts and use logic. They’re challenged by teachers and critiqued by their peers. Their minds open to new ideas. They become more effective communicators with key skills that will last a lifetime.

Amman’s American Community School is a melting pot of culture, religion, income and family make-up. The student body is a rich soup made up one part Americans; two parts Jordanians with a US connection; and a heaping spoonful of English-speaking Europeans, Asians, Africans and South/Central Americans with Jordan-employed parents. The faculty is equally diverse.

Continue

Istanbul Court Annuls Almost-Finished Roma Project

Julia Harte
-
0
Istanbul Court Annuls Almost-Finished Roma Project

sulukule istanbulThe district of Sulukule has been home to Istanbul’s Roma community since Byzantine times, but many of its residents were displaced to make way for a development project that started three years ago.

Sulukule was declared a target area for “urban transformation” by the Turkish cabinet in 2006. Six years, four lawsuits, and many evictions later, an Istanbul court has finally declared the project not to be in the public interest, reports Turkish independent media center Bianet. In the meantime, however, irreparable demolition and damage has occurred to the area and its residents.

Continue

Abandoned: Wild Animals Roam Apocalyptic Dubai (PHOTOS)

Tafline Laylin
-
5
Abandoned: Wild Animals Roam Apocalyptic Dubai (PHOTOS)

environmental art, photography, Richard Allenby Pratt, apocalypse, Abandoned, Dubai

We’ve never been able to shake the vision of an apocalyptic Dubai – a seemingly inevitable time when the scores of largely unoccupied skyscrapers inching towards the Gulf will be evacuated and swallowed up by the surrounding desert. And now renowned British photographer Richard Allenby Pratt has created a series of images called Abandoned that makes such a nightmare tangible. By inserting images of the odd lion, rhino, or kangaroo in the dry and broken landscape, Richard calls attention to the plight of the world’s creatures that we have so shamelessly plundered in our ceaseless devotion to acquisition.

Continue

Israel Takes Messianic Stance on the Rio+20 United Nations Conference

Leigh Cuen
-
2
Israel Takes Messianic Stance on the Rio+20 United Nations Conference

clean tech, solar energy, alternative energy, Rio+20, IsraelIsraeli diplomats and ministers have taken a quasi-Messianic tone as the Rio+20 United Nations conference approaches.”Our main message is that the world has the problems and challenges and Israel has the solutions,” said Galit Cohen, senior deputy director-general of Israel’s Environment Ministry. “Israeli innovation for the world.”

Israel has a reputation as an international hub of green technology. It has not only fostered a market for clean technology and sustainable innovation, but has also made these developments a national priority.

Continue

SafeMed Offers Course on Ballast Water and Invasive Species

Brian Nitz
-
8
SafeMed Offers Course on Ballast Water and Invasive Species

invasive species, ballast water, conservation, education, environment, SafeMed

Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority, Tunisia and Turkey were among the representatives at the SafeMed course on the environmental risk of ballast water last month. The course was offered in Malta and is designed to emphasize the effective implementation of the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention).

SafeMed is funded by a number of Mediterranean nations.  It is designed to encourage cooperation between members in maritime safety, security and the prevention of pollution and ecological damage from shipping. Ballast water exchanges are designed to facilitate safe and efficient shipping but if not carefully managed, they can spread invasive species around the world.

Continue
1...424425426...784Page 425 of 784

Have news to share? Renewable energy news, architectural, artificial intelligence, biotech, sustainable design ideas, eco-architecture, green travel?
Email us: [email protected]

Company

Headlines

How to Effectively Promote Your Sustainability Progress

0
Before promoting sustainability progress, companies must ensure their initiatives are genuine and measurable. Today’s audiences are increasingly skeptical of vague environmental claims, particularly as awareness of “greenwashing” has grown.

Dinner Venues In Sydney With the Best Views of Opera House & Harbour Bridge

0
Sydney is best known for the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. If you’re looking to enjoy dinner with views of these landmarks, here are some great options.

Saving Gourmet Wild Plants For The Future

0
Think of truffles, a gourmet wild food. The European...

Climate change traced in sea turtle shells

0
It's sea turtles which may in the end save islands in the Seychelles. They may also better help us understand climate change. Like rings on a tree, scientists have found a way to read sea turtle shells and how they are impacted by climate change tells a story. 

Newsletter

Get important news delivered directly to your inbox and stay connected!

© 2007 to 2026 Green Prophet, All Rights Reserved