As the holy Islamic month of fasting approaches, why not prepare for a greener Ramadan now? There are literally a couple of days left till Ramadan starts, so I want to make a last ditch attempt to encourage Muslims to go green in the holy month of fasting. Whilst Tafline explored the darker side of […]
The cultural and political heart of Palestine, the city of Ramallah, wants to improve its green credentials As well as hosting Palestine’s first environmental festival this year and assisting the construction of the country’s first green city named ‘Rawabi’, Ramallah has aspirations to be an environmentally friendly city of its own. The municipality of Ramallah […]
Kanafeh: sweet cheese filling under a crunchy topping. A favorite Ramadan dessert. Ramadan 2011 begins after sunset on July 31st. One of the many luscious traditional pastries served during the night meals of Ramadan month is kanafeh. Subtly flavored with lemon and rosewater, doused with syrup, it makes up for all the calories burnt off […]
Can Wadi Rum cope with a predicted influx of tourists attracted by its World Heritage status? In June, the Jordanian desert valley of Wadi Rum joined the UNESCO World Heritage List, with a decision which has been much predicted since the end of 2010. According to Green Prophet’s Tafline Laylin, writing in September 2010, UNESCO […]
Led by Berber guides, five Australians and I head out on the Chebbi dunes outside Merzouga, Morocco for an unforgettable night under star-filled skies. Yesterday, Merzouga in southern Morocco (a stone’s throw from the border of Algeria) was so hot that I almost passed out in the internet cafe where I worked all day. There’s […]
Lack of space in urban environments often means that farming opportunities are limited, but a technique of farming indoors and upwards may resolve this problem Over a week ago, I had the opportunity to attend an event featuring Dickson Despommier, the grandfather of vertical farming. As Green Prophet editor Karin explains in an interview with […]
Weather paradox: severe drought in south with flooding elsewhere With 122 degrees in New York City, intense drought and wild fires in several American states, and mass starvation due to abnormal drought in the Horn of Africa. Middle Eastern countries like Yemen are “running dry” , and ones like Egypt are in danger of […]
Ford offers up another $100,000 to get green initiatives in the Gulf and Levant rolling. Applications are due 10 September, 2011. After writing a visceral post about environmental organizations that accept money from large corporations, in protest of greenwashing, Arwa interviewed the Emirates Diving Association, who explained their decision to accept $10,000 from Ford. One […]
Despite disgusting facilities and maltreatment of wild animals, Egyptian zookeeper Ahmed-Al Timsah’s permit has been renewed. When Apartheid ended officially in South Africa, racism didn’t go away. Likewise, though we had hope that a post-revolution Egypt would usher in a period of more humane treatment of animals, Egypt remains a corrupt society with a terrible […]
Lebanon could get a lot cleaner thanks to a brilliant plan devised jointly by Nestle Pure, Spinneys, and Servicorp. That’s right. Nestle Pure, Spinneys, and Servicorp are planning to save Lebanon from the plastic waste that kills tens of thousands of Mediterranean creatures each year by introducing reverse vending machines to certain Spinneys locations throughout […]
The Israeli cabinet has just announced a decision to invest millions in renewable energy projects in the controversial Israeli settlements of the West Bank Around a week ago, the Israeli government announced that 10% of its renewable energy quota would be going to the West Bank. This means that literally millions (some have put the […]
Inflatable wind turbines are lighter and cheaper than heavy conventional ones Following a number of Israeli clean technology companies being winners in the General Electric Company’s Green Innovation Marathon, GE has announced plans to establish a “Green Tech Shop” in Haifa in which a number of renewable energy and other green technology projects will be developed […]
Muslim, Jewish, and Christian leaders are meeting today in Jerusalem to discuss climate change and launch the new Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development. Leaders of the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian faiths will be convening this morning in Jerusalem to speak out about climate change at an Interfaith Climate Change Forum. Current environmental conditions in the […]
Has a real remnant from Jerusalem’s Second Temple come to light? For twenty-odd years, people stood in front of a glass cabinet in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and thrilled to view a small ivory pomegranate. It was supposed to be part of the High Priest’s sceptor in Solomon’s Temple (516 BCE to 70 EC). Sadly, […]
The public was ignorant about the the dangers of smoking till the 1960s. The fashion for meat glue in food seems ominously similar. Finding a scientist to talk about meat glue wasn’t easy. I spoke to neurologists, biologists, pathologists, the head physician at a local hospital, and biochemists. None had even heard of transglutaminase. When […]