Syria, a country whose authoritarian government has often been rife with corruption and human rights violations, has again reshuffled its cabinet as President Bashar al Assad attempts to deal with a number of problems his country now faces. With the economy being one of the top issues, some of the first “changes” appear to be […]
(Cousteau interviews students from the Arava Institute in Israel. It’s a unique learning center that offers environment degrees to students from around the world.) We’ve been following Alexandra Cousteau as she documents her travels in Israel and the Middle East. In this video recently uploaded, she interviews students at the Arava Institute in Israel where […]
Once again, in the UAE Gulf state of Abu Dhabi, the Zayed Future Energy Prize contest is open for entries on new and innovative projects in various forms of alternative energy. Inaugerated in January 2008 during the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, the contest, under the sponsorship of the Abu Dhabi government as […]
This week marks International Composting Awareness Week, a week meant to be celebrated in Canada and the US, but which as far as I’m concerned should be truly global in scope. Though I’ve been in transit on the West Coast, I’ve commemorated the week by throwing my food scraps in the city issued scrap […]
Israeli nature advocates are proud of their efforts at both nature conservation and cultivating a love of hiking among the people. However, an article this week in the Boston Globe points out that creating nature preserves often means expelling the indigenous people who once lived in them. Author Mark Dowie writes that the practice began […]
This article is not first one on Green Prophet dealing with water and other beverages sold in polyethylene and polystyrene bottles; and it probably won’t be the last either. But the increasing environmental damage, as well as health hazards being caused by this method on containerizing beverages, especially H2O, is something that should be dealt […]
Explore where no man has gone before, with tentacles? Now building the world’s first robotic octopus, and the world’s first soft-bodied robot, Israeli “octopus” scientists have joined a seven group international team to help marine scientists explore nooks and crannies on the ocean floor, like an octopus would. Instead of dropping down clunky metallic submarines […]
After the recent Jerusalem elections Green Prophet hailed the new Mayor Barkat for placing an environmentalist so prominently on his list. Jerusalem Mayor Barkat not long ago presented his master plan for the city for the next two decades, and top on his list is to green the city. His plan focuses on environmentally friendly construction […]
If you’ve heard about the demise of the kibbutz movement, then you may also know that financially strapped communal farms have recently climbed out of debt by building suburban-style detached housing developments and selling them to upwardly mobile Israelis. Suburbanizing kibbutzim and moshavim (village settlements), along with several new suburban-style towns like Shoham (near Ben […]
While in the center of the country, the concern is to improve food quality, public transportation and vehicle efficiency, in the periphery Israel’s decision-makers worry about building a satisfying enough environment to attract and keep young people who otherwise flee to Tel Aviv. This reality was clear at a conference this morning on industry in […]
Afghan farmers get “burned out” as government tows to US pressure. But for poppy farmers, it’s poppies or starvation. Wheat crops, or biofuel crops cannot compare in value. Molar (not his real name) is an Afghan farmer living in the central Hazzrajat Province of Afghanistan. His 60 hectare farm along the Helmand River has been […]
(Monsoons in India channel pollution to potable water sources, contaminating water everywhere.) Monsoons in India are both a blessing and a curse. As the heavy rains pour down, they provide the season’s much-needed water for irrigating crops. But monsoons also wipe out entire villages. They cause mudslides, and contaminate potable water. Diseases fester and spread […]
(ZenithSolar’s Jetson-style sunshine-collecting DPV – concentrating photovoltaic – dishes in the Negev Desert) As the old saying goes: necessity is the mother of invention. And nothing appears to be truer than in the field of alternative forms of energy, especially solar energy. An Israeli company, Zenith Solar, has announced the invention of a new type of […]
(Aboriginal men in Australia mark manhood by going on a long distance trek. Israelis too, are on a “walkabout,” but for love and the environment.) Although a lot of people are getting into the act for environmental awareness in Israel. An organization that calls itself Walk About Love has decided to go about this in […]
Millions of Muslims go on the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina every year. A new high speed train planned by Saudi Arabia is bound to make the journey smoother, cooler, and much more environmentally-friendly. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has long been thought of as a country where white gowned sheikhs drive luxury […]