In a new survey by the French energy company Veolia, they found that 86% of Saudi residents in 2024 believe that climate change is real, compared to 59% in 2022, indicating a growing acknowledgment of climate change within the population.

These findings are part of the second edition of the Barometer of Ecological Transformation, a biennial survey conducted by Veolia in partnership with Elabe to understand the world’s views on existing solutions for addressing the triple challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. The results of the global study can be found here (links to PDF).

Other Saudi Arabia data highlights on environmental issues:

• 52% of Saudi residents feel exposed and vulnerable to pollution-related illnesses
• 43% of Saudi residents feel exposed and vulnerable to migration due to pollution and climate factors
• 86% of Saudi residents in 2024 believe that climate change is real, compared to 59% in 2022
• 58% of Saudi residents think that the future is still in our hands, and we can still limit climate disruption and pollution
• A majority of Saudi residents would consume food (68%) and water (58%) grown from recycled water

The positive increases in belief and awareness regarding climate change and ecological transformation in Saudi Arabia between 2022 and 2024 reflect the efforts in the Kingdom as well as the region to prioritize sustainability and an emissions-free future – underscored by two COPs being held in the region, the UAE’s Year of Sustainability Initiative, and the Saudi Green Initiative. This year Saudi Arabia hosted the UN World Environment Day.

According to the latest edition of the survey, the perception of climate disruption risk being serious and immediate increased from 56% in 2022 to 67% in 2024, showing a heightened awareness of the urgency of addressing climate issues.

Read related: This Saudi startup is growing food on depleted aquifers

In an encouraging sign of progress, 78% of respondents in Saudi Arabia believe that there is sufficient discussion about implementing solutions to mitigate pollution and climate disruption. Acceptance rates for green solutions have greatly improved, with recycling initiatives and water treatment receiving moderate support while significant acceptance is evident in adopting measures like consuming food (68%) and water (58%) grown from recycled water.

This exclusive study aligns well with Veolia’s 2024-2027 strategic plan GreenUp, which aims to stimulate innovation and growth to depollute, decarbonize, and regenerate our resources. The drivers behind the GreenUp strategy will uniquely position Veolia to meet the challenges raised in the recent survey.

Globally, more than 66% of the world is gripped by ecological fears, with respondents feeling vulnerable to risks linked to climate change and pollution. The findings highlight widespread recognition of climate change (89%) and a prioritization of health over cost in decisions regarding water, waste, and energy (97%), with two-thirds foreseeing greater costs from inaction and expressing openness to health-centric solutions despite potential cost increases.

The survey was conducted in 26 countries across 5 continents, involving over 29,500 people. Collectively, these countries represent nearly 60% of the world’s population, 67% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and 77% of global GDP.

Veolia is a French transnational company with activities in three main service and utility areas traditionally managed by public authorities – water management, waste management and energy services

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A mechanical ventilation heat recovery or MVHR system is based on a heat exchanger that transfers heat from outgoing to incoming air in your ventilation system. These systems can dramatically improve your home’s indoor air quality by increasing the turnover of air while thoroughly filtering it. They are also one of the greenest technologies you can add to your home. Let’s learn why installing an MVHR unit is a great way to save money on your heating bills.

It Reduces Your Overall Energy Needs

Not only can an MHVR help you save on energy bills in the winter, but it can do so all year long as well. When incoming air is partially heated by the outgoing air, you don’t need to turn the thermostat higher to warm it even further. In the summer, the incoming air is cooled, and the heat is pulled from the outgoing air.

Furthermore, the MVHR system can capture latent heat that is otherwise lost to the atmosphere like exhaust from your clothes dryer or the hot steam from your last shower. This is why a heat recovery ventilation system can reduce your heating and cooling needs by up to a third.

It Keeps Your Home’s Temperature Consistent

An MVHR system can reduce your heating, cooling, and ventilation needs in other ways. For example, you can add a larger vent and fan to the bathroom or kitchen to pull that hot, humid air and distribute it throughout the house. This can eliminate the need to turn on ventilation fans to vent that hot, wet air outside.

Those types of fans may pull heated or cooled air out of your home, forcing you to run the heaters or to make up for it. Furthermore, the MVHR system distributes heat, eliminating hot and cold spots in most homes. This may mean you don’t have to run a heater in the coldest room of the house. If you have several radiators in your home, the MVHR system will help distribute that heat throughout the house, reducing the need to rely on supplemental heaters.

It Improves Your Home’s Air Quality

MVHR systems rely on extensive air filtration. This allows you to remove odours and dust from your home without having to open a door or window, and thus reduce the amount of hot air that escapes the house.

The high rate of air exchange will also prevent moisture from building up inside the house. High humidity can make the air feel uncomfortable but also exacerbate certain conditions. In many cases, people will choose to turn on a dehumidifier or open a window, which puts more demand on your heating system. If MVHR systems remove that excess moisture, you won’t need your heating to make up for it.

Depending on the system you install, it may transfer humidity from the outgoing to the incoming air as well. Best of all, it will prevent a build-up of mould and dust in a home. This is why an MVHR system is a great choice for those with asthma or allergies.

MVHR systems are an integral part of the modern energy-efficient home and should be considered by all homeowners. Improving your indoor air quality and overall quality of life is just the cherry on top.

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Solar powered flight has been in the news ever since the sun powered Solar Impulse 2, piloted by Swiss adventurer Bertrand Picard and his associate Andre Borschberg, flew around the world in 2015 to 16. This flight, relying solely on wing mounted solar panels, took over a year to complete before finally landing in Abu Dhabi in July, 2016. Equipped with 4 engines and 17,000 solar cells on its 72 meter wingspan, Solar Impulse 2 was based on an earlier model, Solar Impulse, that made history in June, 2012, when it flew from Switzerland to Casa Blanca Morocco.

Both Solar Impulse flights flew at a relatively low altitude, however; due to the pilot’s cabin being unpressurized. A new solar powered test plane, SolarStratos just completed a successful test flight in Switzerland and is eventually hoped to fly as high as 25,000 meters. Compared to the Solar Impulse models, which weighed 2.3 tons, the much smaller SolarStratos weighs just 450 kg (992 lbs) and is only 8.5 meters in length. The plane is also unpressurized, but the pilot will make up for this during a high altitude flight by wearing a pressurized spacesuit.

Flying to such high altitudes in the Earth’s stratosphere presents a new set of challenges, however. Weather conditions and temperatures as low as -70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees Fahrenheit) are totally different than those experienced by the flights of Solar Impulse 1 and 2.

This feat will pose huge technical and human challenges says Swiss adventurer Raphael Domjan, who is sponsoring the project. The initial test flight, by Swiss pilot Damian Hischier, only few to an altitude of 300 meters (1,000 ft) and lasted just 7 minutes.

The SolarStratos has a way to go before being able to reach altitudes of over 10,000 meters, however. The idea of doing this is to “harness the sun’s treasure”. The flight aims to do something that up to now has only been possible using technology powered by fossil fuels. We can only wish them well.

Read more about solar powered flight:
Solar powered plane (finally) completes round the world flight
Would You Fly by the Sun and Solar Impulse?
Morocco to Welcome Solar Impulse pilots tonight

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Colas’ Wattway technology differs from other PV solutions in that it does not require need the existing road infrastructure to be re-engineered. Instead, thin PV panels are applied directly on the pavement. The concept aims to generate green electricity while also allowing uninterrupted traffic flow.

The 7-mm-thick panels are made from layered solar cells – similar to those used in flexible roof membranes – encapsulated in a resin substrate which keeps them rainproof. The composition allows the panels to adapt to thermal dilation and contraction in the underlying pavement. All electrical wiring is embedded within the road surface and an anti-slip surface made from crushed glass tops the panels. The rugged system is capable of withstanding the weight of an 18-wheeler truck.

“We wanted to find a second life for a road,” Philippe Harelle, the chief technology officer at Colas SA’s Wattway unit, told Bloomberg. “Solar farms use land that could otherwise be for agriculture, while the roads are free.”

In August, French energy minister Ségolène Royal inaugurated a new panel manufacturing plant located adjacent to Colas’ headquarters in the village of Tourouvre, in Normandy. The panels were previously manufactured at the Institut National de l’Energie Solaire (INES) laboratory in Le Bourget-du-Lac, but the new facility is expected to speed up the production. Following five years of research and lab testing, a pilot project is underway near the plant to create a 1-kilometer-long solar road that will generate enough electicity to power public street lighting for a town of 5,000 inhabitants.

Colas is also constructing 100 field test sites. One site will be used to charge electric vehicles, another will power a small hydrogen production plant. Wattway has also installed its panels to illuminate electronic billboards.

“We need to test for all kinds of different traffic and climate conditions,” said Harelle. “I want to find the limits of it. We think that maybe it will not be able to withstand a snow plow.” The manufacturer says that a Wattway panel can last at least 10 years depending on the traffic, which speeds up wear. If the section is not covered by heavy traffic – a stadium parking lot for example – then Wattway panels can last roughly 20 years.

The French government has stated plans to pave 1,000 kilometers of road with solar panels over the next five years, and is supporting panel development with €5 million in state funding. When the project is complete, the electric roadways will be able to supply power for about 8% of the French population, or 5 million people.

The next two installations will be in Calgary, Canada and in Georgia, USA. Wattway also has projects planned in Africa, Japan and other European Union nations.

In the past five years, prices for solar technology prices have plummeted, making solar an economical alternative to fossil fuels. But costs of the solar roadway may remain an obstacle to wider commercial application. As reported by Bloomberg, a square meter of solar road (including monitoring, data collection and installation) currently costs €2,500. Wattway says it can make the price competitive with traditional solar farms by 2020.

As for incorporating PV in civil infrastructure, Bloomberg New Energy Finance analyst Pietro Radoia said, “On roads, I don’t think that it will really take off unless there’s a shortage of land sometime in the future.”’

Colas will include Wattway panels in their product line in 2017, even offering larger sized panel surfaces. A spokeman said they plan to commercialize the technology in 2018, and expect to have the product available within the next three years for installation on private roads and driveways.

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Finding a viable alternative energy source to create low cost bio energy may be closer than we think. Some of these sources include energy from trash and algae as fuel for our future energy needs. Another alternative energy source, comes from a “product” usually discarded as a waste substance: urine. The use of urine as a
fuel source was previously written about when a group of high school students in Lagos Nigeria created a practical way to separate hydrogen from urine and then use it to power a generator to create electricity.

Going one step further, a research engineer from the University of Sorona State in Northern Mexico has found a way to use urine’s natural ability as an electrolyte to separate to separate oxygen from hydrogen in common urine and create a viable biofuel.

The engineer, Gabriel Luna-Sandoval, claims to have invented a machine that transforms urine into a biogas that can be used to provide power to heat water in kitchens, bathrooms, and other household uses. The conversion process developed by Dr. Luna-Sandoval involves inserting electrodes into a square plastic container holding the urine. The charged electrodes then separate oxygen and hydrogen from the urine with the hydrogen being used as a biogas.

Luna-Sandoval’s prototype device creates enough biogas to provide His invention provides enough heat for a 15-minute hot shower, using only 15 to 20 millilitres of urine. Cooking food like beans for one hour requires only 70 to 130 millilitres of urine, he says.

He is also thinking about the oxygen separation process as being beneficial for astronauts in space travel. “An average adult person “produces” around 1.4 liters of urine a day, which normally is thrown away. Why not put this waste material to good use, he says. The device Luna-Sandoval created has received attention from the government’s National Science and Technology Council, which featured it in a recent article.

This is just another idea for making use of a waste substance that is normally flushed down the toilet.

Read more on alternative energy ideas:
Algae returns as fuel for our future
Pee power is making electricity from urine in Africa
Energy from Trash to Become Reality with $17 Million Israeli Investment

Photos of Gabriel Luna-Sandova and his urine processing device by phys.org/news 

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Solar Impulse, the world’s first intercontinental solar energy powered aircraft, finally touched down last month in Abu Dhabi after completing a round the world flight. The flight took more than a year to complete, after originally taking off from Abu Dhabi in March, 2015.

The 2.3 tonne aircraft was piloted by Swiss adventurer Bertrand Picard and his associate André Borschberg, another Swiss adventurer, businessman and pilot. They managed to spend 23 days of actual flight time in the air by alternating piloting the craft, which has a wingspan of 72 meters (236.22 ft). Powered by 72,000 solar cells, the flight was challenged by adverse weather conditions, over heating storage batteries, and extreme cases of fatigue due to having to fly in a cramped, single seat cabin. But it was a landmark moment for history.

Solar Impulse 2 is a similar version of the previous solar powered plane, Solar Impulse, that made history when it flew a non-stop flght from Madrid, Spain to Rabat, Morroco and back again in July, 2012. This flight, part of which occurred during the night, helped to show that solar powered flight is possible under the right conditions. The Solar Impulse 2 flight, which also included night flying, often flew at an altitude of up to 29,000 feet during the daytime and glided at a lower altitude of 5,000 feet during the night to save energy.

The last leg of the journey, from Cairo to Abu Dhabi, was especially difficult due to a large amount of air turbulence: “It was very inspiring though as I neared my final destination, knowing this had been accomplished without the use of conventional fuel” says Picard.

Before the Solar Impulse project began, Picard, together with another adventurer, Brian Jones, made history by being the first persons to fly around in earth in a high altitude balloon. This journey, in March, 1999, lasted 19 days, 21 hours and 55 minutes.

The Solar Impulse 2 journey was plagued with difficulties: financial ones as well as mechanical difficulties. These included having to be grounded in Hawaii during the winter of 2015 to 16 because of overheating batteries. Flying the plane was often extremely difficult due to the cramped flight cabin and not having heating or pressurization. The single pilot seat also had a built-in toilet.

Despite these difficulties the flight gave the men a great sense of achievement of flying around the earth, powered only by the sun: “Now I really want to leverage this demonstration and create a world council for clean technologies,” says Picard, who hopes this feat will help bring the contribution of alternative energy to help combat the ravages of climate change.

“This is a historic day for humanity,” said UN Secretary Ban K. Moon.

Indeed says Green Prophet!

More articles on solar powered flight:

Would You Fly by Sun and a Solar Impulse?

World’s First Solar-Powered Transcontinental Flight in Pictures

Solar Impulse Plane Finally Conquers the Atlas Mountains

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In a region where the renewable energy market is still small, despite a natural and seemingly perpetual gas shortage, one startup is making big strides.

KarmSolar is an Egyptian company dedicated to bolstering solar energy use. It is now the first company in Egypt with official permission to sell solar power off-grid. The Egyptian Electricity Regulatory Agency granted the license in December 2015.

After receiving the nod of approval, KarmSolar finalized a 1-megawatt solar energy installation at a dairy farm in Egypt’s west.

The company was founded in 2011. Just two years later, it created MENA’s first high-capacity solar-powered water pumping station, able to lift water from record-breaking depths – an innovation designed for the desert.

KarmSolar’s company compound is itself in the Western Desert and fully powered from the sun. The company’s conscientiousness about the environment doesn’t stop at solar power. The buildings of the compound were constructed entirely from locally-sourced, environmentally-friendly materials.

A great video on the Climate Heroes website shows us KarmSolar in action and features three ambassadors from the company. Yumna Madi, head of the business department, reminds us that solar power is so refreshingly simple. It’s so direct – involving point A and point B, the sun and some sunbathing solar panels. Egypt’s location on the solar belt makes solar power an obvious winner.

Solar power provides cost-competitive energy solutions, helps to mitigate climate change, and encourages job creation (KarmSolar started with four people and grew to a team of about thirty.) With KarmSolar on the rise, Egypt – and the rest of the world, for that matter – will be brighter. And I’m not only talking about the sun.

Image of KarmSolar workers and solar panels from wamda.com.

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In the world of Middle Eastern architecture and engineering, rest assured that there are several who are fighting for green choices. Clients often see lots of green – dollar bills, that is. But the builders can bring environmental considerations to the forefront. Sustainable building is the way of the future, and they know it. Here are a carefully curated list  of 3 Arab architects or engineers who champion sustainability in their work, and who need recognition.

1. Raya Ani 

Raya Ani was born in Washington, D.C. but spent most of her life in Iraq near her family. She operates out of the studio she founded in 2012: RAW-NYC, based both in New York City and Dubai. For the Aspire Sports Complex in Doha, Qatar, her company won Leisure Project of the Year at the 2014 Middle East Architect Awards.

The arena is still under construction, but it will include two soccer fields, a private entertainment venue, sports store, café, and more. It’s an enclosed space, but it evokes the feeling of being outside, with its light-filtering roofs, stretches of lush green, and landscaping techniques to promote fresh air.

The aesthetics of the facility were inspired by the makeup of a tree – its interwoven branches being the main motif. In the desert heat, evaporative cooling will chill the indoor air, and the Solar Ivy on the exterior will conserve energy.

More of Ani’s architectural genius can be found in plans for the Mesopotamian marshes of southern Iraq, which Green Prophet covered here, and for Bawadi Park in Dubai. To top it off, this savvy designer does more than just architecture. Visit her page to see all her fascinating projects.

2. Kourosh Hajizadeh

Named Architect of the Year at the Middle East Architect Awards in 2013, Mr. Hajizadeh proved his merit even further when he laid down plans for Jordan Tower. It’s his work featured at the very top of this article.

As Principal Architect of Hajizadeh & Associates, he places much emphasis on sustainability, and the goal for Jordan Tower was to create the tallest green spot in Tehran – a city lacking in green spaces. High-rise construction is maximized land usage in urban centers – capital cities, especially.

This sky-high beauty will display what appear to be hanging gardens in interlocking cages suspended from the exterior. This design is remarkably similar to “The Terraces” set up for Beirut, except it provisions more greenery. Furthermore, mirrors will be placed on the building close to street level in order to multiply the green vision to passersby.

3. Ammar Khammash

This Jordanian superstar architect has improved his home country – with more projects than one. The repertoire of Khammash Architects includes Wild Jordan, a restaurant and market; Darat al Funun, an arts and cultural center; and, most notably, Feynan Eco Lodge, the unbeatable retreat in the Dana Biosphere Reserve (which I visited while travelling in Jordan!).

With degrees in architecture and ethnoarchaeology, Mr. Khammash is Jordan’s leader in designing or renovating spaces so that they include uber modern amenities and style but are historically relevant.

Environmental preservation is very important to him, as well; he advocates preserving the nature in and around which he works. Wild Jordan is nestled in the hills of Jabal Amman. Darat al Funun displays a restored archaeological site in its garden with pride. Feynan Eco Lodge uses the blazing desert sun for energy and refuses to antagonize the already limited water availability with aerators installed on faucets.

Mr. Khammash clearly knows how to make the best use of what he is given, and even to make those elements from the land and sky the star of his projects. He’s even done the same thing with his own home. He opted to live on the edge – literally. By building his home on a cliff overlooking Amman, he made use of what would be otherwise unused space and gets breathtaking views as a reward.

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An unnamed client hired London-based Baharash Architecture to design a luxury home that could fully function off the energy grid. That’s a tall order for any residence in Abu Dhabi, now consider the challenges for one sited in the punishing clime of the hyper-arid Liwa Desert where summer temperatures top 100°F.

The star-shaped structure is modestly sized at approximately 6,000 square feet and will feature a living room, kitchen, two bedrooms, and central “great room”. Floor-to-ceiling glass walls permit panoramic views of the surrounding desert scenery. These fixed-glass “windows” will be electrochromic; they can be mechanically tinted for shade and privacy with a press of a button that activates ionic motion within layers of glass, quickly changing the glass panels from clear to opaque.

Baharash Bagherian, founder of the design firm that bears his name, said in a statement, “We are seeing a new generation of Emiratis who are looking to lead a more sustainable lifestyle, in line with UAE’s vision to become one of the most sustainable countries in the world.”

The project press release did not define other sustainability features planned for the $2 million vacation home. Simple technology for solar energy production can readily supply the building with all its daytime electricity needs, but there is no information regarding nighttime power supply. Similarly, there is scant info on planned efficiencies for building systems and appliances. How will the structure be insulated to reduce heat gain and loss?

Eco-friendly construction is becoming increasingly prioritized in the UAE, specifically as relates to energy consumption, and the nation is a regional leader in renewable energy generation and municipal recycling. But in the Middle East, water is a greater priority. Many modern MENA municipalities still operate on a pumped water procedure, where homes feed off individual water storage tanks which are periodically replenished from a city supply. Said differently, there isn’t always water when you turn on a tap. How will potable water be conveyed to this structure? And – on the flip side – how will sewage and waste be removed?

There’s an outside chance that green specifications are lost in translation; that press coverage of purportedly “green” buildings is selective, overlooking system technology and focusing on structural form instead. But by glossing over the fuller environmental impacts of a new building (how will it be accessed? does it require new roads? will it encourage more development in an otherwise pristine and ancient natural setting?), projects like these are nothing more than “lipstick on a pig”.

Photography courtesy of Baharash Architecture

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It’s already well known that manure or poop can be recycled for making products like paper
as well as creating biogas power from methane gas.  Turning urine or pee into electricity is another matter. This readily available “resource”, whether it be from animal or human origin, is now being experimented with to actually generate electricity by using our pee’s  basic ingredients to create enough hydrogen to provide electricity for both homes and businesses.

Four teenagers in Lagos Nigeria, working on a school project, created a practical way to separate hydrogen from urine, and then use it to power a generator to create electricity (see photo above). The “pee power” project was entered by the girls in an annual nationwide competition  in Lagos, Maker Faire Africa, and it created enough electrical power to run the generator for six hours from one liter of pee.

The pee-power process occurs like  this:

1. Urine is put into an electrolytic cell, which separates out the hydrogen.

2. The hydrogen is then filtered in a water filter for purification,  and then is sent to a gas cylinder, similar to the kind used for outdoor barbecue grills.

3. The gas cylinder pushes the filtered hydrogen into another cylinder that contains liquid borax, to remove moisture from the gas.

4. In the final step, the hydrogen is sent into a power generator, which creates in electricity.

Although still a long way off from being implemented on a mass scale, this basic way of creating electricity from a substance  normally disposed of  can be a practical way to create electricity in places where normal electrical power has been cut off due to devastation by floods or other natural disasters, including severe storms. It can also be used to create electricity in poor rural agricultural areas that are common in Africa and Asia; including many parts of the Middle East.

The Pee Power idea is starting to take hold. Students and faculty at  Bristol-based University of the West of England are being asked to use a special urinal that sends all the urine collected there to be used to produce hydrogen for powering an electric generator that creates additional electricity for the campus.

If this pee-power prototype project is successful, the idea of using urine produced hydrogen to power hydrogen powered cars is also being considered. Pee as you drive instead of stopping at rest stops? A curious idea.  Not bad ideas for a waste product that normally winds up in the sewers.

Read more on recycling and creating  bio-fuel from excrement:

5 Brilliant Projects That turn Poop into Power

Israel’s 4MW Biogas Plant to Clean Up After 14,000 Cows

What Recycled Paper Products From Poo Look Like

Photo of pee-power project generator by Maker Faire Africa 

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