Shark finning, in which captured sharks have their fins and tails removed for use in sharks fin soup, has been a prominent issue in many parts of the world, including the Arab Gulf region.
A Kuwaiti in Canada uses Google Earth to uncover how a banned method of Middle East fishing is being used to trap an estimated 31,000 tons of fish per year.
The Arabian Gulf has waters that are some of the world’s most saline; and where water temperatures often reach as high as 35 degrees Celsius during the hot summer months. Despite these harsh realities, the waters of the Gulf contain a variety of aquatic plants and animals.
A leading property developer in Dubai executed one of the world’s largest coral relocation projects in 2008, and now – five years later – the mammoth $9.8 million undertaking has shown itself to be a remarkable success.
Red tides are toxic to both coral reefs and desalination plants in the Arabian/Persian Gulf, according to The National, so Masdar Institute has teamed up with government-backed Bayanat for Mapping and Surveying Services to predict and protect against harmful algae blooms.
Representatives from six Arab Gulf countries that form the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) recently expressed concern about the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Southwest Iran after an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.3 on the Richter scale struct the region earlier this year.
We have often lamented that people from Dubai and other Arabian Gulf countries walk around with wild cats the way Hollywood stars carry Chihuahuas. But now one of the world’s leading Cheetah experts says these people can actually help to save the species from extinction.
Coral in most parts of the world bleach when water temperatures surpass 28-32°C except in the Arabian/Persian Gulf, a new study finds. Curious to know why coral in the waters surrounding Abu Dhabi and other Gulf countries are able to withstand water temperatures as high as 36 °C before bleaching (not to mention the onslaught of […]
Chicago’s Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat recently named the Burj Qatar the world’s best new tall building, which is curious to us for several reasons. First of all, famed French architect Jean Nouvel designed the building but we can’t find it on his website. Is he not proud of his towering child? Second, there’s a […]
Art has a way of jarring our perspective. Here are 6 groundbreaking projects that are changing the way people in the Middle East relate to their environment. Just today we read about an Egyptian artist who has spread her creative wings since Mubarak’s fall only to have them clipped again by increasing powerful Islamist groups. […]
When it first emerged that plans for an underwater hotel in Dubai had been revived, Arwa wrote “Dubai has more gimmicks and tacky accolades than a Las Vegas souvenir store so the last thing it needs is more plastic tat. It’s just not good and most of these outlandish projects pay very little attention to the environmental […]
If you need another reason to support the Barcelona soccer team, this might help: in order to expand their fan base in the Middle East and Asia, Real Madrid is joining forces with the United Arab Emirates to build a giant soccer resort complete with a stadium, fancy villas, two high rise hotels, and a […]
The Al Hamra Firdous Tower in Kuwait City is the world’s 13th largest Kuwait is now competing with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to build the biggest, baddest skyscrapers. The recently completed Al Hamra Firdous Tower also called the “Enshrouded Figure” is 412 meters tall and is ranked by the Council on Tall […]
The US Navy has trained dolphins to detect underwater mines since 1960. Last week the Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi denied that Iran had threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz – a crucial 54km wide strait through which Gulf countries export petroleum – but the United States press has been abuzz with reports that oil exports […]
A report last week showed that development projects like The World manmade islands above are destroying the Gulf’s fragile marine ecosystem. One major culprit, Nakheel, aims to restore their own damage with 500 artificial reefs. Last week the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health in Toronto released the first official report linking […]