The (designing) pen is mightier than the sword – protest climate change by thinking of cool bike rack designs. To protest the rise of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, global organization 350.0rg organizes a climate solution day each year. These protests, demonstrations, and pro-active events take place all over the world, including the Middle […]
Trapped air and burning rice waste turns Cairo’s already sullied skies black during “Black Cloud Season” Not long ago I took a trip to the Mediterranean Sea and was appalled that from Cairo’s city center, in the Nile river, to well beyond the pyramids of Giza lie mounting heaps of trash: litter on the side […]
Eco Options Egypt is working on becoming a one-stop shop for resources on leading a green lifestyle in Egypt. It’s not always easy to be green. Good intentions aside, if you habitually need to go out of your way to be eco-friendly then the chances are that eventually you’ll give up. If you can’t find […]
Hussein Farag’s home made version of a solar water heater is not as sophisticated as these made in Israel, but it’s a heck of a lot cheaper. Although solar water heaters are now becoming popular in Egypt, pay the equivalent of US $ 600 or more to purchase them is still out of reach to […]
Education puts Cairo one step towards getting rid of its nemesis: solid waste. Within a 3 minute walk down Cairo’s streets, an environmentalist is bound to have an apoplectic fit: litter lies everywhere. Tiny trash bins – rare jewels – overflow with containers and water (read more about Cairo’s tap water) bottles that will live […]
Add a dash of cumin and you’ll get some “green cake” falafel? This wonder food, from algae is being grown by the UN to solve hunger crisis. It could work in the Middle East. We know that kids in Gaza and Cairo aren’t getting enough high quality nutrients. And many other oil-less nations, like Syria, […]
Prior to the installation of an asphalt highway connecting the once peaceful region of Bahariya to Cairo, the oasis was mostly hidden from the greater world. Then archaeologists re-discovered the Valley of the Golden Mummies and tourism in Egypt soared, generating valuable income for the local community. However, the influx also comes with a considerable environmental cost.
It’s hard to think green, when you’re thinking about your next dinner. A UN story documents the lack of protein in Egyptian children, and that a whopping 16% of all kids living there are malnourished. For seven-year-old Ahmed Yasser, it is normal to have just a crust of bread to munch on throughout the afternoon […]
With an abundant Nile flowing through it, people in Cairo wonder about industrial pollution dumping affecting their health, and future. A common question asked by visitors to Cairo is “can I drink the tap water?” Many Cairenes have no problems with drinking the water. The Nile River is Cairo’s main source of water and begins […]
A solar hot water heater is a cheap way to collect endless hot water, from the sun. What are you waiting for? Image via Beluga. They are relatively cheap units to install and can provide almost endless supplies of free hot water. Like Israel discovered decades ago, people in Cairo are now onto using energy […]
It can get windy over there in Egypt. Now, Egypt plans on making renewable energy 20% of its national energy goals. The Egyptian government has announced plans to generate 1,000 megawatts of wind power this year. Speaking at the energy forum for the Middle East and North Africa 2010, Egypt’s Electricity Minister Hassan Younis said […]
African nations fight over who lays claim to the Nile. Egypt is fighting back. Image via Michael JG It is water. Water for all. At least this is the argument that upstream countries along the Nile River have been saying for years, but Egypt continues to refuse to renegotiate a colonial-era treaty that would allocate […]
Ancient Egyptians built temples to the Sun God Ra. Time for this African nation to reclaim its glory and time in the sun, with solar energy deal? Image via mrs_logic Maybe it’s the product of the recent MENASOL solar conference in Cairo that Green Prophet attended. Now, Bloomberg news is reporting that Spain’s largest solar-thermal […]
At the MENASOL conference in Cairo last week, MENA Cleantech’s Samer Zureikat cited this 11th century scientist, Ibn al-Haytham, as one of the forefathers of solar technology. (Image via orientpix.com) I was sitting behind Samer Zureikat, the CEO of MENA Cleantech, at the MENASOL solar energy conference in Cairo last week when one of the […]
Dr. Antoine Bittar, one of the solar experts who spoke at MENASOL. (Photo by author.) While the previous MENASOL speaker profiled here (Nasser Majali) is a relative newcomer to the field of solar energy, Dr. Antoine Bittar, the Engineering Director for Solar Power at RES Mediterranean, is a leading expert in this field. For the […]