Egypt, a country where pharaohs once commanded the Nile and cats enjoyed diplomatic immunity, is now wrestling with modern environmental challenges that no ancient scribe could have predicted. The nation faces a complex tangle of issues: rapid urbanization, shrinking green spaces, plastic waste that seems to multiply like desert mirages, and the slow but steady warming of the Mediterranean and Red Sea. Add to that the annual drama of the Nile — too much water, too little water, or water carrying things that nobody wants to swim with — and you have a country navigating a delicate ecological tightrope.
But Egypt isn’t just struggling; it’s also innovating. And some of its most creative solutions come not from ministries but from civil society. Nature Conservation Egypt is one of the country’s leading environmental NGOs, championing bird protection, wetland conservation, and the survival of migratory species that treat Egypt like an airport lounge on their way between continents. Their fieldwork in places like Lake Qarun and the Red Sea wetlands has quietly shaped policy for years.
Then there’s HEPCA — the Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association — a powerhouse NGO guarding the Red Sea’s coral reefs from overfishing, careless tourism, and the occasional boat captain who mistakes a reef for a parking spot. HEPCA’s mooring buoy system has become a regional model, proving that even popular tourist hubs can protect biodiversity when the rules are clear and the buoys are bright blue.
New sustainability movements are popping up too: youth-led recycling initiatives in Cairo, clean-energy startups in Alexandria, gardens and hydroponics farms on rooftops and Nile cleanup campaigns that feel half environmental crusade, half street festival. Egypt’s ambitious Benban Solar Park, one of the largest in the world, shows what national-scale renewable energy can look like when the sun cooperates — and in Egypt, it usually does. Almost every day is a beach day.
BenBan Solar Park from above. The Benban Solar Park has a total installed capacity of 1.65 gigawatts (GW). It’s one of the largest solar installations in the world and a major pillar of Egypt’s renewable-energy strategy.
Eco-challenges remain big, but the momentum is growing. In true Egyptian style, progress arrives with a mix of determination, improvisation, and just enough humor to survive the heat.
Can countries with unrest commit to eco-tourism aspirations? With countries across the Middle East – North Africa (MENA) region facing often fatal unrest like the food riots in Tunisia, it seems rather frivolous to be thinking about the travel industry. But with tourism a major earner for many Middle East & North African countries, the […]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQa3kUJPEko[/youtube] Moving from a culture of “me” to a culture of “we”. Rachel Botsman, a researcher and social innovator, is hooked on the idea of what she calls “collaborative consumption” – a phenomenon that is gaining force in the 21st century. She recently gave a TED talk about the concept (see clip above) and said […]
Egypt is planning ahead for climate change with a new generation of wheat. This declaration raises some questions about its intent for Sudan. Following the drought in Russia, Egypt’s resultant shortage of wheat, and high summer temperatures throughout the Middle East, the Egyptian Agriculture Ministry is taking steps to avert another potential wheat shortfall. Faced […]
A fungus good to grow for sexual health: the company is donating 5% of their proceeds to support breast cancer research. A California startup called Back to the Roots is now offering a grow-your-own mushroom garden kit that can be kept inside on a windowsill for anyone with a penchant for urban farming. Consumers from […]
From snow leopards to the Pakistani sand cat: The vast deserts, rough mountains and scarce waterways of the Middle East are home to many unique animals. Enjoy these 8 unique exquisite Middle Eastern mammals, birds and reptiles threatened with extinction because of hunting, loss of habitat, lack of prey, or poisoning. Share them with your […]
American University in Cairo’s new campus was designed for efficient energy and water usage. Most observers would not think of Egypt as an environmental leader. Instead, the smog and litter of Cairo come to mind, or the negative environmental impact of the Aswan Dam. Yet we recently reported here that Egypt ranks No. 1 in […]
How to make innovation and science as enthralling to a couch potato as contestants in a TV game show? Make scientists and inventors contestants in a TV game show! The Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development is trying just that, in an attempt to promote the development of innovation in the Middle East. […]
Since the first solar panel plant in Morocco 2010, over 200 solar sites have been built around the world. Now the Desertec Industrial Initiative wants to invest $560 billion in Sahara solar panels. Will it have international approval?
In the West, leaves are falling from the trees. In the Middle East, Fall means the return of the throat-burning smog which settles over Cairo, Egypt once again. Rice fields are to blame. Every year a noxious black smog hangs over Egypt as the seasonal burning of rice straw by farmers begins, and with it […]
If temperatures continue to increase and icecaps melt, scientists say a one meter rise in sea level will swallow the Nile Delta. In order to protect the good life: big cars, up to three or four or more in one family, massive homes, fancy food, and five star trips to the Bahamas, (all unavailable to […]
If you can’t import them, make them! That’s the sentiment behind Nadia Shalaby’s plan to spur a solar manufacturing industry in Egypt. Egypt is keen to embrace solar energy. And there is no good reason not to. With steaming solar resources and enormous human capital, 80 million strong depending on who is counting, and an […]
Nimrod Novik of the Merhav Group was not pleased by the frontal attack waged by Delek’s Yoram Turbowitz at an energy conference in Israel this week. The Israel Energy and Business Convention 2010 held this week in Ramat Gan addressed a range of energy-related issues and featured keynote speeches by several government ministers. Of particular […]
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 […]
Four dolphins found in a swimming pool in Egypt.
The ultimate “spiritual” and ecological experience – climbing the mountain where Moses was believed to have received the 10 commandments, in Sinai. In the heart of the Sinai Peninsula lies the biblical mountain that Moses supposedly received the Ten Commandments from God thousands of years ago. When Moses went to traverse the sharp edges of […]