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.
US President Nixon offered to build eight nuclear power plants for Egypt during the Cold War; Matt questions whether the first such plant will finally be built by 2019? How long is its worth waiting on your country to build its first nuclear power plant? If you are Egyptian, the answer is 45 years. That […]
This popular Egyptian soup made with minced Jute leaves is nutritious and delicious over rice and chicken (or tofu!) Whatever faith and holiday you celebrate, there is no better way to enjoy them all than be eating some classic Egyptian food delicacies, some of which have been popular since the time of the Pharaohs. One […]
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 […]
Since her launch in 2008, Egyptian fashion designer Nadia Nour has been wowing fashionistas with her elegantly glamorous and individual fashion range which also happen to be environmentally-friendly. Graduating with a degree in Fashion and Philosophy, it’s seems that Nadia Nour was destined to create an ethical fashion range that gracefully combines her love for […]
Egypt’s oil and gas refineries on the Suez Canal. The Egypt based East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG) which exports natural gas from Egypt to Israel has been granted a 20 year tax exemption by the Israeli government, according the to Israeli business daily Globes. Apparently EMG was give the highly unusual exemption as part of […]
We understand the impulse to stay cool and protect blood and brains from cooking, but it is wise to exercise caution in order to ensure a lasting electricity supply for everyone while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions.
At a workshop in Cairo, Spanish fashion artist Ana Seco teaches students how to incorporate “garbage” into their designs. Reluctant at first, they soon eclipsed their teacher by introducing materials she had never even thought of. Ana Seco’s resume reaches far and wide. Her Bachelor of Fine Arts is buttressed with numerous diplomas and courses […]
Hotter summers, intense irrigation and threats of losing their Nile, Egyptians are under quota for water compared to other Arab nations. They take to the streets. Looking at Google Earth (above) truly shows how Egypt is a fertile crescent of the region. But in the face of losing water from the Nile, tens of thousands […]
One of the most pristine crater sites in the world, Kamil teaches us to respect nature’s superiority over our lives. With its wealth of whale fossils trapped within what was once the Tethys sea, and the River Nile, now subdued but previously an angry god that rose and fell at will, affecting millions of people, […]
Aly Morad and Salah El Din Helmry to kayak 27 days in January, 2011 to draw awareness to the polluted Nile River [image via David Berkowitz] It takes a special kind of person to stop, take stock, to imagine how our actions today will translate tomorrow, the next day, and even 100 years from now. […]
Is the Mediterranean Sea fated to end up like the Gulf of Mexico? Like a giant herd of marauding elephants pounding through the forest, BP destroys everything in its wake. Despite the international outcry against one of the world’s worst human-induced environmental disasters, the Deepwater Horizon spill that leaked 92 million barrels of oil into […]
Despite facing issues such as water scarcity and pollution at poisonous levels, the Middle East is still sending mixed message about climate change. Image of Mideast and earth Courtesy of NASA. There is a constant debate in green circles over whether the Middle East is really taking climate change seriously. Some days the Arab world […]
A tourist soaks up the Egyptian sun. The Middle East is getting hotter, like the rest of the world, but when is too hot, too much? It’s hot and getting hotter. But nowhere is the more evident than in Southern Asia and the Middle East. And while daytime temperatures are always hot this time of […]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpcxn3PKlps[/youtube] The Egyptian Government has failed to provide concrete answers regarding the Red Sea oil spill that occurred last month. One month after oil leaked on to Hurghada’s beaches along the Red Sea, popular among tourists for reef diving, the Government-run oil company Petroleum Misr denies responsibility for the spill despite footage that incriminates them. […]
More news to make Ra, the Egyptian sun god proud: Egypt gets serious about building solar energy plants on top of its 500 MW plant, with bids open for 1,000 MW more. The Egyptian government hopes two new projects will help push forward solar and wind energy in the country. According to the country’s Electricity […]