The lush marine habitat by Aqaba Beach in Jordan is among the richest in the world, attracting thousands of visitors per year. But the popularity of the beach is also its downfall: In just 20 minutes, divers recovered more than 150 kilos of garbage from the waters of the reef, including plastic cups, cans, and […]
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One of the wonderful customs that the American settlers here in the Middle East has brought over from the old country is Thanksgiving. Here is my green tribute to them! In 1621, the Plymouth colonists, led by William Bradford and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast which is acknowledged today as one of the […]
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Since Hamas took control of Gaza in the summer of 2007, Israeli citizens have been battered with rocket attacks in Sderote, and more recently Ashkelon. Some media outlets call Israel’s interference with fuel transfer across to Gaza “a seige” but for Israelis it is just a matter of survival. Looking beyond politics and focusing on […]
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The video is a bit slow to start and speaks to a somewhat unsophisticated audience, but it introduces an important concept of charity in Islam (sadaqah jariyah), and why Muslims should support “Waqf” –– for the environment’s sake. Or at the very least political stability. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature Waqf […]
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Flash floods are the most common natural disaster in the United States, and a big killer in the Middle East too (see Relief Web’s report on Yemen). And OneWorld blog here on the Yemen flash flood which recently displaced more than 20,000 people. Because of the unpredictability of flash floods, they’re a leading weather-related cause […]
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Famous for his Orange Suspendu sculpture in Jaffa, I had the pleasure to interview environmental artist Ran Morin. Rarely granting interviews with the press, Morin spoke with me a little about living and working in Israel, and man’s place in the environment. Earlier this week Ran Morin sent me an invite to the launching of […]
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Air pollution from transportation is costing Arab countries $5 billion in damages, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of Environment and Water recently announced. The cost is calculated based on the number of deaths, medical care for health problems and chronic diseases that are attributed to air pollution. The minister, Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad, […]
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The pirates often stage their heists out of Somalia, a lawless country, with a weak central government that is grappling with a violent Islamist insurgency. Using speedboats that swarm the targets, the machine-gun-toting pirates take control of merchant ships and then hold the vessels, crew and cargo for ransom.
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According to Forbes (2006), she is the richest woman in the Middle East, with assets totaling $5.5 billion. Today she has found a way to merge business and do-gooding for the planet, setting an example for future environmental philanthropists and clean technology experts. Shari Arison, who inherited the Carnival Cruise Line’s fortune and her late […]
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No. 3 on Mayor-elect Nir Barkat’s winning list, Naomi Tsur is going to be spearheading any changes the city makes to beautify the city in the near future. Formal head of SPNI’s Jerusalem office and founder of the Sustainable Jerusalem, a coalition of 60 environmental groups is now going to tackle those same issues but […]
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Green Prophet interviews Andreas Weil, director of EcoOcean. Tell us a little about who you are and what you do. My name is Andreas Weil and I am the co-founder and acting director of the Israeli marine environmental nonprofit organization EcoOcean. I live for environmental issues and education. The sea is my passion and EcoOcean […]
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Green Prophet loves to find potential everywhere – so how about desert seawater greenhouse construction in Qatar? They are also doing this in Abu Dhabi. What exactly is a desert seawater greenhouse, you might ask? According to the Seawater Greenhouse website: “Seawater Greenhouse is a unique concept which combines natural processes, simple construction techniques and […]
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With its lavish six-star hotels and glitterati reputation, Dubai has quickly risen to fame as a tourist paradise. But now that fame might be heading towards infamy, as sewage including excrement and the contents of septic tanks has been pouring onto Dubai’s tourist-filled beaches. Doctors are warning bathers that they run the risk of contracting […]
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Biotech companies in Israel are announcing layoffs. Global financial woes will no doubt filter through to the clean tech industry as well. Atlantium, when I covered the company for ISRAEL21c last year they seemed so hopeful about the future… has also announced layoffs recently. Fifteen people were let go. CEO Ilan Wilf said in Globes, […]
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Besides the wonderful team of people I get to work with, one of the best aspects of working with the newservice ISRAEL21c is that they le” me report on environment news and breakthroughs. Their support of the environment started about 5 years ago, when not a single paper in Israel was covering the beat. One […]
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