Can urban agriculture save Cairo? We think it’s a pretty good start There has been an important spotlight on agriculture not only in Egypt, which is suspected by the EU of causing the E. coli outbreak in Germany earlier this year, but also other Middle Eastern and North African countries such as Morocco whose poor […]
Israeli idealists plan to develop a land trust in the northern Galilee to encourage rural homesteading. Despite its emergence as a developed, industrial country, Israel has a bevy of close-to-the-earth learning experiences to choose from. Several kibbutzim throughout the country offer a variety of useful workshops in permaculture, off-grid living, sustainable building, and organic farming. […]
The CEO of a Dubai-based company says growing organic food in the UAE is “stupid.” No one would ever expect an organic food distributor to favor importing food to locally-grown produce, except in the Middle East. Despite efforts from people like Baker & Spice’s Yael Mejia, who is working furiously to improve the quality of […]
Italian expatriate and Managing Editor, Lisa Durante’s new book is designed to inspire the UAE to lead a “greener” life. Certain sectors of the United Arab Emirates are savvy about organic agriculture and the environmental benefits of a vegetarian diet. But judging by the ubiquity of mega-malls and towers, not all. Former development journalist and […]
This nifty device made in Sweden allows avid farmers to create their own fertilizer! Urine has been getting a lot of attention recently. Though most city dwellers are opposed to a quick public wee, urine is so powerful it can be used to energize fuel cells and as fertilizer. Small scale farmers or gardeners who […]
New regulations in Egypt will prevent from fraudsters from falsifying inorganic food. Organic agriculture is not so widespread in the Middle East. There are certain places in Israel that belong to the WWOOFing network, while Dubai creeps along with farms that unfortunately rely on desalination for their water. Turkey too is heading in that direction, […]
Samples taken from arugula in 64 different stores literally contained million of E. coli bacteria. Although fledgling, Dubai’s organic farming is growing, and Yael Mejia with Dubai’s Baker and Spice is doing her part to help that along. Though critics question the wisdom of using desalinated water for farming, the water-strapped Emirates don’t really have […]
When it comes alive, the Penyon Bay Ecovillage will overlook the Bay of Alhoceima in Northern Morocco. As economies and ecosystems degenerate, and spiritual malaise increases (as I’ve pointed out in my green Christmas wish list), communities worldwide are forming new bonds. Moving away from the consumer model, ecovillages incorporate various degrees of the old […]
What good is a farmer’s market if it only appeals to a small group of people? Beirut’s Souk el Tayeb reaches out to the community. Whereas some farmer’s markets can set an elitist tone – appealing mostly to a yuppy or wealthy clientele instead of delighting in bringing good food and good values to the […]
It’s worthwhile to heed the “eco-washers” and other insincere marketers, but to completely overlook the harm in certain chemicals is to do a disservice to the community. We are as quick to take eco-washing to task as any rabid consumer. Earlier this year, we called out Foster & Partners for their “sustainable” architecture, which is […]
A weekly Green Prophet series that looks at the Arabic “green” blogosphere and online communities. After looking at “The Forum of the Ornithological Society of Kuwait and at the Saudi Green Blog, and at The Oman Eco Group Blogs, we are continuing our trip through the Gulf Countries and arrive this week at the UAE […]
Dubai’s government is developing more organic farms, but oil-dependent desalination plants used for water casts a shadow on their carbon footprint News from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates tended to be dominated by new construction projects being announced or more recently debts levels, but it seems that the government is making a serious push […]
Get Your Green On in The Dmit Valley Ecovillages are slowly sprouting in the Middle East. There’s Kramim in Israel’s Negev Desert, as well as the well-known Kibbutz Lotan, and now the first of its kind in Lebanon. Called simply EcoVillage, this project was grown from the ground by Karim al Khatib and a group […]
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 […]