According to a report by the World Health Organisation, Iranian cities are the world’s most polluted with some cities registering air pollution 20 times over the recommended upper limit Iran is certainly not scoring a lot of ‘greenie’ points this month. First it hits international headlines for its brutal treatment of environmental activists campaigning to […]
We know plastic is almost inescapable, but here are 6 excellent reasons to just say no! It’s no secret. We hate plastic. We wish plastic had never been born, though we don’t really blame Alexander Parkes for inventing the stuff. How could he have known that a series of polymers bonded together would produce one […]
It’s black cloud season. Again. But there’s no reason to pull out the party favors just yet. It’s the anniversary of the Black Cloud in Egypt, but nobody’s celebrating. This is the time of year that farmers typically burn off their agricultural waste because they don’t know what else to do with it. When set […]
Beit Hakerem, an upscale “green” Jerusalem Neighborhood may not be so green underground due to solvents contamination. Israel’s soil and ground water is constantly being threatened by a number of different kinds of pollution. This pollution is caused by oil and gasoline leakage from gas stations and oil storage depots, and by large garbage landfill […]
It’s not just excess calories anymore. It could be that environmental chemicals are ordering your body to put on the pounds. We live surrounded by synthetic chemical substances. They’re in our food, our soaps, in hundreds of thousands of things we handle daily. Like parabens, a preservative found in moisturizers and bath products. Exposure to […]
Abu Dhabi’s Corniche has become the Arabian Gulf’s first Blue Flag beach The city of Abu Dhabi has become the first Arabian Gulf location to gain a Blue Flag environmental award for one of its beaches. The certification has been awarded to the famous Abu Dhabi Corniche, a four mile stretch of coastline which is […]
Asbestos is all over the place in Israel. Now the rare form of lung cancer that asbestos causes is not the only worry: asbestos leads to mutations in mice. Asbestos covers parking garages in Tel Aviv, and the roofs of small buildings and sheds all over Israel. Look in landfills or even playgrounds, and don’t […]
A new initiative could put an end to this in Cairo! Nine million used rubber tires are dumped in Cairo every year, according to the Community Times. Egypt’s capital is in many ways defined by its pollution. Not only are the skies smoggy (well ahead of black cloud season), but waste is a veritable plague. […]
When two embankments collapsed at the dam of a silver refinery in the Turkish province of Kütahya, workers began scrambling to keep the cyanide-contaminated water from leaking out of the dam. If it does, environmentalists warn, the accident could become “the most dangerous environmental crisis Turkey has faced thus far.” A silver mining and refining […]
Despite its numerous environmental challenges, Egypt can go green, according to Dominique Gauzin-Müller. It’s hard not to compare Dubai and Cairo – two cities that occupy many of our worried green thoughts. Although different on so many levels, one thing stands out: despite being relatively young and stroppy, Dubai is definitely the cleaner city. Sure, […]
Traditional Jewish burials: guidelines to a green farewell. The recent controversy over arch-terrorist Osama bin Laden’s burial at sea has piqued an interest in eco-funerals here at Green Prophet. It can hardly get more friendly to the environment than a biodegradable cloth shroud in which to wrap the corpse, plus weights to ballast – then […]
Thanks to a new US study, the world has a benchmark on how environmental pollution is toxic to our babies. Green Prophet’s Sophie had her own nightmare come to life when her son was almost poisoned by bleach during Passover cleaning in Israel. In light of the scary risks of poisoning, a new US study […]
Rachel Jacobson shares the story behind protecting this beautiful view from “Big Oil.” Last year a small group of people accidentally discovered that Israel Energy Initiatives (IEI), backed by Rupert Murdoch, Dick Cheney and a powerful American oil conglomerate, intended to explore their land for oil shale – potentially a very destructive project. David de […]
As a new political order struggles to assert itself in the autocratic states of the Middle East novel challenges – and possibilities – emerge. In looking toward the future, social Greens throughout the region would do well to coordinate an agenda geared toward a sustainable tomorrow.
Greenpeace is taking industry to task for releasing factory-generated effluent into the Mediterranean Sea off Lebanon’s coast. Environmental activists have stopped up a pipe that is gushing toxic waste into the Mediterranean Sea. So soon after the recent kerosene spill in Lebanon, Greenpeace is holding the local firm Sanita responsible for the ensuing toxic sludge in order to […]
In the last 30 years, 110 Iranian park rangers have been killed. Environmental bloggers pay tribute. Despite certain joint environmental initiatives between its government and that of Qatar, Iran really needs its nature lovers and advocates. Twenty-seven people die a day as a result of the Tehran’s pollution, its national parks are strewn with rubbish, […]
Bahrain is set to become a smoker’s haven; no matter where they go, smokers will have their own little cabin. When I used to smoke, a long long time ago, every so often I’d find myself jonesing in an airport. I’d look over at the glass-encased smoking cabins with dread. Was it really worth subjecting […]
When the PRT plan at Masdar was scrapped, what exactly did we lose? The folks at Singularity Hub offer an interesting analysis of Masdar’s PRT failure. Why is it, David Hill wonders out loud, that we have made massive advancements in telecommunications but precious few in transportation? Masdar gave us the perfect opportunity to take the next […]
This female Bald Eagle may be saved – but what about others? Bald Eagles, longtime American symbols of strength and independence, are now fighting for their very survival in Canada due to their main food source, chum salmon, being scarce due to pollution and over fishing. Chum salmon are salmon which after fighting the river […]
Potted plants, green cleaning products and ventilation are part of your “green” indoors. In the last thirty years, there has been a lot discussion about our environment and pollution. However, most of this pollution has been referring to what goes on outdoors. Only recently, the international scientific community has become concerned about the contamination of […]
Green Prophet’s Arwa on her decision not to drive a car and the social stigma that comes with it… Maybe it has something to do with my love of trains and car-induced travel sickness as a child, but I can honestly say I’ve never aspired to driving a car. Hitting the open road or whizzing […]
Palestinian youth learn about water issues at Al-Auja Eco-Centre Green Prophet has featured news about the Friends of the Earth Middle East (FOEME) Eco-Centre at Al-Auja, a Palestinian village in the Jordan Valley, on a number of occasions. Green Prophet writer Rachel Bergstein has reported on the challenges the inhabitants of Al-Auja face because the […]
From March 4 to 5th, unplug from your computer and back into your soul, and save the environment for a day. Jewish tradition considers a day of down time sacred. For observant Jews, Shabbat (or the Sabbath) is a time to switch off electronics, to unplug the laptop and television, to ditch the Wii, and […]
Israel is fortunate to have an Environmental Protection Minister who is passionate about his job. So passionate, he gave up an opportunity to work as ambassador to the UN. Israel’s Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan turned down an opportunity to represent Israel as ambassador to the United Nations, according to a Jerusalem Post report. He […]
Yes, noise is a form of pollution from motorized vehicles that’s bad for your health. Sound pollution in Iranian cities is hitting an all-time high. The large cities like Tehran are the worst. Sound pollution can be any unwanted or offensive sounds that unreasonably intrudes into our daily activities. When a person drives by open […]