By SHARON UDASIN 12/03/2015 Natural resource loss could spur violence, disease spread in the region, says INSS senior research fellow Dr. Oded Eran. In a region that has grown increasingly vulnerable to the effects of both climate change and cross-border resource depletion, it has become all the more critical that neighbors develop interdependent solutions for […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Yuriko Koike Dec 02,2015 Since the November 13 terrorist bloodletting in Paris, the City of Light has been practically under martial law. In this subdued and challenging context, world leaders are now convening in the city at the United Nations Climate Change Conference to hammer out a new global agreement to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Could […]

Read the rest of this entry »

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday said the war of “our generation” against terrorism and to defend the values of tolerance, peace and freedom is “also our fight within Islam”, according to a Royal Court statement. In remarks at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, hosted in Paris, the King said: “It […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 12/01/2015 Participant nations are aiming to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement to ensure that global warming does not surpass 2°C. Some 70 Israeli officials and environmentalists arrived in Paris on Monday for the 12-day annual United Nations Conference on Climate Change. Led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Environmental Protection […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Khetam Malkawi – Dec 01,2015 AQABA — Electricity generation using natural gas rather than crude oil saves Jordan JD1 million per day at the current oil price of $41.60 per barrel, according to Ghassan Ghanem, CEO of the Aqaba Development Corporation. In a recent meeting with journalists, Ghanem underscored the importance of the liquefied […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 12/02/2015 “Air pollution is not a matter of convenience and quality of life, but of health and life.” While increasing gas use in the country’s factories and vehicles would lead to dramatic improvements in air quality, the “prohibitive price” of the resource will make such a transition difficult, Environmental Protection Minister Avi […]

Read the rest of this entry »

World leaders will produce lots of hot air at the COP21 summit in Paris, but nothing will change unless we all recognize the severity of the problem facing our planet. David Miron-Wapner Nov 30, 2015 Europe is facing influx of hundreds of millions of refugees, Israeli professor warns Israel gears up to forge renewable energy […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 12/05/2015 With the vast majority of people not taking part in such activities, only 13% said they were engaged in environmental-social efforts, while 1% said they were uncertain. About 86 percent of Israelis have not taken part in environmental campaigns in the past three years, a new survey by the Society for […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Israel to open office for renewable energy in Abu Dhabi – Al Jazeera UAE says opening “does not represent any change in position” between the nations which do not have diplomatic relations. Ali Younes | 27 Nov 2015 Israel is to open its first ever official and visible presence in Abu Dhabi, the capital of […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Climate Change and the Geopolitics of Water and Energy Challenges and Opportunities in the Levant EcoPeace Middle East, the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), cordially invite you to a conference on “Climate Change and the Geopolitics of Water and Energy Challenges and Opportunities in the Levant.” The conference will […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Op-ed: Peace will ultimately be made by courageous visionary leaders, but until that happens, the role of peace-building NGOs is to restore trust between Israelis and Palestinians and build mutually beneficial and interdependent relationships. David Lehrer 11.27.15 On the evening of the second day of Operation Cast Lead in 2008, 40 students of the Arava […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 11/29/2015 Adam Teva V’Din executive director Amit Bracha writes to French Foreign Affairs and International Development Minister Laurent Fabius. In a strongly worded letter to the head of the upcoming United Nations climate convention, Adam Teva V’Din (Israel Union for Environmental Defense) on Sunday slammed Israel’s greenhouse gas reduction plans as little […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Mohammad Ghazal – Nov 29,2015 AMMAN — Jordan is scheduled to conduct an experiment in cooperation with Thai experts to make artificial rain in the vicinity of King Talal Dam in early 2016 as part of efforts to increase precipitation in the Kingdom, according to Mohammad Samawi, director general of the Jordan Meteorological Department […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Egypt’s Electricity and Renewable Energy Minister Mohamed Shaker opened an EU-funded wind turbine station for electricity production at a total cost of 270 million euros on Sunday. A statement by the ministry said the plant, implemented over 30 months at Zeit Bay in the Red Sea, is the biggest in the Middle East region, adding […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Muath Freij – Nov 28,2015 New amendments to the Agriculture Law seek to curb the trend of illegal logging and violations in forests (Petra photo) AMMAN — A 24/7 hotline newly established by the Ministry of Agriculture has started receiving phone calls from individuals providing information on forest violations, a ministry official said on […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Five years after massive fire left many dunams of woodland scorched, efforts are ongoing to restore the forest, and consideration is also given to preventing a similar disaster by lowering the density of trees. Ahiya Raved 11.29.15 Some five years after the massive fire that claimed the lives of 44 people and left many dunams […]

Read the rest of this entry »

The fanack website contains much clear and detailed information on the Middle East, including pages on water and energy and a special section in water on the red sea – dead sea project (see links below) from their “about us”: Fanack is an independent online media organization committed to publishing and disseminating balanced and informed […]

Read the rest of this entry »

MOHAMED EL-ASHRY 16/11/2015 Dr. Mohamed El-Ashry, Senior Fellow at UN Foundation and Vice Chairman of AFED’s Executive Committee, prepared this overview on the status of climate change negotiations for AFED team participating in the UN Conference on Climate Change (COP 21), which opens in Paris end November. The notes were used as talking points at […]

Read the rest of this entry »

AFP, Cairo Thursday, 19 November 2015 Russia signed two agreements Thursday to finance and build Egypt’s first nuclear power plant, in a ceremony attended by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Sergei Kirienko, director general of Russian atomic energy agency Rosatom, said the agreement is for the construction and operation of four 1,200 MW reactors, making the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Paddy Padmanathan 19/11/2015 In March 2015, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) signed a 25-year power purchase agreement with a consortium of ACWA Power and TSK for a 200 MW net solar photo-voltaic (PV), under Phase II of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the Middle East’s largest renewable energy park. The […]

Read the rest of this entry »