August 30, 2011 01:28 AM By Van Meguerditchian The Daily Star BALLOUNEH, Lebanon: The people will bring down any pylon carrying high voltage electrical lines that run near homes, activists and residents of the Kesrouan town of Ballouneh said during a demonstration Monday. Dozens of Ballouneh residents joined civil society activists in their march toward […]

Read the rest of this entry »

AMMAN (Petra) – Local and international companies have started to develop the first electric charging plant using solar power. The project, to be built in cooperation with El Hassan Science City and financed by the USAID, seeks to provide clean energy resources to charge electric vehicles to help the Kingdom reduce carbon dioxide emissions and […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Environmental Protection Ministry installed new system for monitoring radiation from cellular antennas a year ago; despite findings, ministry has no intention, or authority, to penalize the offending cellular companies. By Amitai Ziv * * Published 10:41 30.08.11 * Latest update 10:41 30.08.11 State: 8% of cellular antennas exceeded radiation ceilings Environmental Protection Ministry installed new […]

Read the rest of this entry »

A recent study by the Technion of building trends in 57 Arab locales, show that building has become increasingly ‘compact’. By Zafrir Rinat One of the main claims government bodies and planning authorities make against the Arab towns is that they are prone to uncontrolled spread. In the absence of proper planning, this spread is […]

Read the rest of this entry »

STOCKHOLM, August 28, 2011 (WAFA) – Israel exploits over 90% of the Palestinian-Israeli shared water resources for its own use, while exerting tremendous influence over the remaining 10% for Palestinian use, said Minister of Water Authority, Shaddad Attili, on Saturday during the closing session of the World Water Week in Stockholm. Palestinians are denied their […]

Read the rest of this entry »

The water level of the Dead Sea rises annually due to salt deposited on bottom during extraction of minerals by Dead Sea Works; it is believed that within a few years the water will flood the hotels. By Zafrir Rinat The committee charged with moving ahead on a plan to protect the Dead Sea hotels […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Even A short dip in the Dead Sea facilitates a drop in blood glucose levels and could improve the medical conditions of diabetics, according to an initial study conducted by researchers from the health sciences faculty of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Soroka Medical Center in Be’er Sheva. The study involved an […]

Read the rest of this entry »

I am writing to ask for your assistance in recruiting for the 2012 program which will be comprised of professionals from the Middle East (please see information below). There are a few rules we must follow: The applicants must be citizens of Jordan, Egypt, Israel or the Palestinian Territories, and cannot hold dual US citizenship. […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 08/24/2011 06:13 CEO sees wind power as one way of shifting centralized energy production among local communities. Talkbacks (21) An Israeli green energy firm that has focused primarily on photovoltaic installations is now shifting gears and adding wind farms to its future inventory by signing a cooperation agreement to erect turbines in […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By JOANNA PARASZCZUK AND SHARON UDASIN 08/25/2011 05:01 Court rejects “Not In My Back Yard” argument from local councils, says all Israelis must do their part. Talkbacks (1) As the water level in the Kinneret hovered around the lower red line on Wednesday, a judge in the Tel Aviv District Court slammed a petition by […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – The Ministry of Water and Irrigation on Saturday said farms’ consumption of underground water in Shobak is monitored and violators are bound to be held accountable. Owners of apple farms in Shobak, about 170 kilometres to the south of Amman, pump water from their licensed wells according to the underground […]

Read the rest of this entry »

August 27, 2011 01:46 AM By Annie Slemrod BURJ AL-BARAJNEH, Lebanon: Sometimes personal hygiene isn’t a private matter.“When I shower, my eyes burn,” says Bashir Homato. He scratches his arms from behind the counter at a small shop. “My skin itches.” Brushing his teeth with tap water, Homato says, “[it] makes me vomit.” Khaled Sahmarani […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 08/25/2011 02:39 First-time social entrepreneurship competition will distribute NIS 100,000 worth of prize money at contest’s end. Talkbacks () The Environmental Protection Ministry, in conjunction with Ashoka Israel and the Green Environment Fund, has for the first time launched a social entrepreneurship competition that will distribute NIS 100,000 worth of prize money […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 08/26/2011 05:15 Program to rely on net, rather than gross, economic growth; recognizes the importance of integrating sustainability into daily life, Talkbacks () The Green Movement has issued a report proposing a “Green New Deal” program for Israel, asking that the government shift its economic policies from relying on figures of the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

25-08-2011 The project for optimised management of Waste in the Mediterranean (GODEM), implemented in the framework of the EU-funded programme CIUDAD, is holding its second seminar on Integrated Solid Waste Management in Lebanon on 19 and 20 September 2011 in Tripoli, Lebanon. A press release said the seminar will highlight the concrete implementation steps Al […]

Read the rest of this entry »

“I see what we do here as very important in bringing people together,” says Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed. “This is the future we need to invest in.” By Avigayil Kadesh, 22.8.2011 Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed jokingly calls himself the “black sheep” of his family. That’s because, of the five siblings in his Arab-Israeli family, he […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Munich – The industry initiative Dii, together with the DESERTEC Foundation and the DESERTEC University Network launch the DESERTEC Thesis Award this year. The winners will receive their award at Dii’s Annual Conference in November in Cairo. The aim of the award is to recognize outstanding research papers and to encourage more students to conduct […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Najib Saab, Issue 160-161, July 2011 The Arab Spring, which started in early December 2010, has been at the center of global news coverage. The topic of AFED 2011 report is not unrelated to these events. We hope for the Arab Spring to usher in a new direction for economic and environmental sustainability. At […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Rola Tassabehji For those with any interest in the environmental issues in the Arab world, “Al- Bia Wal-Tanmia” is a familiar name. Started in 1996, the only Pan Arab environmental magazine was the precursor of the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED), a regional non-profit organization based in Beirut which has become a public […]

Read the rest of this entry »