Mr. Green Bin takes over Dubai

The new bins outside my villa

This Thursday morning sees the launch of the latest “My City… My Environment” campaign by the waste management department at Dubai Municipality.

Everyone must have noticed the two plastic bins, one green and one black, in front of all the villas, whether residential or commercial, in Jumeirah 1, 2, 3; Al Safa 1, 2; Umm Suqueim 1, 2, 3; Al Manara, Umm Al Sheif and Al Barsha 2, 3 areas.

Over the past two weeks, the “Mr. Green Bin,” leaflets were widely circulated, informing us that starting May 15, SITA Trashco will be distributing the bins.

Dubai Municipality’s campaign aims to focus on the collection and segregation of waste at source to reduce waste to landfill.

Hussein Nasser Lootah told Emirates 24/7 and most media outlets the campaign “aims at introducing the best practices for cleanliness and making Dubai a greener city. It also emphasizes Dubai Municipality’s continuous efforts on high quality services to keep the city clean.”

“This door-to-door waste collection and recycling service for all the residents is a unique initiative that will educate the public and allow them to help Dubai Municipality in recycling the household waste in an efficient manner,” he added.

The leaflet

Dubai Municipality has chosen Dulsco, Averda and Trashco as its strategic partners for this “My City… My Environment” initiative.

The two green and black 240-liter bins have clear instructions to help residents separate the waste.

The black bins will be collected every day and the green ones three days a week on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. The leaflet clearly indicates what should go in each bin.

The green bins are for recyclables such as plastic containers, cardboard boxes (flattened out), newspapers, magazines, books, papers, empty water glass and plastic bottles, aluminum and metal cans as well as milk and juice bottles and cartons.

The black bins are for all other types of general waste such as leftover food, vegetable and fruit skins, meat, dairy products, fish waste, food contaminated boxes, disposable cups, trays, containers, paper towels, napkins, eggshells, nutshells, waste generated while sweeping etc…

Unfortunately, along with this project, our friendly municipality street cleaner will no longer operate in the 12 areas designated for the door-to-door collection and recycling campaign.

The street cleaner in my area had become a friend over the past eight years and came to my rescue a couple of months ago while I was walking the dog with my late friend. I will always be thankful to him for that.

Cleaners from private companies Dulsco, Averda and Trashco will now take over the complete waste management tasks from workers of Dubai Municipality which is privatizing street cleaning services for the first time in the emirate.

The municipality will also discontinue the use of large waste skips on the roads in these areas.

Now it remains to be seen if and how residents and businesses respond to the campaign and how the private companies will maintain cleanliness on our streets and the regular collection of the bins.

Dancing to the rhythm of Lebanon’s Cedars

The "3,000 Years" track

Long ago, the French poet and historian Alphonse de Lamartine wrote, “The Cedars know the history of the earth better than history itself.”

This might well be true. The Cedars, it turns out, are into music too!

“3,000 Years” is the first track in history created using a rhythm extracted from inside a Lebanese Cedar tree in the Barouk Forest and is now the focal point of the “Save the Music” campaign for Cedar conservation in Lebanon.

Although a few weeks old, I was blown away by the sounds and had to share this.

The initiative to give the Cedar a voice for conservation was launched by the Lebanese Ministry of Environment, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education.

The Cedar tree's rhythm was extracted by Derek Shirley, a Canadian bioacoustics engineer based in Germany He extracted the audio data from the Cedar by hooking a synthesizer reading mechanism sensitive to electric movement in living organisms to the ancient tree.

“We've recently discovered that each tree species creates its own rhythm,” Shirley said in a YouTube video entitled “Save the Music -- Save the Cedars.” “As it turns out, the Lebanese Cedars are especially rhythmic,” he added.

After Shirley extracted the raw, rhythmic beat, Beirut-based DJ ESC (Ribal Rayess), in collaboration with Jad Jazzy Jay (Jade Hazim), used the raw sounds to compose a House track.

"At the beginning of the [original] track you can hear about 20 seconds of raw footage that make base sounds," Rayess told Beirut’s The Daily Star. "It blew my mind."

Rayess said the lyrics, sang by Marlene Jaber, were "simple" with the intent to unite Lebanese, regardless of sect, under the symbolic Cedar tree. "The words reminisce 3,000 years of the Cedars," he said. By downloading the track and sharing the video, you're not only acting to save Lebanon’s Cedars, you're buying a song that's been playing for 3,000 years.

The Barouk Forest Cedars

CEDAR PRIDE

This reminded me of a post I wrote in September 2012 about Lebanon’s Cedars fighting for their life. You can read the full post, Lebanon Cedars fight a “winter revolution,” but it said in part:

…Throughout antiquity, the Cedars of Lebanon were prized above all other trees. Their fine wood is strong, straight and wonderfully scented. Cedar wood was the first choice for any temple or palace.

These magnificent trees helped give the Phoenicians a high place among other nations, and became the symbol by which they and their descendants were known. Revered and admired, they stand for prosperity and national pride.

But the cherished Cedar Tree (Cedrus libani) is not well. It is fighting its own revolution against time. It is feeling the strains of centuries and is at risk from global warming and insects. It has now been added to the list of threatened species, although at the lowest level of threat, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization.

In the past, Lebanese mountains were covered with Cedars. Sadly, all that is left today is 18 scattered patches of protected Cedar land. In total, protected forests (both Cedar and other) make up approximately four to eight percent of the Lebanese territory.

Alphonse de Lamartine visited the “Cedars of the Lord,” or Arz al-Rab near Bcharre, back in 1832. Putting a memorabilia on the trunk of a very old Cedar tree commemorated his visit.

Rudy Rahme's "Lamartine Cedar"

When it died, Lebanese Bcharre-born painter, sculptor and poet Rudy Rahme created the “Lamartine Cedar,” one of the most remarkable wooden and largest vegetal sculptures in the world. It stands 39 meters high and contains 70 human figures representing the relationship between time and place. Among the figures are the birth, life and death of Jesus.

Arz al-Rab are the oldest Cedars in Lebanon and give an accurate idea of the stature and splendor these trees attained in antiquity. About 375 Cedars of great age stand in a sheltered glacial pocket of Mount Makmel. Four of them, many hundreds of years old, have reached a height of 35 meters and their trunks are between 12 and 14 meters around. They have straight trunks and strong branches that spread their regular horizontal boughs like fans.

Also among the inhabitants of the forests are some thousand young trees. Concern for this modern remnant of historic Cedars goes back to 1876, when the 102-hectare grove was surrounded by a high stone wall. Financed by Queen Victoria, the wall protects against one of the Cedar's natural enemies -- the goats who enjoy feasting on young saplings.

Over the centuries, Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians made expeditions to Mount Lebanon for timber or extracted tributes of wood from the coastal cities of Canaan-Phoenicia.

The Phoenicians themselves made use of the Cedar, especially for their merchant fleets. Solomon requested large supplies of Cedar wood, along with architects and builders from King Hiram of Tyre to build his temple. Nebuchadnezzar boasted on a cuneiform inscription: "I brought for building, mighty Cedars, which I cut down with my pure hands on Mount Lebanon."

Its fragrance and durability, as well as the length of the great logs, made Cedar wood especially desirable.

The Egyptians used Cedar resin for mummification, and pitch was extracted from these trees for waterproofing and caulking.

Luckily, there is now an active program to conserve and regenerate the forests. The Lebanese approach has emphasized natural regeneration rather than planting, and this by creating the right conditions. Cedar and Nature Reserves created by the Lebanese state that contain Cedars include the Chouf Cedar Reserves, the Jaj Cedar Reserve, the Tannourine Reserve, the Ammouaa and Karm Shbat Reserves in the Akkar district, and Arz al-Rab forest.

In 1998, the Cedars of God were added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

Much more needs to be done to restore and preserve these proud, tall, strong symbols of Lebanon and its people. Lebanon’s Cedar needs all the help it can get. One step is to download the “Save the Music” track to donate:  http://vlrecords.bandcamp.com/releases

Related post:

Lebanon Cedar fights a “winter revolution” – September 12, 2012

Starting over…

Where do you even begin when you are starting over?

What do you do when you have lost half your soul?

It is a long and painful road, but road there is and walking it is a must. I will stumble and fall along the way. 

Fortunately, there will be wonderful family and friends to pick me up and keep me going.

A first step is to come back to Mich Café. I have missed it so much and apologize to you, the readers, for being absent for so long. There were many posts to write but I had neither the courage, the heart or the concentration to write them.

My only concern and dedication over the past nine months was to help the person closest to me fight his battle with cancer.

But I am lucky to have shared someone’s life for so long and to only have good memories. We were always able to see the funny and positive side of every situation, whether good or bad. These memories are a treasure. They will pave the tortuous way ahead.

The roller skates are on. Now it’s time to try and take the first step…

International Women’s Day: What if…

Icons photo by Max Dashu

Happy International Women’s Day ladies.

What if, for just one day, every single woman on the planet did absolutely nothing?

What if, for just one day, we lay down all our “tools,” just sat down, stretched our legs and watched the world run by men?

I think it would sound and look like Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai with no cars. I think the world would stop!

With a world population of 7 billion on October 31, 2011, according to the United Nations  -- or 3 487 869 males and 3 439 427 037 females according to a 2011 estimate by the worldstat info -- I would love to see that happen.

Despite the number of men and women in the world being roughly equal -- men hold a slight lead with 102 men for 100 women (in 2010, as stated by French National Institute for Demographic Studies) -- women’s equality is still unequal.

International Women’s Day (IWD), celebrated today and throughout March, is under the theme Inspiring Change. Equality For Women Is Progress For All is the United Nations’ theme this year.

“Countries with more gender equality have better economic growth. Companies with more women leaders perform better. Peace agreements that include women are more durable. Parliaments with more women enact more legislation on key social issues such as health, education, anti-discrimination and child support. The evidence is clear: equality for women means progress for all,” says UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Inspiring Change encourages advocacy for women's advancement everywhere in every way. It calls for challenging the status quo for women's equality and vigilance inspiring positive change.

With more women in the boardroom, greater equality in legislative rights, and an increased critical mass of women's visibility as impressive role models in every aspect of life, one could think we have gained true equality. Unfortunately, women are still not paid equally, we still are not present in equal numbers in business or politics, and globally women's education, health and the violence against them is worse than that of men.

Violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread violations of human rights. A 2013 WHO global study shows that 35 percent of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual violence.

I have a firm belief that education can win us the future. Cultural, social and political benefits can be translated into society through education. The first step on the long road to equal opportunities and development has to be through education.

It is sad that parts of the human race have not yet learned men and women can be partners. It is sad and repulsive that many men still need to show their superiority through violence and rape.

Women’s rights as human beings are non-negotiable.

Today, on Women’s Day, as I do most days, I thank the women in my life for being who they are, for guiding me and for shining a light on me.

Working at IF Boutique, a ladies’ store, I meet so many women on a daily basis. Every one of them adds something special to my day.

But most of all, thanks go to Maya for being the rock that has sheltered my billowing sand in the difficult times I am going through.

Although my mom Vicky has been gone for 22 years, thanks are always due to her for being the strong, intelligent and outspoken women that she was. She taught me to have a voice but to be tolerant, understanding and without prejudice. Mom had class, insight, wisdom, courage and humor -- in health and in sickness -- until her last hours. Vicky remains my reference for a great woman.

On this special day, I equally give thanks and celebrate the men in my life who have helped and continue to help and support me. I especially thank fellow blogger ArabSaga, who for the past 40 year has walked every step of the way with me and who is now fighting the demon and hell of cancer.

We are preordained to be a team – women and men. There’s no escape.

Let’s walk life hand in hand and celebrate Human's Day, with no need to qualify the gender…

Related International Women’s Day posts:

March 8: Women's rights non-negotiable -- March 8, 2013

March 8: Education can win the future -- March 6, 2012

The women in my life -- March 8, 2011

Dearest Mom… -- 21 March 2011

UNHCR urges world access to 100,000 Syrians in 2015/16

 

A Syrian boy at a refugee transit site in Arsal, Lebanon (UNHCR/M. Hofer)

With  no end in sight to the three-year fighting in Syria, the UN refugee agency on February 21 called upon countries around the world to make multi-annual commitments towards a goal of providing resettlement and other forms of admission for an additional 100,000 Syrian refugees in 2015 and 2016.

UNHCR had earlier called upon states to offer resettlement or other forms of admission to 30,000 of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees by the end of 2014. To date, 20 countries have offered more than 18,800 places towards this goal.

There are currently more than 2.4 million refugees registered in the region. In Lebanon there are some 932,000, Jordan has 574,000, Turkey some 613,000, Iraq 223,000 and Egypt has about 134,000 refugees.

"UNHCR remains confident that the 30,000 goal will be met by the end of the year through a significant number of submissions to the United States," spokesman Dan McNorton told journalists in Geneva.

As part of the emergency response, UNHCR is urging states to consider a number of solutions that can provide secure, urgent and effective protection for these people. Such solutions could include resettlement, humanitarian admission or individual sponsorship; programs that enable Syrian relatives to join family members; scholarships for Syrian students in order to prevent a "lost generation" of young people; and medical evacuation for refugees with life-threatening health conditions.

Arsal, Lebanon

More than 10,000 Syrians have fled over the mountains into Lebanon since a fresh offensive on the city of  Yabroud – in Reef Dimashq governorate about 80 km north of Damascus -- and     its outskirts began in mid February. The new arrivals represent a second wave of refugees to escape fighting in the same region of Syria, following an earlier influx in November 2013.

Syrian refugee tents in Arsal (The Daily Star/Hassan Shaaban)

The new refugees are arriving in a town that has already taken in huge numbers in recent months. The population of Arsal, normally 35,000, has now surpassed 83,000 – with far more Syrians now than Lebanese.

Community centers, mosques and other "collective shelters" have long since run out of space. Across the town, a patchwork of blue and white tents and impromptu shelters is filling up any open space. Some new arrivals are living in vans and the backs of trucks. With this new influx, the number of informal tented settlements in the town has climbed from six to more than 30, writes UNHCR’s Andrew Purvis from Arsal.

The latest exodus from Syria began in earnest when bombing intensified on February12.

To avoid shelling, many of those fleeing Yabroud are finding alternative routes over the mountains along rugged mountain tracks still blanketed with snow.

For many of the refugees, the escape to Lebanon follows several years of displacement and deprivation within Syria.