by Ehsan Bayat | Nov 16, 2018 | Agriculture, Conservation, Construction, Crops, Farm, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology
The boom in energy use in the Middle East is causing regional leaders to rethink how they allocate natural resources. While the area’s large reserves of oil and natural gas have provided cheap fuel for decades, many now believe that fossil fuels are not the best way...
by Ehsan Bayat | Oct 26, 2018 | Afghanistan, Conservation, Construction, Crops, Energy, Farm, Infrastructure, Technology, Water, Weather
The western region of Afghanistan is facing its worst drought in a decade, following several years of extremely low rain and snowfall. Some blame the lack of snow on the La Nina weather cycle in the Pacific Ocean, which resulted in rainfall totals that were 70 percent...
by Ehsan Bayat | Oct 19, 2018 | Conservation, Construction, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology, Water
Making fresh water from salt water, a process called desalination, has become vital in supplying water to the desert countries of the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, which creates 20 percent of the desalinated water in the world, recently announced plans to construct nine...
by Ehsan Bayat | Oct 2, 2018 | Agriculture, Conservation, Crops, Energy, Farm, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology, Water
Farming in the dry, arid Middle East is often a fight against nature. As populations have increased, resulting in more demand for food and higher water usage, innovative farmers and researchers are experimenting with alternative farming methods, including greenhouses...
by Ehsan Bayat | Sep 25, 2018 | Conservation, Construction, Energy, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology
Long considered an epicenter of fossil fuel production, the Middle East is now leading the way in renewable energy initiatives. Whether it’s a college student club in Saudi Arabia focusing on sustainability or a petroleum company building a wind farm, representatives...
by Ehsan Bayat | Aug 29, 2018 | Conservation, Construction, Energy, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology, Tourism, Transportation
Israel is running out of land for development, and Israeli officials are floating an idea for expansion that other small countries have successfully employed: building artificial islands. One of Israel’s biggest needs is a new airport, as the Middle Eastern country...
by Ehsan Bayat | Aug 22, 2018 | Agriculture, Conservation, Crops, Energy, Farm, Infrastructure, Technology, Water
Greenhouses have long been used to grow produce when the outside conditions aren’t conducive to farming. Middle Eastern countries face increasingly challenging conditions for agriculture, including productive land turning into desert, a lack of water, and harsh...
by Ehsan Bayat | Aug 15, 2018 | Conservation, Crops, Energy, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology, Water
While the Middle East is rich in oil, the region is increasingly struggling with the lack of a more important natural resource: water. Changing climates, population growth, and desertification—the process by which fertile land becomes desert—have made water scarce....
by Ehsan Bayat | Jul 18, 2018 | Agriculture, Conservation, Crops, Energy, Infrastructure, Pakistan, Water
Pakistan’s farming sector is in the midst of a severe water shortage that could devastate the country’s summer crops and impact the winter growing season. Government officials hope that projects such as a large dam and a new national water policy will help end the...
by Ehsan Bayat | Jul 11, 2018 | Construction, Energy, Infrastructure, Middle East, Technology, Tourism, Transportation, Travel
The Saudi Arabian government is making a massive investment in urban infrastructure as the country prepares for unprecedented population growth in the next decade. The city of Riyadh, for example, which has grown relatively unhindered due to not having any real...
