Our one month long internship at the Greening the Desert Project (the 'Sequel site') just ended. Ten students arriving from seven different countries were part of the first internship to take place at the project site in the Dead Sea Valley in Jordan. This will be a journey through pictures on what Geoff, Nadia, the interns and the WWOOFers were up to. … [Read more...]
Jordan Valley Permaculture Project Update: Post IPC Happenings
An aerial view of the site Although the landscape here could be seen as a model for scarcity, what there is an abundance of is rocks. The baked dusty earth barely passes for soil and during the summer there isn’t rain here for over six months. With valuable agricultural resources seemingly at a minimum, rocks can be incredibly valuable in the design of a sustainable human settlement. In the case of the Permaculture Research Institute of Jordan’s site (PRIJ), rocks have formed the main building … [Read more...]
Jordan Valley Permaculture Project – August 2011 Photo Update
Latifa inspects project development from a unique vantage point It's been just over a year since I've visited the Jordan Valley Permaculture Project (aka 'Greening the Desert - the Sequel') site, and I'm keen to check out progress when I visit next month (September 2011). In the meantime, Geoff, who is in Jordan now to help organise the upcoming Tenth International Permaculture Conference & Convergence (IPC10), has sent through a few pictures I can share today. … [Read more...]
Water Shortages Threaten Food Future in the Arab Middle East
by Lester R. Brown, Earth Policy Institute Captured from a bus window, while crossing the no-man’s land between Jordan and Israel/Palestine, the once-mighty Jordan river is today just a murky trickle (see bottom centre of image) that wouldn’t flow at all today if it wasn’t for the pollution poured into it…. It is estimated that the Jordan River will dry up completely by the end of 2011. Photo © Craig Mackintosh Long after the political uprisings in the Middle East have subsided, many underlying … [Read more...]
Jordan Valley Permaculture Project – November 2010 Update
The Jordan Valley Permaculture Project (aka 'Greening the Desert - the Sequel') in Al Jawaseri in the Dead Sea Valley (lowest place on earth), continues to develop as we gradually fund the project into action with our own permaculture education programs, volunteers and funding from Muslim Aid Australia and Kids are Sweet of Wisconsin, USA. The male and female shower and compost toilet block is now reaching completion using a basic faralone design system (PDF, with others composting toilet … [Read more...]
