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Guinness World Records recognizes longest phrase made from coffee beans
UNESCO added Saudi Khawlani coffee and the skills and knowledge associated with its cultivation to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list
The Heritage Commission has set a world record for the longest phrase made from coffee beans.
The phrase, “Heritage Commission,” comprised 6,088 Saudi Khawlani beans and was created as part of the commission’s events to mark World Heritage Day.
The creation, whose record length was recognized by Guinness World Records, was displayed at the King Abdulaziz Historical Center in Riyadh, where the commission’s representatives received their official certificate.
Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s largest consumers of coffee and achieving self-sufficiency in its production is a goal of Saudi Vision 2030.
Khawlani is one of the world’s most sought after coffee beans. It has been cultivated in the Jazan region for more than eight centuries and is mentioned many times in old poems and songs from the region.
Last year, UNESCO added Saudi Khawlani coffee and the skills and knowledge associated with its cultivation to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
According to statistics from the 2022 Saudi Coffee Festival, the Jazan region is home to more than 2,000 coffee farms, over 384,000 coffee trees and an annual production of over 900 tons.
source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)
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The phrase, ‘Heritage Commission,’ comprised of 6,088 Saudi Khawlani beans, was created as part of the commission’s events to mark World Heritage Day. (SPA)
Saudi Arabia’s biodiversity is set to reap huge benefits thanks to Red Sea Global planning the “single most challenging horticultural endeavor ever attempted in human history,” the company has announced.
RSG’s fully operational nursery aims to raise over 25 million plants in the Red Sea Project and the ultra-luxury destination AMAALA by 2030, reducing the Kingdom’s reliance on importing foreign plant species and promoting the growth of native flora.
It will also produce over 30 million seedlings, which according to Grant Shaw, senior nursery director at RSG, is “incredibly exciting for horticulturalists.”
“If you think about 25 million plants in the time frame we’re talking about, it’s never been attempted before. It’s like the single most challenging horticultural endeavor ever attempted in human history in the middle of the desert.”
He added: “With our designers, we’ve looked at what can we use natively and then what can we enhance with some adaptive species.”
“Some of the species you see in this region will never be seen anywhere else in the world because they can’t grow elsewhere,” Shaw concluded.
The Red Sea region’s exceptional year-round climate allows for adding a broad range of plants, including cultivated, adapted and native plants, said Fahd Al-Habely, the company’s assistant director of the environmental program department.
Consequently, the company has implemented two initiatives. One is collecting native seeds across the Kingdom, and the other is transplanting mature trees.
With a mandate to increase biodiversity in the area by 30 percent, the company has a “laser-like focus on sustainability,” he explained.
Though the nursery mainly comprises plants native to Saudi Arabia, the giga-project has also been sourcing desert plant species worldwide, including Australia, where the climate is similar to the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia has successfully planted over 12 million trees in the past five years through the National Center for Vegetation Development as it moves toward achieving its sustainability goals as part of the Saudi Green Initiative, stated the annual report issued by the National Transformation Program for 2022.
According to the report, more than 22 percent of the treated water in the Kingdom was reused while recording a 35 percent increase in desalinated water production capacity since 2018.
Some of the other achievements include the release of up to 921 endangered animals in national parks and reserves, the first birth of the Arabian oryx at the King Salman Royal Reserve, and the first birth of the Idmi gazelle at the Ibex Reserve.
source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)
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RSG’s fully operational nursery aims to raise over 25 million plants in the Red Sea Project and the ultra-luxury destination AMAALA by 2030, reducing the Kingdom’s reliance on importing foreign plant species and promoting the growth of native flora. (Supplied)
Manar al Jahwari won Saudi Arabian Innovation Hackathon award for her project Royal Filament.
Oman’s own Manar al Jahwari competed against 24 projects (shortlisted out of 700 total projects) in the final round of the Saudi Arabian Innovation Hackathon award, where her project was chosen along with three others as the most promising project.
Her project aimed at restricting the use of plastic filaments in 3D printing, and she fashioned 3D printing filament out of seaweed and other environment-friendly materials. She is currently in talks with government agencies to make her project a viable business, and she hopes to attract numerous local and international investors.
The Saudi Arabian Water Technologies Hackathon is a competition held virtually that lasts for two days, October 21 and 22, and involves three challenges that need to be solved within the given two days.
The second challenge was to control the excessive growth of algae in Jeddah’s desalination facilities, for which Al Jahwari came up with the innovative solution of “Royal Filament.”
Paying tribute to Her Highness the Honourable Lady Assayida Ahd Abdullah Hamed Al Busaidi, Spouse of the Sultan of Oman, the Infrastructure, Technology, Industrial and Consumer Solutions cluster of Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC (MHD-ITICS), sponsored an event to set a new Guinness World Record for ‘A Word Written with the Largest Number of Flowers’.
The event was hosted by Lujaina Mohsin Darwish, Chairperson, MHD-ITICS. The mammoth task of assembling 12,000 roses, which spelt out the First Lady’s name, ‘Ahad’, began with fabrication work on 25 October and was successfully completed on 26 October.
It was then displayed at a grand event organised near the Snow Zone area, located on level two of the Mall of Oman. Official adjudicators from Guinness World Records were present to supervise, analyse and follow every step of the process. Adhering to all the stringent criteria, the masterpiece, once finished, stood 8.2 metres wide and 3 metres tall and proved to be a true work of art.
Ideated and conceptualised by Ms Naseem Abdullah Al Fadhli, MD, Integrated Benefits Projects and supported by Ms Haifa Balfaqih, Investment Programme Director – Nazdaher and GM, Strategic Planning and Technology, be’ah, the historic event witnessed the presence of some of the highly-esteemed guests including her excellencies, leading businesswomen and attendees from all over the country.
Receiving an overwhelming response from the audience, the new Guinness World Record further cements Oman’s position on the map as a country filled with unique initiatives and also as a nation raising an empowered generation of women.
Lujaina Mohsin Darwish said, “With the key message behind this initiative being especially close to our hearts, we are indeed delighted to set this new world record. It not only celebrates Omani women but is a tribute to Her Highness the Honourable Lady Assayida Ahad Abdullah Hamed Al Busaidi.
Her unwavering faith in the capabilities of the Omani women of today and continuous appreciation of their achievements have served as a constant motivation for all. It has ignited a zeal in every woman to break the glass ceiling and push the frontiers of women leadership.”
“Drawing inspiration from our leaders, MHD-ITICS will continue to act as a catalyst of change, encouraging women’s contribution to the Omani economy as well as participating and leading in their respective areas of influence and expertise. The strong Omani women have displayed courage, creativity, vision and accomplishment and will continue to play an instrumental role in driving transformation,” she added.
A keynote speech was delivered by Lujaina Mohsin Darwish, which was then followed by the much-awaited showcasing of the largest flower word. Another key highlight of the event was the large LED display wall with snippets and pictures of the First Lady of Oman. All attendees were gifted a branded scarf and were entertained with live music, a food and beverage counter and photo opportunities.
MHD-ITICS, under the guidance of Honourable Lujaina Mohsin Darwish, has achieved commendable growth in recent years. Moreover, the Company has been at the forefront of setting new benchmarks in the industry and supporting its women employees to assume various critical roles in the organisation.
Morocco’s berry production is one of the country’s key contributors to the agricultural sector.
Morocco has outperformed the US becoming the fourth largest blueberry exporter in the world.
Data from East Fruit said that Morocco exported 53,000 tonnes of blueberries in 2022. Peru was the largest exporter of fresh blueberries last year, with 277,000 tonnes, followed by Chile (105,000 tonnes) and Spain (87,000).
Despite Morocco’s leading position in blueberry exports, the Netherlands exported more blueberries than the North African country in 11 months of last year, the same source said.
“It should be noted that the exports from the Netherlands in 11 months of last year were higher than that of Morocco, having amounted to 104 000 tonnes,” East Fruit reported.
Elaborating on the data, the news outlet said: “However, if we take into account the volume of re-exports, the real result of the Netherlands will be much lower since it imported 130 000 tonnes of fresh blueberries during this period.”
East Fruit also recalled that Morocco ranked seventh place among the largest exporters of cultivated blueberries in 2017.
Berry production in Morocco has contributed to the country’s agricultural sector significantly.
Morocco’s revenues from strawberry exports to the international market are estimated between $40 and $70 million annually.
According to previous data from East Fruit strawberry products are one of the top 10 most exported goods from Morocco.
According to estimates, Morocco exported 22,400 tonnes of fresh strawberries globally in 2022, representing an increase of 17% compared to a year earlier.
Countries like the UAE, Qatar were key buyers of Moroccan goods. In Europe, the US is one of Morocco’s strawberry importers. In 2022, the US imported almost half of Morocco’s strawberry export supply.
The IFFCO Group, one of the UAE’s largest producers of food products, has opened the first 100-percent plant-based meat factory in the region, in Dubai.
Located in the Dubai Industrial City, the THRYVE factory will catalyse the move towards a more sustainable and healthy food chain in the Middle East, actively supporting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the UAE’s Vision 2051 initiative to bolster food security through diversity and innovation. The factory will provide nourishing, sustainable and healthy local plant-based meat products inspired by the unique flavours of Middle Eastern cuisine.
Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, said, “The new 100-percent plant-based meat factory supports the UAE’s Food Security Strategy and our mandate to mitigate the impact of climate change. The opening of this innovative new facility also supports our efforts to protect the country’s ecosystems and enhance its food and water security and diversify our food sources. By fostering such robust research and development focused on producing innovative food products, we seek to raise the UAE’s ability to move up the global food industry value chain and achieve first place on the Global Food Security Index by 2051. The new factory represents a significant contribution to sustainability in the food supply chain.”
Hadi Badri, CEO of the Dubai Economic Development Corporation at Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism said, “The opening of this factory, which will pave the way for a dynamic new industry that will boost trade across the region, is a reflection of the UAE’s commitment to pioneer the use of innovative technologies to provide sustainable solutions to real world problems. It contributes to Dubai’s economic diversification journey in line with the goal of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 to consolidate the emirate’s status as one of the top three global cities. The new facility is a testament to the pivotal role being played by Dubai in promoting the growth and evolution of environmentally sound practices that can alleviate the effects of climate change. By providing opportunities for private companies to invest in sustainable technologies, Dubai is accelerating the creation of a robust and resilient green economy.
“Such initiatives also reflect Dubai’s success in creating a fertile environment for new businesses and investors to thrive, and generating new job opportunities. Dubai and the UAE will continue to work with stakeholders and partners to remain at the forefront of innovation and economic sustainability, inspired by the ambition of our visionary leadership to create a better future for all.”
Saud Abu Alshawareb, Executive Vice President, Industrial Leasing, Dubai Industrial City, said, “DIC is an ideal location for initiatives like the IFFCO Group’s plant-based meat factory that underscore the importance of food security. The Dubai Industrial City is home to a growing number of Dubai-based food manufacturers who are leading the way in introducing innovative food products. This new enterprise adds value to the industry while strengthening our reputation as facilitators of a self-reliant food programme.”
The THRYVE plant-based venture, developed using cutting-edge food technology, contributes to at least three UN’s SDG’s: good health and well-being, responsible consumption and production, and climate action.
The only 100 percent plant-based meat factory in the Middle East, IFFCO’s THRYVE will leverage advanced food technologies to produce tasty, healthy, sustainable and culturally relevant food that meets the needs of the local consumer. In addition, IFFCO is working closely with the government to create regulatory standards for plant-based food products.
The global plant-based meat market was estimated to be worth US$7.9 billion in 2022, and is forecast to reach US$15.7 billion by 2027, according to a report from ResearchAndMarkets.com. The newly opened THRYVE factory will cater to 30 percent of the GCC population, stimulating the development of the market for local plant-based products. As per proprietary research, the GCC has the potential to be a future leader in developing food products for flexitarians, people whose diet is primarily vegetarian.
Famous for its “fog harvesting” project in southern Morocco, the nonprofit Dar Si Hmad for Development, Education and Culture also carries out other projects to build the capacities of local populations and provide educational training projects for young people.
The fog-harvesting project, in the Sidi Ifni region of southern Morocco, uses specially designed nets to capture water droplets suspended in the fog covering mountain peaks. The fog-water drips off the nets and is channeled into a filtration system, thus providing clean water to residents of areas suffering from severe water shortages.
The project is a boon for women in the region because it frees them from having to carry water long distances, and also provides jobs and training for them.
Development Projects
Established in 2010, Dar Si Hmad for Development, Education and Culture is run by Jamila Bargach, a cultural anthropologist, and her husband, Aissa Derham , a mathematician who holds a Ph.D. from Laval University in Canada.
Bargach studied at Mohammed V University in Rabat and obtained a Ph.D. in anthropology from Rice University in the United States. She has worked for several nongovernmental organisations in Morocco and abroad.
In the region, Bargach is nicknamed “The Bride of the Fog” in reference to a local Amazigh legend of a princess named Teslet who did her best to make rain to save her village from drought.
Over the past years, the fog-harvesting project has received numerous international honours, notably an Innovation in Sustainabilty award from the GoAbroad Foundation in 2017 and a Momentum for Change award presented at the COP22 Climate Summit in Marrakech in 2016.
Programmes for American Students
Fond of southern Morocco, Bargach believes that the region provides unique opportunities for students to learn more about the kingdom, especially in terms of how development projects are accomplished in complex and special contexts.
Many of Dar Si Hmad’s educational programmes center on the fog-harvesting project, Bargach told Al-Fanar Media. “This enables students to learn and develop their abilities through practical and field education.”
She added that the association receives students from American universities who come to southern Morocco. Over the years, it has hosted more than 54 student missions from different American universities.
The organisation provides these students with opportunities to meet with Moroccan students from Ibn Zohr University, in Agadir, and to participate in various educational programmes. These include the RISE Programme, the Ethnographic Field School and the Water School, as well as job programmes targeting women in rural areas.
Environment-Friendly Entrepreneurship
The RISE Programme aims to build capacities and promote environment-friendly entrepreneurship among students of colleges and higher schools in Agadir. The programme is a set of integrated workshops presented by experts, and meetings with employers, with the aim of exchanging experiences and creating opportunities for networking. Each participant is also required to have a project idea that benefits the local environment, besides the need to commit to attending all scheduled events.
The Ethnographic Field School promotes cross-cultural understanding and exchange through interpersonal interaction with local communities. During their time in southern Morocco, participants learn about local issues like sustainable practices in the argan oil industry , which employs many rural Amazigh women, or languages like darija (Moroccan Arabic) and Tachelhit (the local form of Tamazight).
The Water School programme is directed to students of rural schools in the Aït Baamrane region in southern Morocco. The programme is based on lessons inspired by local reality, with openness to other horizons and cultures. The Water School brings together volunteers, environmental trainers, and other partners. Everyone is committed to building a comprehensive and ethical foundation for the benefit of environmental education, the organisation’s leaders say.
Bargach says that the success of the fog-harvesting project motivated and inspired the educational programmes’ students. She adds that they are working to transfer knowledge to young people who are passionate about more work and innovation in searching for alternative sources of water and serving the environment in southern Morocco.
Skill-Building Experiences
Nadia El-Aissaoui, who holds a master’s degree in tourism and communication from Ibn Zohr University’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities, worked in Dar Si Hmad’s Ethnographic Field School this year. She said the experience helped her develop professional skills. “I have benefited greatly from this experience,” she said. “I worked as a fixer (‘speaking partner’) for students coming from American universities to work on field research projects.”
The programme transferred her from university halls to field research, she said. “This experience enriched my professional path,” she added. “I learned a lot of things, such as focusing on tasks, time management, documentation, interpretation methods, besides exposing me to the American mentality and working ways.”
Aissa Derham checks a net used in the fog-harvest project. He and Jamila Bargach co-founded the nonprofit Dar Si Hmad for Development, Education and Culture, which runs several capacity-building and educational programmes in southern Morocco. (Photo courtesy of the organisation)
The official names for the new minerals are elaliite and elkinstantonite.
Canadian researchers said the rock was found in rural Somalia two years ago, but locals believe it is much older.
They call the stone Nightfall, and say it is documented in poems, songs and dances that stretch back five generations. It is used today to sharpen knives.
A huge meteorite that fell to Earth contains two minerals never seen before on our planet, scientists say.
Canadian researchers said the rock was found in rural Somalia two years ago, but locals believe it is much older.
They call the stone Nightfall, and say it is documented in poems, songs and dances that stretch back five generations. It is used today to sharpen knives.
The official names for the new minerals are elaliite and elkinstantonite.
They were identified by scientists at the University of Alberta who looked at a 70g fragment from the 15-tonne meteorite, which is said to be the ninth-biggest to reach our planet and is about 90% iron and nickel.
The name “elaliite” honours the fact that the meteorite was unearthed in the district of El Ali in Somalia, and “elkinstantonite” is named after Nasa expert Lindy Elkins-Tanton.
“Lindy has done a lot of work on how the cores of planets form, how these iron nickel cores form, and the closest analogue we have are iron meteorites. So it made sense to name a mineral after her and recognise her contributions to science,” said Prof Chris Herd who curates the University of Alberta’s meteorite collection.
A third, as-yet unidentified mineral, is being analysed by the university’s researchers who now hope to get their hands on more of the meteorite – not only to see what else they might discover, but also how it could be used on Earth.
“Whenever there’s a new material that’s known, material scientists are interested too because of the potential uses in a wide range of things in society,” Prof Herd said of the “exciting” research.
source/content: the-star.co.ke (Star) / BBC News, Africa (headline edited)
The Kuwaitis continued to make many distinguished achievements and achieved results in various fields and at the various local, regional and international levels, which were recorded for their work and creativity, reports Al-Rai daily. The following are the most prominent of these achievements during the year 2022.
February 10: Dr. Hind Al-Qadri, a researcher at the Dasman Diabetes Institute of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences, won the 2021 L’Oréal UNESCO Prize for Women in Science within the Middle East Regional Program for Emerging Female Researchers. (see picture below)
February 24: Kuwaiti parachutist Ibrahim Al-Rubaian recorded an unprecedented feat by jumping from a height of 13,000 feet with the biggest fl ag in the sky of Kuwait, with an area of 800 square meters, under the slogan “I raised glory and soared with pride,” coinciding with the national holidays.
February 26: The State of Kuwait entered the Guinness Book of Records by hoisting the country’s largest flag measuring 2,742 square meters and installing it on a mountain peak in the Sultanate of Oman (Jabal Shams), at an altitude of 3,028 meters above sea level, in conjunction with national holidays.
March 21: The Arab Organization for Education, Culture and Science (ALECSO) honored Sheikha Dr. Suad Al-Sabah, in recognition of her brilliant contributions in the literary and cultural fields, at its eighth session of the “Arab Poetry Day” in the Tunisian capital.
April 23: The International Professional Diving Instructors Organization awarded the Kuwait Scientific Club Center for Swimming and Diving a Certificate of Excellence for its contribution to the development of the diving industry inside and outside Kuwait.
June 12: Kuwaiti researchers Dr. Nasser Al-Sayegh and Dr. Ammar Bahman obtained a patent from the US Patent Office, for their invention of a device capable of characterizing the physical state of nanosuspensions dispersed in nanofluids during the dynamic fl ow process.
June 29: Kuwait University announces that Assistant Professor of the Department of Surgical Sciences at the College of Dentistry, Dr. Muhammad Kamal, and the Consultant of Nose and Throat at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Abdul Mohsen Al-Turki, obtained a patent from the United States of America for an alternative medical splint to the nose wicks.
July 2: The International Pharmaceutical Federation selected Dr. Dalal Al-Taweel, Assistant Dean for Student and Academic Affairs at the College of Pharmacy, among 20 rising stars in the field of pharmaceutical research and pharmaceutical education.
August 11: The League of Arab States honors the Kuwaiti youth, Abdullah Al- Shammari, who won the third place for the “Excellence Award for Arab Youth 2022” in the field of “voluntary work” granted by the Council of Arab Ministers of Youth and Sports. The award came about the “Al-Amal Electronic Newspaper” project, which is concerned with the affairs of people with disabilities.
October 2: Plastic artist Munira Al-Qadiri won the prize of the 15th session of the German “Trina Fellbach” exhibition for small sculptures.
October 3: Dr. Badr Al-Enezi, from the Department of Environmental Technology Management at the College of Life Sciences at Kuwait University, obtained a patent on “improving water and solving the problem of environmental pollution in a scientific way” from the United States Patent and Intellectual Property Office.
October 9: Kuwaiti photographer Muhammad Murad won first place in the prestigious international “Mont Photo” competition for photography in the natural world in Spain.
October 12: The European Union of Medical Specialties selected Dr. MuhammadKamal, a Kuwaiti academic, as the first examiner from outside the continent for the Board of Oral, Maxillofacial, and Head and Neck Surgery. The selection was made during the last session held in the Spanish capital, Madrid.
October 12: Lama Fahad Al-Ariman received the “Rising Space Leaders” award presented by the International Astronautical Federation as the representative of the State of Kuwait in this international competition.
October 30: Kuwaiti photographer Muhammad Murad won the top honorary prize in the African “Benjamin Mkapa” competition for developing African wildlife and the American “Nature Best” competition.
A consignment of blue ammonia has left Saudi Arabia for South Korea, representing a new milestone in the development of decarbonization solutions.
The development was first announced during the recent Saudi Green Initiative conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, and Vessel Seasurfer, carrying 25,000 metric tons (25 KMT) of low-carbon blue ammonia, is expected to reach its destination between Dec. 9 and 13 in the world’s first commercial shipment of its kind.
The accomplishment, which is an alternative to conventional gray ammonia, is part of a collaboration between Saudi Basic Industries Corporation Agri-Nutrients and Aramco.
Lotte Fine Chemical, which has a long-standing relationship with SABIC AN, will receive the low-carbon “cradle to gate” blue ammonia.
Abdulrahman Shamsaddin, SABIC AN CEO, said: “This shipment is another milestone in our journey toward carbon neutrality.
“We are proud to be a part of this pioneering solution, paving the way for further decarbonization efforts.
“Looking to the future, we are constantly working on breakthrough solutions to decarbonize our assets and deliver low-carbon solutions to our customers.”
Yong Suk Kim, LFC CEO, said: “We are delighted to enter this meaningful agreement with our long-term supplier, SABIC Agri-Nutrients, to receive the world’s first certified blue ammonia cargo.
“Building on our shared history, we are looking forward to moving forward together into a new era for ammonia. We believe that this shipment of blue ammonia will help lay the foundations for a global supply chain.”
Earlier this year, SABIC AN and Aramco received the world’s first independent certifications, recognizing blue ammonia and blue hydrogen production, from TUV Rheinland, a leading independent testing, inspection and certification agency, based in Germany.
The shipment of blue ammonia to South Korea will be the first to capitalize on this major certification achievement.
The new developments are aligned with Saudi Vision 2030, which focuses on low-carbon fuels, products, solutions and clean energy.
