Nature / Environment – Page 8 – Arabian Records (1st post : Eid Al Fitr – 01st Shawwal 1439 (AH) / 15th June 2018 ) / (BETA testing – Research

Dr. Farouk El Baz – Egyptian American Space Scientist and Geologist

Farouk El Baz Ph.D., Space Scientist. Geologist

Formerly – President Sadat’s Scientific Advisor (1978-1981)
Founder – Center for Earth and Planetary Studies, National Museum of Atmospheric and Space, at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC
Dr. El Baz played a pivotal role for the Apollo mission where he served as the secretary for the Apollo landing board on the moon, and was responsible for leading the astronaut training team in general science, particularly in moon imaging

So pivotal was he to Apollo that in Tom Hanks’ HBO TV-series, From the Earth to the Moon , El-Baz’s role as an Apollo scientist and astronaut trainer was featured in a segment entitled, “The Brain of Farouk El-Baz,” and a shuttle craft named El-Baz soared through the popular TV-series Star Trek : The Next Generation

Awards:

He has won over 31 awards, including achievements in science, in NASA, incl:
Golden Door Award of the International Institute of Boston
Nevada Medal of the Desert Research Institute
The Pioneer Award of the Arab Thought Foundation.
The Apollo Achievement Award

Honour:

Asteroid 7371 El-Baz, discovered by American astronomers Eleanor Helin and Schelte Bus at Palomar Observatory in 1978, was named in his honor. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 27 August 2019 ( M.P.C. 115893).

Book:

Deserts and Arid Lands , Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, ISBN 90-247-2850-9

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AMERICAN / EGYPTIAN-AMERICAN / ARAB AMERICAN

‘Erg Chech 002’ – 4.6 Billion Years Old Meteorite Found in Algeria (older than Earth) : 2020

The rare meteorite, estimated to be 4.6 billion years old, was found by a team led by Jean-Alix Barrat of Université de Bretagne Occidentale. Results of the study have been published in PNAS.

Named Erg Chech 002 (EC 002), after the Algerian site where it was discovered, the rock is a rare artefact from a protoplanet — a large body of matter in orbit around the Sun or another star, and believed to be developing into a planet — that was likely forming when the solar system was a young 2 million years old.

The meteorite was part of a group that was recovered in May 2020 near Bir Ben Takoul, southern Algeria, within the Erg Chech sand sea. The stones are described as having a “coarse grained, tan and beige appearance” interspersed with crystals that are green, yellow-green, and yellow-brown.

The oldest volcanic rock we have ever discovered may help us understand the building blocks of planets. The meteorite, which was discovered in the Sahara desert in 2020, dates from just 2 million years after the formation of the solar system – making it more than a million years older than the previous record-holder.

Since no known asteroid resembles EC 002, the researchers suspect that no other remnants are left from these early times.

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The oldest chunk of volcanic rock ever unearthed
©2021 Darryl Pitt / Christie’s / pix: newscientist.com

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ALGERIA

Saad Abid Wins ‘ 2021 Social Innovation and Change Award, U.S.A’ : March 2021

Saad Abid – content creator, ecologist. Founder and President – the Bahri Association.

Saad Abid from Morocco has been awarded the 2021 Global Ties US International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) Decade of Social Innovation and Change Award.

The award recognizes Abid’s accomplishments over the past decade, including organizing beach cleanups, educating his 400,000 social media followers about environmental degradation, and encouraging youth engagement.

Abid is best-known for launching the digital campaign Maymkench2026 to promote Morocco’s bid to organize the FIFA World Cup 2026 .

source/content : moroccoworldnews.com

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MOROCCO

DEWA wins Quality Management award from UN SDGs Challenge 2021

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has won the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Challenge 2021.

The award recognises DEWA’s efforts in sustainable development and its support of the UAE’s efforts to achieve the UN SDGs.

DEWA achieved a significant score of 89.17 percent in the sustainability culture indicator index in 2019, exceeding the global average.

The indicator is based on several aspects, including leadership in achieving sustainability, strategic commitment to sustainability, innovation in sustainability, training effectiveness, and awareness about the UN’s SDGs.

source: wam.ae

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DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E)

UN Adopts May 10th as International Day of Argania : March 2021

The Permanent Mission of Morocco to the UN announced today that the UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution proclaiming May 10th of each year as the International Day of Argania.

Argan trees cover more than 71% of the Souss valley in south-western Morocco.

Morocco’s rich resources position Morocco as the largest international exporter of argan-based products.

Argan is a popular ingredient in beauty cosmetics, including for hair and skin care.

Argan product sales for medicine, cosmetics, and consumption makeup over 90% of the Souss-Massa region’s economy.

Over 17,500 cooperatives are active in the argan industry. Most of the rural businesses employ local women, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

source: moroccoworldnews.com

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MOROCCO

World’s First Shipment of Blue Ammonia, Saudi Arabia to Japan : Sep. 27, 2020

The world’s first shipment of blue ammonia was dispatched from Saudi Arabia to Japan on Sep. 27, 2020 for use in a power station for the production of zero-carbon power generation, paving the way for the further use of hydrogen in the energy system.

The Saudi-Japanese collaboration is part of a pilot project, conducted by the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ) and oil company Saudi Aramco in partnership with Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC).

“The shipment is considered the first around the world, and it represents a crucial opportunity for Aramco to introduce hydrocarbons as a reliable and affordable source of low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia,” said Ahmad Al-Khowaiter, chief technology officer, Saudi Aramco, according to Saudi media.

source: arabnews.com

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SAUDI ARABIA

Radwa Rostom – Founder and CEO of ‘Hand Over’, a Non-Profit Sustainable Green Enterprise , Egypt

Radwa Rostom. Engineer. Social Entrepreneur. Changemaker.

Founder and CEO of ‘Hand Over’.

A non-profit dedicated to develop models to reduce the cost of construction by 50 percent or more. Ensuring construction models to bringing sustainable buildings to Egypt’s masses.

Education:

Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering (Civil) – Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt

Awards/ Honours:

An Ashoka Fellow
Ranked by Arabian Business Magazine as No.30 of the 100 most powerful Arabs Under 40 2015)
Awarded a grant from the World Bank for the ‘Women for Resilient Cities’ competition (2015)
Winner ‘Tamayouz Excellence Award’ for Women in Architecture (2021)

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Echoing Green Finalist Portrait / pix: fellows.echoinggreen.org

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EGYPT

ADFD-funded Solar Project Lights Up and Powers Berbera City in Somaliland

Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) funded solar energy project at Berbera City in Somaliland has been connected to the local electricity grid. It will meet the increasing demand of the entire city of approximately 50,000 people.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed on the sidelines of the event, which was witnessed by ADFD that had transferred the plant’s ownership to the Ministry of Energy and Minerals on behalf of the Government of Somaliland and appointed a consulting company, Coretec, to provide necessary support to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in developing an overall operational structure for the project.

The deal agreed in principle on a public-private partnership (PPP) to operate and maintain the solar plant, the first of its kind in the country. “This could well serve as a reference model for the rest of the country,” said Jama Mohamoud Egal, Minister of Energy and Minerals, Republic of Somaliland.

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ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E) / SOMALILAND

Halima Benbouzza – Biotechnology and Plant Geneticist. Scientist.

Dr. Halim Benbouzza . Scientist. Academic. Researcher – Genetic Diversity, Plant Breeding, Bioethics, Biosecurity.

Posts:

Director – National Biotechnology Research Centre
Chair of Joint-Committee between Health and Biology sector – appointed by Algeria Government (2011)
Chair of the Guidance Committee of the Pharmacy and Biotechnology Project- Algeria. Appointed by the Prime Minister (2013)
Professor (Agronomic Science), University of Batna 1, Batna

Awards and Honours:

‘Women in Science’ – Hall of Fame Program, honoured by U.S. State Department (2014)
‘Next Einstein Forum’ – one of the 6 best female researchers contributing to advancing science in africa (2010)

Education :

Ph.D – Agro Biotech Gembloux, Belgium
Masters in Biotechnology – Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, Belgium
Graduate – University of Batna’s Faculty of Engineering, Algeria

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ALGERIA

Abu Dhabi Mina Plaza Demolishing Enters Guinness World Records. Gone in 10 secs : December 2020

MODON Properties, Abu Dhabi based integrated master-developer claimed a Guinness World Record title for controlled demolition of a 165.032m tall building, making it the ‘Tallest building demolished using explosives 13,227 pounds (6,000 kg) , all safely carried out.

A total of 144-floors, the 4-high rise towers were demolished in approximately 10-seconds through a controlled imploding using non-primary explosives placed in 18,000 drill holes within the structure.

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The Mina Plaza Towers / Openvibes by Safeer/YouTube / pix: interestingengineering.com

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Abu Dhabi , UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E.)