While I didn’t fully grasp it at first, my curiosity outweighed my cynicism. I was one of 60 others at the first WHT IF gathering, an aspiring culture movement, waiting to reach a surprise destination about 90 minutes past the Israeli border. Five minibuses filled with people, from Holland to Iraq and everywhere in between,… […]
Itâs no secret that water is in short supply and large demand in Israel. While the country placed itself on the map for water desalination and drip irrigation as resource-saving hacks, climate change, and population growth are quickly creating an undeniable truth â the water is drying up. Despite having cultivated much of its desert… […]
What if energy production was not only climate-friendly but also supported flourishing agriculture in the desert? Ralph Steigrad is trying to get Swiss and Israelis around a table for a pilot project to make it happen. As so often in life, the idea was inspired by a discussion. Ralph Steigrad was still living in Australia at… […]
An array of Judean date seeds, grown about 2,000 years ago, have been fertilized and nine months later, are beginning to sprout. Out of 32 date seeds, 6 have blossomed to make up their own modern-day tribe of Judean dates. Elaine Solowey, the Director of Sustainable Agriculture of the Arava Institute, who is leading the… […]
The Ashalim Solar Energy Center, situated in the Negev desert, has been inaugurated, and will begin to work commercially to supply solar energy power to about 70,000 homes in Israel. The 988-acre plant is the size of Petach Tikva, or about 400 soccer fields. The large desert expanse is made up of 16,000 parabolic troughs… […]
Route 90 was built in the 1960s, and being the longest road to travel through Israel, itâs also proven the most dangerous. In the past two weeks, seventeen people have died due to automobile accidents on the road. Since 2003, about 2,500 accidents have occurred, with 223 people dying and 6,500 people being injured. In… […]
Archaeologists dig to find evidence of the past, and in Israel, some seem consistently driven to prove the Bible, and that Israel is indeed the promised land. Professor Yosef Garfinkel of Hebrew University digs for the sake of archaeology, though some of his findings in Israel can be considered biblical. During an excavation in Khirbet… […]
Water sources in Israel have reached their lowest levels as the worst drought, going on its 6th year, continues. The Israel Nature and Parks Authority is on a mission to keep Israeli flora and fauna alive and well; however, an increase in human water usage and a decrease in rainfall is a destructive combination when… […]
A 3,000-year-old kingâs head figurine was found on the border of Israel and Lebanon. The king, so far, is unknown by scholars but the find has caused an exciting uproar as they try to determine the deeper story behind this precious historical finding. The figure is about two inches tall and is from a time… […]
The newest generation of 21st century Israeli pioneers is on the horizon. Thousands of young Israeli students are awaiting what was their grandparents, and what is their version of living the Israeli dream. Israel was established on communal living and working the land, and today, an Israeli nonprofit called Ayalim was built on those same… […]
The Ramat HaNegev Desert Agriculture Center has grown a new, luxurious and exquisite truffle, one which they claim costs almost as much as silver â and about four times more than uranium. The newest desert truffle sells for about $120 per pound and is priced highly, as other truffles, due to their difficultly to cultivate.… […]
If the Israeli desert seems like itâs light years away, for six Israeli pioneers, for four days, it was. Named the âRamonauts,â four men and two women stepped into a simulated mission to Mars, or the closest space they could find to it â the Israeli desert. According to the Israeli Space Agency, the Ramon… […]
The most precious natural resource on the planet is water. Water provides energy, nourishment and life to humans, plants and animals. On the most basic level, humans need water to survive, and in this moment, over 1 billion people suffer from not having clean drinking water. For those of us with easy access to clean… […]
Thousands of sinkholes have popped up, or more literally, sunken into the area surrounding the Dead Sea. As the lowest point on Earth, the natural sinkhole phenomenon occurring around the Dead Sea is being caused by the lack of water being filtered into the big pond, and the abundance of water being filtered out. Because… […]
Known for its rich history and glorious sunrise views, Masada, a UNESCO heritage site sitting in Southern Israel beside the Dead Sea, is being revisited after an 11 year hiatus. Starting February 5, a team from Tel Aviv University, being led by Guy Stiebel, is spending 30 days excavating untouched areas of the ancient fortress.… […]
The youngest competitor to ever win a rally, Gev Sella, chose to challenge himself when he entered the Rally Africa Eco Race. The race, which requires navigating through dunes on motor bikes, is a doozy in terms of terrain, length and competition. The rally is a 6,500 kilometer trek through the deserts of Morocco, Mauritania… […]
