Europe’s thirst for lithium threatens livelihoods, biodiversity in Portugal
AL JAZEERA (30/1/2024) Paulo Pires walked up the hill with his flock of sheep and dogs on a warm day in August, as a stream of water gushed down an ancient irrigation channel that has been maintained by local communities over many generations. “There is a lot of wealth here,” said Pires, now resting in […]
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Lithium mining threatens agricultural heritage in Portugal’s Barroso
MONGABAY (11/12/2023) In the hills of Barroso high in northeastern Portugal, the water gushes down small channels built many centuries ago, winding through a mosaic of pastures, oak and pine forests, and arable and fallow land. Sitting on her porch overlooking a carefully kept garden full of flowers and vegetables, Aida Fernandes remembers the day […]
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Palestinian olive farmers hold tight to their roots amid surge in settler attacks
MONGABAY (30/11/2023) The first rainfall of autumn after months of drought signals the start of the olive harvest, the most important time of year for many Palestinian farmers. Between October and November, Palestinians gather mats, ladders and buckets to pick olives and picnic in orchards that have been passed down through generations. “Many farmers rely […]
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“Gostávamos de ser pássaros para podermos mover-nos livremente”
EXPRESSO (30/6/2023) Todas as primaveras, milhões de aves migratórias voam sobre a Faixa de Gaza, um território onde os palestinianos vivem sob o bloqueio militar imposto por Israel. De cabeça erguida para o céu, observadores de pássaros sonham com liberdade na “maior prisão a céu aberto” GAZA – Numa manhã no início da primavera, o […]
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The enduring legacy of Lebanon’s beloved cedar tree
THE NATIONAL (19/5/2023) Draped with snow, the ancient cedars on the mountain slopes of northern Lebanon spread their evergreen branches like arms welcoming visitors. On Mount Makmel, the country’s oldest cedar grove towers over Wadi Qadisha, the “Holy Valley”, where monasteries carved into cliffs for centuries were a place of refuge and meditation. Known locally as Arz […]
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How Trapped Palestinians Fell in Love With Bird-Watching
THE DAILY BEAST (7/4/2023) The skies of Gaza fill with shifting shapes on an early spring morning. At first they are barely visible, only specks soaring above central Gaza’s wetlands. Mandy Sirdah quickly raises her binoculars. “Storks!” she shouts excitedly. Close by, Lara Sirdah, her identical twin sister wearing matching clothes, grabs her long-focus camera […]
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As the Climate Warms, Jordan’s Worsening Water Crisis Offers a Glimpse of Future Challenges in the Middle East
OUTRIDER (3/4/2023) By the dry riverbeds of northeast Jordan, Jehad Al-Masied sat down and remembered a time when water would flow. “When we were kids, we learned to swim here,” he said as he walked to the edge of a now-empty reservoir surrounded by dark basalt ruins last December. Winter rain used to stream down […]
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Europe’s growing appetite for berries is sucking up Iberia’s water
EARTH ISLAND JOURNAL (March 2023) Autumn in Doñana National Park was once a spectacle of abundance. First the rains would arrive. Then, the birds. Journeying from Northern Europe, millions of migratory birds would descend on the wetland complex in southern Spain, heralding the start of the new season. Northern shovelers, pintails, whistling ducks, and other […]
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In the Iberian peninsula, “unsustainable, unviable” berry businesses are draining water and exploiting migrant labour
EQUAL TIMES (5/12/2022) On a breathless summer morning in El Rocío, a village bordering Spain’s Doñana National Park, Juan Romero points to a map detailing the surrounding area. “Here are the berry crops,” he says, tracing their encroachment of the park from the north and west. “It’s all full of plastic.” For years, the retired […]
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Agribusiness depletes soil and water in Portugal’s Alentejo
AL JAZEERA (11/10/2022) Sitting in her home in a white-washed village nestled in Alentejo’s gently rolling hills, 92-year-old Inácia Cruz likes to reminisce about simpler times. “This region was rich in bread,” she says wistfully. “We would produce olive oil, cereals and cork. We didn’t need to buy things from abroad. We grew our own […]
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