GLN Discretionary Grant Awards
Michael Caduto – The Garden of Wisdom: Middle Eastern Stories for Environmental Stewardship
QLF Alumnus Michael Caduto is working with support from the GLN toward publishing the long-awaited The Garden of Wisdom: Middle Eastern Stories for Environmental Stewardship, a collection of stories and folklore on the relationship between Middle Easterners and their natural environments. This book illustrates how, even in the midst of great conflict, a shared commitment to environmental stewardship unites us all.
Alix Hopkins – Courage in Conservation
After QLF’s First Alumni Congress, Alix Hopkins facilitated several QLF exchanges, becoming inspired by Middle Eastern Alumni who maintain the courage to work across borders – geographic boundaries; political borders; and social, cultural and religious contexts – using the environment as a bridge to common understanding and reconciliation. To celebrate them and inform others, Alix is writing a new book to highlight the cooperative work undertaken despite difficult circumstances.
Muscat, Oman. Regional Meeting participants on the steps of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. Front row, from left: Lauren Marano, Massachusetts; Alix Hopkins, Maine; Stephanie Clement, Maine; Manal A-Foqaha, Jordan; Dawn Leaness, Massachusetts; and Beth Alling, Massachusetts. Back row: Kristin Marano, North Carolina.
QLF Alumni – Migratory Soaring Bird Project
The GLN has assisted Alumni working with the Regional Flyway Facility (RFF) at BirdLife International in Jordan on a new endeavour. The RFF team in Jordan is focusing attention on the Migratory Soaring Bird Project, an ongoing initiative aimed at protecting thirty-seven migratory bird species as they traverse the flyway through the Rift Valley and Red Sea region. The RFF works closely with public and private stakeholders in eleven countries to develop and meet conservation objectives in the areas of sustainable hunting, tourism, agriculture, waste management, and sustainable energy. Through implementing an intersectional approach, the RFF can more effectively address the human-induced environmental threats that migratory birds encounter on their interregional journey.
Regional Flyway, Middle East
Fadi Sharaiha – Consulting Work in Muscat, Oman
With support from the GLN, Alumnus Fadi Sharaiha is currently working as a consultant to the municipality of Muscat, Oman to initiate the second phase of a two-part project that explores and addresses environmentally harmful social behaviors in the capital city. The first phase of the project studied unsustainable behavioral trends. In the second phase, Fadi will work closely with municipality staff and local citizens to devise ways of meeting their objectives to alter environmentally detrimental behaviors.
Muscat, Oman
Melinda Alfano – Capacity Building Workshop in Amman, Jordan
Melinda Alfano, a former volunteer and Intern in QLF’s Montreal office, recently completed an internship at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. There she worked with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the Division for Sustainable Development to address water scarcity and drought management in the Middle East. Through her work with the UN and with assistance from QLF and McGill University, Melinda attended a capacity building workshop in Amman, Jordan, to promote environmental leadership in the Middle East.
Michelle Portman – Land-Based and Artisanal-Fishing Sources of Marine Litter
Michelle Portman, former Sounds Conservancy grantee, is working with support from the GLN on a pilot project that examines the main challenges to the prevention of near-shore marine litter from artisanal-fishing and land-based practices in Gisr-A-Uzarka, Israel. This research will serve as the springboard for a shift in waste management methods in the small Arab village, which aims to expand its ecotourism sector in order to showcase the its rich marine habitat and artisanal fishing industry.
