What’s the carbon footprint of shawarma and taamia? What's the influence of climate change on mental health? And how do we make organic fertilizer at home? These 7 podcasts give answers to questions on a range of topics related to climate change, preserving the environment and living a more sustainable lifestyle in the MENA region.
Bee'ah Wa Shyakah
The Monte Carlo International Radio "Bee'ah Wa Shyakah" podcast team chose a name that reveals the nature of the content provided: "Bee'ah" is Arabic for "environment". But in some contexts, the word refers to inelegance, which is why the second part, "Shyakah" (Arabic for elegance) was added, thereby creating a humorous twist in the program's name, in line with the podcast’s spontaneity and wit
At the core of the program is the message that adopting an environmentally friendly lifestyle is neither costly nor unattainable. Its presenter Fayrouz Tawfiq, an Egyptian journalist emphasized this notion in an interview with RUYA. "I chose to put forward solutions that were used before the recent polluting inventions”, she added. “Due to my frequent travels to India, I have observed that despite the advancements and prosperity of the modern era, the people there have managed to preserve traditional eco-friendly practices. Inspired by this, I feel compelled to raise awareness about these habits, with the hope of encouraging their widespread adoption once again."
Bee'ah Wa Shyakah was introduced in December 2022. The first season consists of 15 episodes, each with a duration of approximately three minutes. The presenter initiates each episode by presenting the program as an attempt to reveal simple solutions for mitigating the environmental consequences of our consumer-driven lifestyles. She recounts personal experiences that have influenced her perspective, leading seamlessly into the main theme of the episode. Subsequently, she offers a collection of practical suggestions and remedies aimed at promoting mindful consumption.
The titles of the episodes include "The Bill Amount Matters", "Judge of the Environment", "Protection Should not Involve Bullying". In these episodes, the presenter talked about rationalizing electricity consumption, keeping the beaches clean and raising awareness of environmental violations so that we do not fall into the hands of the harsh Judge of the Environment.
Bee’ah Wa Shyakah
Tide
The Tide podcast, produced by Sawt Company in collaboration with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, delves deeper into environmental issues. Each episode spans approximately 20 minutes during which the presenter of the program Ali Al-Attari, a Jordanian consultant with expertise in urban transport and the environment, hosts a diverse array of guests, including environmental experts, researchers, and activists, to engage in insightful discussions. Together, they explore a wide range of topics such as climate change, water scarcity, deforestation, transportation emissions, and other subjects that revolve around humanity's relationship with the environment.
The initial episode of the podcast was released in September 2020, and it continued for two seasons. Each season comprised 10 episodes, each with its own unique title. Some notable episode titles include "I Am Thirsty, Give Me Water," "Shake Your Garbage," and "So That We Avoid Another Virus." They touched on local solutions to water shortages, waste recycling and biodiversity conservation.
According to Ali Al-Attari's interview with RUYA, the inspiration for the podcast stemmed from the desire to create enjoyable and valuable Arabic audio content that specifically addresses environmental subjects relevant to Arab nations and communities. The podcast aims to address pressing issues like climate change without instilling fear, but rather with the intention of fostering awareness and facilitating a deeper understanding of these challenges.
He added that "The way environmental topics are addressed may be boring, which the team was keen to avoid and worked hard to provide useful and enjoyable content at the same time."
Tide Podcast
Lime
The Lime podcast delves into a discussion of climate change impacts in the MENA region and ways to adapt to them. The episodes of the podcast vary in length, spanning from 12 to 18 minutes. Throughout these episodes, Reem bin Khalifa, a Tunisian journalist specializing in environmental topics and an experienced podcast presenter, engages with experts and specialists. Together, they delve into a wide range of subjects, including the spread of earthquakes, the dangers associated with returning to coal burning, sustainable fashion, the influence of climate change on mental health, the transformation of waste into valuable resources, and various other climate-related topics.
According to Reem's interview with RUYA, the Lime podcast was initially introduced in 2021 as an individual local project. However, due to limited financial resources, it had to stop. Fortunately, the podcast was subsequently embraced by the Al-Mayadeen Network, leading to its relaunch in February 2023. With this new partnership, the podcast's geographical reach expanded, allowing for a wider audience. The first season of the relaunched podcast featured a total of 12 episodes.
Regarding the use of Tunisian slang in the program, Reem said "We relied in Lime on the Tunisian dialect understood in the east in an attempt to build more cultural and linguistic bridges."
She pointed out that she presented another environmental podcast entitled "Women Friendly to the Environment", which focused on the role of women in addressing the effects of climate change and pollution and their contribution to the transition to a sustainable green and blue economy and how to empower them. The beginning episode was produced this year.
In regards to the level of acceptance of podcasts among the audience in the region, Reem mentioned that the audio culture in North Africa and the Middle East has historically been modest. Initially, it posed some challenges to gain traction. However, she noted that the interest in podcasts, particularly those focused on topics related to personal development, has grown significantly over time. They are now competing with music programs and songs for the audience's attention and engagement.
Lime Podcast
KorTable
Serene Abedi, a Tunisian podcast producer and entrepreneur who runs KorTable, an incubator and interactive lab for the podcast industry, tells of their experience in producing environmental podcasts and that they started the “Walad Bahr” series, which relies on storytelling to talk about climate change in Tunisia, marine pollution and its impact on marine organisms. The first season had four episodes.
The incubator also produced another series entitled "Environmental Mike" with the support of the Guidance Center of the International Journalists Network. The series focused on leading media projects concerned with the environment in the Arab world and reviewed the experiences of male and female entrepreneurs, environmental experts and environmental journalists. They are currently working on the production of the second season of it in partnership with Ozone, an Egyptian platform.
Regarding the importance of the name "KorTable," Sirine explained to RUYA that in the northwestern region of Tunisia, older women refer to their mobile phones as "KorTable." This term signifies their means of connecting with their children, staying updated on their well-being, and being informed about current events in their location. Therefore, the name was selected with the intention of embracing the storytelling technique employed by grandmothers to convey messages and establish connections with the world. The concept was initiated and refined in November 2021.
Sirin further stated that a key element contributing to the podcast's success is the act of "simplifying the information and consistently weaving it into a narrative, while also humanizing the stories to keep the audience engaged and prevent monotony. Moreover, we rely on narrative and suspense techniques to offer the listener a distinct immersive sensory encounter by prioritizing sound quality and professional sound design, as well as meticulously selecting suitable music and sound effects."
"I'm joining the mission to preserve the Earth without a spaceship, but by embracing eco-friendly practices through minor adjustments to our daily routines."
A Simple Change
The delightful demeanor of the presenter and the unique soundtracks create a fusion of edification and enjoyment in the "A Simple Change" podcast. This environmental podcast was introduced by the BBC in May 2022 and is presented by Alaa Rajai, an Egyptian journalist affiliated with BBC News. At the start of each episode, she describes herself as someone who is "joining the mission to preserve the Earth without a spaceship, but by embracing eco-friendly practices through minor adjustments to our daily routines." In each episode, Alaa launches a new challenge to rationalize consumption and reduce food waste. The first season focuses on changing our relationship with foods to become more environmentally friendly.
During the episodes, she hosts a number of champions of change who in turn contribute to the mission of saving the earth through "magic solutions" as described by Alaa in the program. Most of those heroes are ordinary people with environmentally friendly initiatives such as a girl who created an app to reduce food waste and a chef who provides sustainable food to customers.
During the episode, which lasts for about half an hour, Alaa also presents a set of information and figures on emissions resulting from foods to raise environmental awareness and encourage listeners to join the challenges of rationalization.
Some of the questions asked by the episodes was: What does your shopping basket have to do with climate change? How do we make organic fertilizer at home? What is the carbon footprint of foods? The program made a nice comparison between the carbon footprint of shawarma and taamia, discussed foods we love that may disappear in the future and higlighted unlucky foods that end up in the trash and how they can be saved.
A Simple Change podcast
Zero Carbon
The Zero Carbon podcast seamlessly blends lightheartedness through amusing conversations between the show's presenters, Noor and Ibtisam, with a sense of gravitas when engaging in discussions with knowledgeable sources such as experts, officials, and individuals spearheading initiatives and projects devoted to addressing environmental crises.
The Zero Carbon podcast, produced by Sky News Arabia, delves into a wide range of subjects, including climate phenomena and their susceptibility to the impact of human activities, posing risks to employment, livelihoods, and even our very existence. The podcast also explores the intricacies of climate change and offers insights into sustainable solutions and green initiatives as means of addressing these pressing issues.
The podcast launched in May 2022 and has more than 70 episodes, each of which lasts between 15 and 20 minutes, co-hosted by Omar Noureddine, a multimedia journalist and podcast presenter, and Tunisian journalist Ibtisam Al-Akrimi, who is also a journalist at Sky News Arabia and a presenter.
The titles of a number of episodes involved "Save your Coffee", "Green Travel", "The Health of the Seas is Connected to our Health", "Immortal Bags", and "Sustainable Chocolate" The episodes presented a lot of information and figures on extreme climatic influences and phenomena such as earthquakes, floods, agricultural crop losses, and pollution of the seas with plastic waste. They also presented sustainable solutions and alternatives such as green plastic, sustainable chocolate, green reconstruction, green travel, the expansion of renewable energy sources, mangrove planting, recycling projects, and laboratory alternatives to some goods that are at risk of being extinct.
Zero Carbon Podcast
Green Podcast
Green Podcast | © Green Podcast
The inaugural season of Green Podcast, affiliated with Independent Arabia, commenced in March 2022, featuring concise episodes lasting approximately ten minutes. The primary objective was to convey straightforward messages concerning sustainability and the environment to the Arab audience, as revealed by Bader Al-Tamimi, the podcast's presenter and a Saudi engineer, during an interview with RUYA. Al-Tamimi further explained "There is a dearth of Arabic content addressing environmental topics, largely due to their complex nature and interconnections. Hence, the aim was to present environmental messages in a seamless manner through the podcast. The first season consisted of narrated episodes that I personally prepared and presented. In the second season, Princess Mashael Al-Shaalan joined me as a co-host, enhancing the show's appeal with her engaging conversational style, drawing from our collective expertise in the fields of environmental research and sustainability."
During the first season, Green Podcast discussed topics such as innovative technologies that provide solutions to the water scarcity crisis, afforestation initiatives in the Arab region, and the roles that nature reserves play in our lives.
The second season of Green Podcast started in September 2023 and continues for eight episodes so far, with each episode lasting up to 35 minutes. During this season, the two hosts engage in in-depth conversations about significant environmental subjects. These topics encompass the far-reaching consequences of climate change, the interplay between sustainability principles and local heritage, and the ongoing efforts to strike a harmonious equilibrium between tourism activities and environmental sustainability.
Green Podcast
March 2025