West Asia 2019 Finalists

Batoul El Hakim

Green household chemicals

Lebanon is in the midst of an acute ongoing environmental crisis. Yet dangerous chemicals and hazardous substances contained in house-care products, dish and laundry soaps, multi-purpose cleaners, shampoo, deodorant, face-wash, makeup remover, face and hand creams - are not being carefully disposed of, due to lack of proper wastewater treatment. SAVVY ELEMENT aims to primarily design safe and green chemical solutions while reducing the use of harsh substances that contribute to greenhouse emissions and hazardous waste. Our active ingredients and materials are native to their country of origin, extracted and produced using eco-friendly, low-energy and low-water intensive techniques. Our model supports local farmers and fair-trade businesses, ultimately creating jobs. Our products are hazard free, limiting the instances of skin allergies and respiratory problems and lastly, we create workshops and open events to raise awareness about sustainability and safe consumption of eco-friendly cosmetics, cleaning agents and basic aid products including preventative immunity-boosters, and pain relievers. Today, SAVVY ELEMENT’s products are being sold at a weekly eco-market and we have received requests from eco- stores to sell our products. 

Dina Altarawneh

Working towards a plastic-free Qatar

Living on the peninsula of Qatar, the effect of plastic on marine life is magnified. Our single-use plastic is a serial killer for marine life, as it takes thousands of years to disintegrate. Our zero-waste, bulk grocery store will address the core of the plastic problem and provide a convenient solution for the public. This shop will be the first of its kind in the Middle East to directly address the issue of plastic waste and provide convenient, affordable alternatives to everyone, whilst bringing the community together. Currently, people who try to shop low-waste and plastic-free have to visit four or five different stores. We aim to address these issues by offering an all-in-one grocery shop that sells items in bulk, thereby offering more affordable and sustainable options. Through a community space for workshops, we will start a ripple effect and reach more people. We work with our sister-enterprise Green Mangroves, which seeks to actively engage the community through kayaking trips and clean-up activities, exploring pristine and vulnerable habitats while bridging the gap between daily life actions and what we need to protect. We also aim to work with school awareness programs to raise awareness of plastic pollution.

Mohammed Safa

Patriotic vision to empower youth

Our environment is threatened by plastic pollution and climate change. We all have a role to play to protect our only home and today it mainly depends on youth. We need youth use less plastic, increasing green areas, care about wildlife, care about oceans and embrace waste to wealth. We believe that integrated waste management is crucial and work with schools, universities and communities to sort waste and deliver the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. We believe working with a new generation can beat plastic pollution and the 8 million tons of plastic that end up in our oceans each year. Patriotic Vision is an non-government organization with special consultative status at the United Nations, seeking to promote social civilization, and raise the well-being of the individuals and societies, working on peace building and saving human rights. Patriotic Vision desires that every youth has an opportunity to live a full life. It aims at contributing to the United Nations goals of Youth 2030 which is to contribute to communities. It also seeks to empower youth to be agents of change.

Omar Itani

First aid for fabric: remaking fashion futures

FabricAID reuses and recycles unwanted clothes. Clothes are graded, sorted into over 46 categories, cleaned and redistributed to disadvantaged communities at between US$0.3 – US$2 per item. Omar has succeeded in growing FabricAID from an idea into a full-blown company with more than 120 employees and several millions in turn over within 5 years.

Yafa Abd Al Rahim

Empowering the next generation of job seekers

We have a high rate of unemployment in the Arab region. One of the main problems that graduates face is lack of experience. Most companies require more than five year of experience, so we aim to help students achieve this experience before the graduation. We encourage university students to develop their own skills and integrate them as a productive group in the community. Our Cerati initiative is a mobile app and website that provides college students and graduates with access to part time jobs and tasks, providing a linkage between college students and employers. Through our Cerati platform, our goal is to narrow the gap between the green labour market and the students and encourage them to obtain part-time job opportunities. We match and develop students’ skills and experiences with ideal and available job vacancies. We provide information about various training opportunities, workshops, internships, competitions, events, exhibitions and inspiration. Our aim is to integrate university students with the external labour market and develop their skills to earn supporting income.