Birzeit University Takes Third in Environmental Leadership Competition

Birzeit University won third place with a student rooftop cultivation project in the Middle East Environmental Leadership Program (MEELP) competition. The competition was held at An Najah National University on April 25, 2013 and more than 50 projects from different Palestinian universities were submitted.
The entry, created by chemistry students, aims to enhance rooftop cultivation by means other than soil to grow crops 20 times faster than those grown through ordinary agriculture, while using 90% less water than conventional farming.
The project will soon be implemented by the students on the Faculty of Science rooftop, thus contributing to the reduction of pollution resulting from the increase of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by increasing plant growth. The project will exploit rooftop space for positive ends, rather than using them as storage space for trash such as tires, barrels and plastic bottles that damage health and environment.
"The project will produce healthy food because it will not use chemical pesticides,” said one of the participating students. “It will isolate surfaces and protect them from sunrays, in addition to adding an aesthetic touch."
The MEELP contest was organized by Engineers without Borders, in cooperation with An-Najah National University and the EastWest Institute, USA.