WRAP’s Executive Director, Brendan McGinnis, recently authored a post for the blog Conserve Fewell, a forum for sharing ideas and developments on protecting the natural environment. To read the post, titled “Peace Building in the Middle East – Let’s Begin with Water”, visit http://conservefewell.org/?p=4207.
WRAP has concluded a successful year of installing, maintaining, and planning rainwater harvesting and environmental education projects in the Middle East. WRAP’s Year In Review provides all the latest updates on current and future projects from the group’s most recent trip to the Middle East as well as on–the–ground videos and picture slideshows, new resources, and highlights of major events and efforts by WRAP from the past year.
See all the exciting updates by visiting https://www.wrapdc.org/newsletter/index.html
The Israeli, Palestinian, and Jordanian Directors of the Friends of the Earth Middle East (FoEME), one of WRAP’s partnering organizations, have authored an editorial piece on the role of water issues in the Middle East peace process focused particularly on the proposed conduit from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea.
To read the full article, visit http://ow.ly/rQMEq.
The American University School of International Service’s Water Cooperation & Peace Practicum has published their final report, titled Water, Cooperation, and Peace. The practicum and resulting report evaluate the peacebuilding significance of cooperative Palestinian-Israeli water projects. WRAP was among the organizations providing support to the practicum, which consisted of a group of eight M.A. candidates, led by two AU Professors, working to research, collect data, and conduct field studies at project sites within Israel and the Palestinian West Bank.
To view the full report, click here.
WRAP releases study on rainfall trends in Israel, Jordan, and the West Bank, identifying the importance of water conservation and use of simple, low-cost technologies for easing demand by way of rainwater harvesting systems.
Congrats to Amir, constructor of WRAP’s rainwater harvesting systems, for expanding his worthwhile efforts into Africa!
Learn more, http://ow.ly/r5ZUP
YOU ARE INVITED TO AN INTERNATIONAL CONCERT: AMPLIFIED VOICES: A CONNECTIONS CONCERT
Join WRAP on November 10 at Georgetown University at 3:00 pm. The cross-continental benefit concert will support peace-building efforts in Israel and Palestine and feature Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary, Heartbeat: The Israeli-Palestinian Youth Music Project, Farah Siraj, Bethany & Rufus, and Humayun Khan with LIVE connections to the Middle East with David Broza and many more!
Hope you will join us at the event and the post-concert fellowship with food, the musicians, and WRAP!
For additional information and tickets, click on the following links —
Tickets, Pre-Merchandise, and More Information
Invite Others Facebook Event Page
Can’t Attend-Learn How You Can Help Live Stream the Event
WRAP is honored to be part of this year’s Combined Federal Campaign of the National Capital Area (CFCNCA). Through the campaign federal employees can donate to WRAP using our code: 88958.
Every penny of every dollar we receive goes directly to our projects. These projects impact hundreds of school children in the Middle East, help to conserve water, and educate students and communities on water and environmental stewardship.
In addition to providing schools with much needed water, our next project will focus on building communication between Israeli and Arab students through a shared experience with water conservation. Learn more about this effort here.
The campaign will run until January 15th, 2014.
Federal employees can donate by visiting http://my.cfcnca.org/ and using WRAP’s code: 88958
Learn more about the Combined Federal Campaign here.
WRAP is thrilled to be presenting on September 4, 2013 at the Rotary Club of Washington, DC!
To learn more, visit http://bit.ly/12LWVYW
WRAP Completes Inaugural West Bank Project
Village of Battir, Palestine | June 26, 2013
The Water Resources Action Project (WRAP) recently completed construction of its inaugural West Bank project. WRAP, in partnership with Friends of the Earth Middle East (FoEME), constructed a cistern system at the Battir Girls High School located near Bethlehem in the Village of Battir, Palestine. The school has 120 female students in three grades. This is WRAP’s third project in the Middle East, following successful rain harvesting installations at two schools in East Jerusalem, which have thus far collected and utilized over 180,000 liters of rainwater for toilet flushing and community gardening. “Establishing and successfully maintaining this initial project in the West Bank is essential to fulfilling WRAP’s commitment to addressing water security issues within this region in an informed manner,” stressed WRAP’s President, Brendan McGinnis. “Our hope is that this effort will not only become a model that may be replicated in other areas of the West Bank, but also serve as an integral part of the network of schools with similar programs that WRAP is establishing throughout Israel, Palestine, and eventually, Jordan.”
The cistern system, an underground cement storage tank, holds rainwater collected and diverted from the roof of the school. The rainwater is then pumped to the school’s restrooms, where it is utilized for toilet flushing. Due to the number of children on this centralized site, toilet flushing is responsible for nearly 85% of the school’s total water usage. The water is critical to ensuring reliable usage of clean restrooms throughout the entire school year.
Previous WRAP projects have demonstrated that rain harvesting systems can supply upwards of 50-70% of a school’s total water needs during its nine months of operation. With additional water availability made possible by the cistern, the school will in time also be able to implement a desired summer camp and community garden. The school will also soon realize a reduced reliance on municipal water and the attendant costs – all critical elements to water security and stability within this increasingly arid region of the world. The Village of Battir and surrounding area receive on average 653mm (25 inches) of annual rainfall, primarily between the months of October through April. Thus, rainwater harvesting during this timeframe is crucial.
The overall effort also includes a supplemental environmental curriculum overseen by FoEME’s Community Coordinator to heighten water awareness and conservation, while empowering local water resources stewardship. Water conservation, the interconnectedness of the surrounding ecosystem, and hands-on student engagement of monitoring and reporting of rainfall, harvesting, and usage data serve as the foundation for the program. WRAP and FoEME will also work closely with the school to ensure the system is regularly and properly maintained. WRAP’s McGinnis added, “Working closely with our grassroots partners, Friends of the Earth Middle East and Battir’s community leadership, on every aspect of this effort will help to ensure that all involved are committed to its long-term success.”
With the installation of the cistern at Battir School and the parallel environmental curriculum, WRAP strives to not only alleviate the struggles associated with water shortages in this region, but also encourage the students and greater community to collaborate on stewarding this precious natural resource.
