Look out of your window and picture the world without trees or plants of any kind. Many Syrians fleeing the conflict found themselves in such dreary surrounds when they arrived at the vast refugee camps in the dusty desert lands of Domiz in northern Iraq. This might explain why a gardening competition, which runs across five refugee camps in Iraq's Kurdistan region, received almost 1,000 entries this year – up from 50 when it launched in 2016.
The Lemon Tree Trust oversees the competition and judges the gardens based on their size and across a range of criteria such as edible and ornamental plants, and recycling efforts. In addition to an overall winner, each camp is awarded cash prizes of between US$100 and $300 (up to Dh1,100). Alfonso Montiel, chief executive of the Lemon Tree Trust, says: "I find it revelatory and I have run out of fingers on my hand to count the number of times a refugee has told me how they arrived [at the camp] with seeds. Imagine the presence of mind, in the midst of leaving everything they know, to still bring seeds in your pocket… to bring a little piece of home."
Figures from the United Nations refugee agency indicate that currently there are 68.5 million displaced people globally, the highest in modern history. It's not hard to envision how powerful and potent a simple flower can be in giving new hope to those who have been unfortunate enough to lose everything. The pursuit of cultivating and caring for plants in the desert evokes the scents and sights of much-loved green spaces that were abandoned in the disarray of war.
Providing an additional source of income, and much more
As Syrian refugee Aveen Ibrahim, who fled with her family from Damascus, says: “In this camp, being so far away, you try to remember something from your life in Syria. You try to find the same seeds of plants and flowers, the same pets, so you feel at home and comfortable for a while.”
Khalid Ismael, meanwhile, has always loved gardens and birds, and compares his arrival in Domiz to an electric shock. “There was no tent for us at first, and some days all we had to eat was crackers and biscuits,” he recalls. “Then I decided I am going to create something beautiful here. In my garden, I feel like I am in my kingdom. It is proof that I still have something to give. And when I’ve finished gardening, I feel like I’ve got the world in my hand.”
Initiatives such as the gardening competition go beyond the daily grind of just surviving, and provide an additional source of income for refugees, including the many widows and their children who are present here. The provision of something as fundamental as seeds and plants helps to bring a sense of purpose to these fractured communities, and simultaneously works towards restoring their dignity, cultural identity and earning potential.
Growing food, and medicine
The non-profit Lemon Tree Trust also encourages the development of urban farming within the camps as a means to support primary food production. In Domiz, the trust has developed the Liberation Garden – a space for communal urban agriculture, to demonstrate and support small-scale growing, and techniques such as greywater recycling and composting. It is a place where women can come together to work and children can come for an hour a day to learn about gardening.
There is a provision for growing medicinal plants, which can be shared with the community, as well as enclosures to raise chickens and rabbits that are used to supplement the diets of those who find it hard to afford basic food rations.
The project is supported by a decreasing subsidy model – revenue raised through selling produce and seedlings, which ultimately negates the need for outside support. Montiel says that the Trust prefers to frame their financial involvement as an "investment" rather than a "donation". Research conducted during the past three years has revealed that, in some quarters, there are still stereotypes associated with refugees that can block the economic potential of this able and experienced group of people. The Trust is trying to reverse this by harvesting their skills to work on commercially viable projects.
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How the eye-catching cholets of Bolivia are lifting perceptions of a city and its people
Region's largest living green wall unveiled in Dubai
Plants make for the perfect gifts, says banker-gardener Romina Borawake
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Part of the garden is used for initiatives that provide additional platforms for the refugees to be trained in other aspects of horticulture and self-supporting businesses – notably, a rose farm. Camp gardens are already supplying some areas of agriculture and there are plans for commercial crops of roses to be harvested for either rose water or rose oil. Additionally, the trust distributes a crisis-response garden kit to newly arrived families at the camps, which contains tools, seeds and manuals, and is designed to get a small garden started. There are plans to roll out this initiative to other refugee areas, such as Greece and Jordan.
"The dream is always to go back to Syria, even if the country is reduced to rubble – they want to go back to rebuild. In the meantime, if there has to be a home, then this is a close as it gets," Montiel says.
The Queen: 'That is fascinating'
The Lemon Tree Trust also made its mark internationally when it was awarded silver gilt for its competition garden at the Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea Flower Show earlier this year, in conjunction with British garden designer Tom Massey. He had previously visited the camps in Iraq and drew inspiration from the design elements he saw there, and used the show garden to highlight the creative and ingenious ways in which refugees were growing flowers and produce.
Montiel, a Venezuelan, admits that he inadvertently breached British royal protocol when the Lemon Tree Trust garden was honoured by a visit from Queen Elizabeth. Rather than waiting for the Queen to address him first, Montiel put a question directly to the monarch. “I said: ‘Your Majesty, we get lists from the refugees at the camp on what seeds they want, and I’m going to ask you to please guess the percentage between flowers and edibles on that list.’
“She looks at me and says: ‘I presume it’s a fascinating answer.’ I tell her, it’s 70 per cent flowers and 30 per cent edibles. She looks at the garden, and stays quiet, and then looks back at me and says: ‘That is fascinating.’
"Her Majesty repeated [the word] twice more. And it is. What we're doing is still fascinating to me and it is fascinating to think of the life-changing potential [it has]," Montiel concludes.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Croatia v Hungary, Thursday, 10.45pm, UAE
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
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Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
Directed by: Shaka King
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons
Four stars
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
Sam Smith
Where: du Arena, Abu Dhabi
When: Saturday November 24
Rating: 4/5
