[:en]Ambassador Christian Berger visits Heliopolis University[:ar]السفير كريستيان بيرجر يقبل دعوة جامعة هليوبوليس[:]

[:en]Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt,

Forty-four years ago, the European Union and Egypt started paving the way for some modest advances in the EU–Egypt relations. It was challenging as the region required a typical response but they managed to turn these challenges into opportunities and achieved International and regional developments. As SEKEM has always been interested in taking part in this union so we invited Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt, and he kindly accepted the invitation to visit SEKEM and learn more about its dynamics and beliefs.

 

 

The tour started at SEKEM farm, where the ambassador was introduced to the SEKEM community by Mr Helmy Abouleish. During the tour, they conducted a discussion on the challenges that SEKEM has faced to achieve a community-based organic and sustainable lifestyle and how SEKEM has succeeded in delivering organic products at an affordable price They also talked about the two essential principles of SEKEM’s community; education and health.

 

The ambassador visited SEKEM school and got to know its different approach in teaching students and helping them unfold their potentials at a young age through different activities like handicrafts, pottery, carpeting and a lot more rather than depending only on the traditional methods of learning and memorizing. There, Helmy Aboueleish expressed his preference to visit the school a lot. 

Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt,

The ambassador also checked SEKEM companies and the entire production process; starting from the raw materials to the final products, and witnessed the making of the solar panels SEKEM uses in its own farms. The tour also included exploring the health services SEKEM provides for its employees through different clinics.

After that, the ambassador headed back to Cairo with Helmy Aboueleish to visit Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development. There he learned about the university’s system and checked the entrepreneurship centre and its ongoing projects. And accepted the University’s shield and wrote a message in the HU Memorial book.

After the tour, when we asked the ambassador about what surprised him the most during his SEKEM visit, he expressed his fascination with SEKEM community saying: 

“I was surprised by the size of SEKEM, and that people don’t give up, people had a challenging start, but they succeeded and I think they are well received by the population of the places around. The area of the SEKEM farm is really huge and people really like it. There is a bond between the people and the farm.“

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قبل أربعة وأربعين عامًا ، بدأ الاتحاد الأوروبي ومصر في تمهيد الطريق العلاقات للتعاون بين الطرفيين. حيث كانت المنطقة تتطلب استجابة مستمرة للتحديات التى تواجهها، لكنها تمكنت من تحويل هذه التحديات إلى فرص وحققت تطورات دولية وإقليمية. نظرًا لأن سيكم كانت دائمًا مهتمة بالمشاركة تطوير المنطقة بالمزامنة مع الإتحاد، فقد قمنا بدعوة السفير كريستيان بيرجر ، رئيس بعثة الاتحاد الأوروبي إلى مصر ، وقد تفضل سيادته بقبول الدعوة لزيارة سيكم ومعرفة المزيد عن ديناميكيتها ومعتقداتها.

بدأت الجولة في مزرعة سيكم ، حيث قدم السيد حلمي أبو العيش السفير لمجتمع سيكم. تناقشوا خلال الجولة حول التحديات التي واجهتها سيكم لتحقيق مجتمع قائم على نمط حياة عضوي ومستدام قائم وكيف نجحت سيكم في تقديم المنتجات العضوية بأسعار في متناول الجميع ، كما تحدثوا عن المبدأين الأساسيين لمجتمع سيكم ؛ التعليم والصحة.

تلى ذلك زيارة السفير لمدرسة سيكم وتعرف على نهجها المختلف في تعليم الطلاب ومساعدتهم على اكتشاف إمكاناتهم في سن مبكرة من خلال أنشطة مختلفة مثل الحرف اليدوية والفخار والسجاد وغير ذلك الكثير بدلاً من الاعتماد على الأساليب التقليدية للتعلم والحفظ فقط . هناك ، أعرب حلمي أبو العيش عن تفضيله لزيارة المدرسة كثيرًا.

Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt,

كما قام السفير بتفقد شركات سيكم وعملية الإنتاج بأكملها ؛ بدءًا من المواد الخام وحتى المنتجات النهائية ، وشهد على صناعة الألواح الشمسية التي تستخدمها سيكم في مزارعها الخاصة. تضمنت الجولة أيضًا نظرة على الخدمات الصحية التي تقدمها لموظفيها من خلال عيادات ثابتة ومتنقلة.

بعد ذلك عاد السفير إلى القاهرة مع حلمي أبو العيش لزيارة جامعة هليوبوليس للتنمية المستدامة. هناك تعرف على نظام الجامعة ومركز ريادة الأعمال ومشاريعه الجارية. وفي النهاية تقدمت إدارة الجامعة برئاسة الأستاذ الدكتور/ يسري هاشم بتسليم درع الجامعة الشرفي، حيث قبلها السفير ثم كتب بعض كلمات الشكر والتقدير في كتاب جامعة هليوبوليس التذكاري.

بعد الجولة ، عندما سألنا السفير عما فاجأه أكثر خلال زيارته، عبر عن افتتانه بمجتمع سيكم قائلاً:

“لقد فوجئت بحجم مجتمع سيكم، وأنهم لا يستسلمون، كان بدايات سيكم صعبة، لكنهم نجحوا وأعتقد أنهم استقبلوا بترحاب من قبل سكان الأماكن المحيطة. مساحة مزرعة سيكم ضخمة حقًا ويحبها الناس حقًا. هناك رابط حقيقي خلقته سيكم بالقرى المحيطة لهم “.

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MED-WET Partners Participate in Fundão Agricultural Innovation Fair, October 2024, Portugal

[:en] The MED-WET partners, including the team from Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development, had the opportunity to showcase their excellent results at the Fundão Agricultural Innovation Fair, held during (9-13) October 2024 in Portugal. This event provided a wonderful platform to widely share the project’s advancements, exchange insights, and engage with various international stakeholders in the water, energy and agricultural sectors. During the fair, the HUSD team actively participated in a parallel conference, where they delivered in-depth presentations and speech covering the MED-WET’s goals, achievements, and importance in advancing sustainable water management for climate-resilient agriculture among the rural and desert communities. At the heart of their presence was the MED-WET stand, which attracted significant attention of the majority of participants. It served as a focal point for information dissemination, providing an interactive space where farmers, agricultural experts, policymakers, and researchers could learn more about the project’s innovative approaches to water conservation and irrigation technology in arid regions. The stand featured detailed explanations of the project’s outcomes, including key findings and 3-D prototypes of the three technologies “Constructed Wetlands in Sekem El-Wahat, Solar energy-driven desalination for greenhouse agriculture in Malta and the SLECI Irrigation technology in Portugal and Morocco”. This obviously proven the MED-WET’s success in realizing efficient water management practices that contributed to sustainable farming and addressed water scarcity challenges in the Mediterranean region. Overall, the Fundão Agricultural Innovation Fair was a highly productive experience for all participants. It allowed the MED-WET team to expand their network, raise awareness about the critical issue of water scarcity, and underscore the project’s role in promoting sustainable agricultural practices across the Mediterranean region. The fair highlighted the increasing importance of collaborative efforts in addressing water conservation and irrigation challenges in agriculture, reinforcing the relevance of the MED-WET initiative. [:]

[:en]Showcasing the Med-Wet Project: Partners Participated in the Euro-Mediterranean Innovation Marketplace in Cairo[:]

[:en] One of the Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development’s successful research projects called “MED-WET” is selected among the top successful and highest performing 20 EU–Prima projects worldwide this year 2024. An international conference and fair was conducted on 3 Oct., 2024 in Cairo organized by Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) in association with the European Commission (EC) office in Cairo. In which, a team from HUSD and MED-WET’s partner countries from Malta and Germany presented the key results of the MED-WET project, including the successfully developed three technologies (Constructed Wetlands in Sekem El-Wahat, Solar energy-driven desalination for greenhouse agriculture in Malta and the SLECI Irrigation technology in Portugal and Morocco). That mega event allowed HUSD to showcase the innovative solution of the low-cost, low-energy and nature-based “Instream Constructed Wetland” model addressing water challenges and climate change in the Mediterranean. Such innovations aim to conserve water, improve irrigation efficiency and tackle water scarcity (climate-resilient agriculture). The marketplace offered meaningful exchanges with international partners. HUSD’s team discussed potential collaborations with stakeholders who are interested in new research projects, which will help further amplify the impact of the Med-Wet project. The conversations done with promising future partners underscored the importance of cross-border cooperation and innovation in addressing complex environmental challenges, on the top of them “water scarcity and climate change”. [:]

[:en]Announcement: Heliopolis University Low Carbon Energy Report Released![:]

[:en]Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development is proud to announce the release of our latest report on Low Carbon Energy Usage across campus! This report highlights our commitment to a greener future by measuring the amount of low-carbon energy utilized in our operations. Through this analysis, we’re taking bold steps toward sustainability and reducing our carbon footprint. Key Highlights: A detailed breakdown of renewable energy sources powering our campus Insights on energy efficiency improvements across our facilities Actionable goals for expanding clean energy use in the coming years Together, we’re paving the way for a more sustainable and energy-efficient future. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making this report possible! Stay tuned for more updates as we continue working towards a 100% low-carbon campus! #HeliopolisUniversity #SustainableFuture #LowCarbonEnergy #CleanEnergy See the report here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/122aDtID_M3wxZSzZnKuzx-VcHolUbxh5/view?usp=sharing[:]