No.33 Winter 2013 The Newsletter of the AUB Nature Conservation Center

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l During my weekly journeys from West Bekaa to Beirut as a teenager, I was witnessing the increasing degradation of the landscape: what I saw was abundant greenery

being lost at an alarming rate and the issue of desertification in Lebanon became a big concern to me. I found myself asking what solutions there were to sustain the greenery of my village, Ain Zebde, and having no answers made me anxious.

The wakeup call happened when my eye caught a small article in a newspaper that mentioned the conservation activities of a nature center named Ibsar (former name of NCC). The article signaled positive vibes and led to a contact with the NCC team, and from that moment it has been a wonderful ride.

Four years of cooperation through various activities: tree planting, old trail reawakening, mapping the attraction points

in the village, and even artistic involvements such as creating mosaics generated in us and especially in the youth a deeper involvement in nature conservation. It did inculcate a green spirit in us but, most importantly, it encouraged our community to better understand its natural heritage.

For me the following quote summarizes the Center’s philosophy:

“In the end, we will conserve only what we love,We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught”

In borrowing those words from environmentalist Baba Dioum, I can only evoke the enthusiasm and inspiration of every NCC member we have worked with.

Bachir Abou MounsefActive citizen of Ain Zebde

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Mini BVA at Saint Joseph School - Ajaltoun

During the month of August, NCC was approached by the University of Baltimore (USA) to introduce the concept of green mapping to school children in Lebanon. The University of Baltimore had previously worked with elementary schools in the USA on participatory green mapping, whereby school children from impoverished areas had the chance to express their thoughts on green initiatives their neighborhood should offer them (e.g. green spaces, playgrounds, etc.) NCC has its own Biodiversity Village Award (Baldati Bi’ati) program, a collaboration between the Center and villages to produce ‘green maps’: that reveal a village’s main natural and cultural landmarks using international icons. NCC looked therefore to introduce the concept of green mapping to 42 children aged 6 to 12 from St Joseph School in Ajaltoun. Activities consisted of a

presentation on green mapping and icons, after which the students created their own maps using their perspectives on their school and its neighborhood.

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NCC looked to introduce the concept of green mapping to 42 children aged 6 to 12 from St Joseph School in Ajaltoun.

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Fundraising Concert

For the second year in a row, the Center held its Stock the Wood concert on October 11, 2012 at the Hostler Student Center Auditorium. Over 300 students, faculty and non-AUB visitors braved the rainy weather to listen to local bands play songs from the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan and many more. Participants were greeted at the Hostler Auditorium with peanut and juice servings, courtesy of Al Rifai and Balkis Orchard.

Hosted by Hany Hachem, the Center’s manager, the concert opened with a solo performance from Rachid Zock who warmed up the audience with songs by Cat Stevens

and Simon and Garfunkel. Recycled, a band that specializes in Beatles covers, set up the tone for the rest of the concert with its electric performance that had the audience standing on their feet especially during the encore of ‘You’re the One That I Want’ from the Grease soundtrack. AUB alumni Nadim Khouri and his daughter Maya (No Place to Fall) were the next performers with authentic Bob Dylan covers – complete with the accompanying harmonica. Bliss, a band composed entirely of AUB students, took the stage next with songs from Stevie Wonder and Etta James, among others. AUB student Omar Talhouk, Aya Saleh and Assistant Professor of Philosophy Christopher Johns played a mellower repertoire adding an original touch to their performance: Johns using a used water gallon as drums! The band SARAY finally closed the concert with hard rock songs by Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and Deep Purple.

The concert raised $3,400 thanks to its ticket sales and all proceeds went to the Center’s Ana Shajara program. The trees to be planted thanks to Stock the Wood will make a valuable addition to the Center’s already impressive tree planting agenda.

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AUB-NCC 10th Anniversary and Rebranding

Over the past ten years, biodiversity issues in Lebanon have gained a higher interest with the increasing urgency

regarding nature conservation. The AUB Nature Conservation Center is a testimony of our struggle to preserve the unique biodiversity of the Easter Mediterranean region and it was with great pride that we celebrated our 10th Year Anniversary on Tuesday October 16, 2012.

Invitees to the event, all of whom have worked with the Center, included prominent donors, municipalities, school representatives, faculty, volunteers, interns, students, friends, members, research assistants and staff of the Center, and notable attendees such as AUB President Peter Dorman, VP for University Advancement Richard Brow, and Provost Ahmad Dallal. The celebration, held in the West Hall Common Room, was attended by some 250 people and was a rare occasion for the Center to bring all its collaborators together as they mingled during one unforgettable evening.

Upon their arrival in West Hall, guests were invited to learn more about the Center’s

history through posters that showcased its year-by-year accomplishments and initiatives. Dr. Najat A. Saliba, Director of the Center, opened the ceremony with her ’Ten Years in Ten Minutes’ presentation in which she recounted the milestones that the Center has set since 2002, explaining how each program naturally developed from the need to better understand biodiversity and to involve people in the care for nature. The Center started as the Ibsar initiative in 2002 with a program on Medicinal Plants research which, until today, has yielded more than 40 peer-reviewed scientific publications, more than 25 Master Thesis projects, and 1 PhD project. The Ibsar initiative became a full-fledged Center in 2005 under the Office of the Provost, and since 2006, the Center invites more than 250 AUB students every year to participate in its efforts to promote and conserve biodiversity by holding IBDAA, the International Biodiversity Day at AUB. The Center’s extensive tree planting program, initiated in 2007, promotes diversification of tree species and decentralization to empower local communities. In 2009, the Center launches its program on ecohealth, to revive Mediterranean diets in rural areas of Lebanon while promoting hygiene and food safety. The green map nation-wide competition initiated in 2010 under the Baldati Bi’ati (Biodiversity

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Village Award) program now continues for the second year.

Upon the request of public schools, the Nature ConVersation program involves youngsters in nature related activities. This year, Ibsar was rebranded as the AUB Nature Conservation Center, a simple name that fully reflects its status as a leading center for green efforts in AUB and the region. In his short address to the audience, Provost Ahmad Dallal stressed the important mission that the Center has fulfilled over the past ten years thanks to its research, education, and outreach efforts.

The highlight for the evening came when Samir Nasr, the oud and organ instrumentalist and students from the Palestinian Cultural Club broke the formal mood of the dinner by performing a traditional dabke dance and inviting people, including President Dorman to join them.

We are confident that the next ten years will only strengthen the ties we have built with our partners as we work hand in hand to achieve the Center’s mission: for people to become guardians of their natural heritage.

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First Topic: Religious Authorities and Nature: Preserving or Exploiting the Environment of Awqaf (Land Endowments)?

Moderated by Dr. Charles Harb, NCC members and Associate Professor of Psychology, the first Ta3a Ne7ke

debate for Fall 2012 took place on November 06 and tackled the controversial subject of whether religious authorities in Lebanon are preserving or destroying nature in their awqaf. Speakers invited at the debate were: Judge Abbas Al-Halabi, president of the Endowment Committee in the Confessional Council of the Druze Community, Sheikh Wael Shbaro, representative of the General Director of the Islamic Waqf in Dar Al Fatwa, Dr. Souad Slim, Associate Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of Balamand, and Father Charbel Makhlouf, representative of the Maronite waqf in Bcharre.

The topic was initiated by Sheikh Shbaro who gave a brief overview of the Islamic spiritual and legal perspective of the relationship of man with nature. He stated that the Islamic law forbids the uncontrolled cutting of trees as stated in the Holy Qur’an, and that the Sunni authority in Lebanon, represented by Dar Al Fatwa, is generally overseeing the protection of nature in its awqaf. For Judge Al-Halabi, awqaf are abundant in Lebanon and make up an impressive 35 to 40% of the Lebanese territory. For this reason, compromises sometimes have to be made when it is necessary to exploit a waqf to ensure the wellbeing of a community. He gave the example of a recreational center that was recently built on a waqf in a village of the Chouf region. As he puts it“: Sometimes the necessity to cater to a community’s needs can take precedence over protecting nature”.

For Father Makhlouf, nature in a waqf can benefit neighboring communities, as it can be used as a touristic attraction. Makhlouf

gave the example of the most famous waqf in Lebanon: the Becharre cedar forest. He stated that the waqf, which dates back to 1862, has been carefully preserved over the years by the Maronite Church thanks to its historic, environmental, and spiritual relevance. Since 1985, a local committee has been overseeing the management of the waqf by ensuring that the cedars remain disease-free, and creating walkways for tourists. For Makhlouf, the village of Becharre is an example of how a community can heavily depend on nature in a waqf as a sustainable revenue- generating source.

For Dr. Souad Slim, there are two challenges for the waqf in modern-day Lebanon: the first related to nature and the environment, and the second to social and human challenges. For Slim, many theological studies have been conducted on the importance of nature protection as an ethical obligation; but in spite of that, many awqaf have been converted to lucrative ends which resulted in the cutting of trees and the digging of quarries that have catastrophic impacts on nature. At the social and human level, awqaf have historically been an important provider of work and revenue for peasants and farmers but since agriculture is no longer considered a profitable activity, these lands have been converted to other uses over time. One example is the waqf of the St. Elie Shwaya monastery which now houses many sand quarries. However, Slim argues that there is a glimmer of hope for awqaf in Lebanon as many of them are currently being reconverted for agricultural uses, albeit on a smaller scale than before. Many monasteries such as ones found in the villages of Douma and Hamatoura are now reverting back to cultivation practices that are income-generating, with year-round productions of produce such as wine, olive oil, jams, and syrups, among many others.

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Exhibition and Award Ceremony

The Nature Conservation Center held its Baldati Bi’ati (Biodiversity Village Award) 2012 award ceremony and exhibition on Friday November 16, 2012 at Beirut Souks (Jewelry Souk), Downtown, under the patronage of the Directorate General for Municipal and Village Affairs. The event, attended by municipalities, green NGOs and companies, media, and both AUB and non-AUB affiliated visitors, was the concretization of nearly a year of hard work by the Baldati Bi’ati team.

The exhibition consisted of 17 green maps that showcased the natural heritage and environmental initiatives of the participating villages for 2012 which are: Sinay, Damour, Ourhaniyeh, Maaser El Chouf, Kamed El Loz, Aana, Manara, Barka, Deir El Ahmar, Al Qalaa, Deir El Harf, Hrajel, Ehmej, Aakoura, Kousba, Bcharreh and Hrar. The exhibition was followed by a press conference during which a documentary highlighting the environmental practices of each village was screened. The press conference and award ceremony was led by Dr. Salma Talhouk, Principal Investigator of Baldati Bi’ati and founding member of NCC, Mr. Antoine Tayyar, Director of Public Affairs and Communications at the Coca-

Cola Foundation (which funded the program), Dr. Nahla Houalla, Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at AUB representing the AUB Provost, and Mr. Khalil El Hajal, the Director General for Municipal and Village Affairs at the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities. Dr. Talhouk stated in her address that “the goal of the Baldati Bi’ati program is to have local communities become themselves pioneers in conserving nature by creating a long-term plan for the sustainable management of their resources”.

Mr. Mahmoud Ayoub from Manara won the ‘2012 Environmental Pioneer’ award. Mr. Ayoub has successfully planted about 13,000 different native tree species in Manara, with a survival rate of over 90%. All participating villages were rewarded with certificates

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The winning villages for 2012 are:

-Maaser El Chouf, for rehabilitating traditional houses for ecotourism

-Manara, for the sustainable management of its forest and woodlands

-Aakoura, for the active participation of their community in rain and snow water harvesting

-Barka, for the sustainable management of the Juniper forest and adopting the tree as a village symbol

-Bcharreh, for the long-term management of its forests

and winners were given Baldati Bi’ati road signs to be erected at their village entrance. Winning villages were selected by an AUB Faculty committee which acted as a jury and developed criteria for selecting the winners, by taking into account the village’s size, culture, economic, environmental and social heritage and resources.

The exhibition remained open to the public until Sunday November 18. Following the award ceremony, invitees gathered for a seated lunch at Grand Café - Place de l’Etoile. As the head of the Aakoura municipality puts it "Baldati Bi’ati is successful thanks to its dedicated team members who are always insuring we are involved in every step of the project: from the creation of local councils, to proving us with feedback, to filming the documentary on-site. NCC’s support is essential for reviving ecotourism and I would like to see Baldati Bi’ati spreading to all villages in Lebanon in the near future”.

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Lebanon Becomes a Signatory of the CITES Convention

As of May 2013, Lebanon will become part of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES).

Lebanon is the 178th country to adhere to CITES. As we all know, our country is home to a rich variety of fauna and flora, including over 100 species listed by CITES. Some of these species include the common jackal, common wolf, red fox, common otter, jungle cat, wild cat, dalmatian pelican, black stork, greater flamingo, Eurasian spoonbill and various species of birds of prey such as

eagles, falcons, hawks and owls. CITES trade in Lebanon consists mainly of live plants, live birds, live tortoises, raw corals, reptile skins and leather products. By becoming a signatory of CITES, Lebanon will implement laws and regulations on wildlife trading and ensure that its wild species are not endangered.

BLOM Beirut Marathon

For the second year in a row, the Center participated in the BLOM Beirut Marathon on Sunday November 11. The Center was an integral actor of the massive ‘RUN AUB

RUN’ campaign organized by the Office of Communications which mobilized the entire AUB community. About 60 AUB students, faculty and staff braved the rainy weather and ran for the Center to promote its mission and efforts.

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Second Topic: Herbal Remedies in Lebanon: A Well-Regulated Business?

What is the current legislation regarding herbal remedies in Lebanon? How is the legislation perceived by stakeholders? Is the Ministry of Public Health successfully controlling the issuance and selling of herbal remedies? Can we affirm that the public is safe from misleading publicity in light of the 2010 law that forbids false advertising?

On November 30, 2012, the second Ta3a Ne7ke debate for this Fall targeted this issue from different angles. Moderated by Dr. Farah Naja, NCC member and Assistant Professor at the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, the debate spanned for about an hour and a half between discussions and questions from an enthusiastic audience. The speakers at the debate were: Dr. Mohamad Alameddine, Assistant Professor of Health Management and Policy at AUB, Dr. Christelle Jalkh, Inspector at the Order of Pharmacists, and Dr. Hisham Ramadan, General Manager of Omicron Pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Naja opened the session with an introduction about the uses of herbal remedies, stating that Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) remedies have long been established in Lebanon, with about 30% of the population using them. The most popular of these remedies are medical plants native to Lebanon that are usually used in folk practices.

For Dr. Ramadan, there are loopholes regarding the regulation of herbal remedies

by the Ministry of Public Health. He stated that although any herbal product coming into Lebanon as a ‘pill’ form has to first be checked by the herbal supplements committee at the Ministry, any topical form does not necessarily have to be approved by that committee. Additionally, the Ministry relies on a ‘good manufacturing label’ from the issuing country and does not undergo an in-house chemical and safety analysis for products that enter the country. Another flaw is seen with herbal remedies that are produced locally in Lebanon which are also not subject to regulation by the Ministry at all.

Dr. Jalkh stated the current law regarding the issuance and selling of herbal remedies, stressing that non-pharmacists are forbidden to create and sell their herbal products and any product being sold on market shelves that is not labeled is confiscated and thoroughly studied. Additionally, Jalkh stressed the fact that advertising for herbal products is prohibited since 2010 although some herbalists flaunt this law and appear on television and billboards as they benefit from political backup.

For Dr. Alameddine, whose research includes stakeholders' perspectives on the regulation and integration of herbal medicine products in Lebanon, there is a consensus among all stakeholders that the regulation of the market for herbal products needs to be strengthened, as there are many factors that are jeopardizing the safety of public consumption and preventing the integration of herbal remedies into mainstream medicine. These include poor regulation, ineffective policies and politics, and weak awareness from the public on the safe use of these products.

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AUB-NCC at the AUB Christmas Fair 2012

During the week of December 17, NCC was present at the annual AUB Christmas Fair hosted by the Center for Civic Engagement and Community Service (CCECS). The fair which

was held in West Hall was an opportunity for the Center to sell its SAGE (Sustain, Adopt, Grow, Educate) natural products which included perfumes, air fresheners, notebooks, smell absorbers, in addition to books published by the Center.

NCC was invited by the Environmental Club of the Armenian Evangelical School in Beirut on Friday January 25 in order to raise awareness about its mission and efforts. Five NCC staff members, all from different educational backgrounds, spoke about their respective contributions to nature in front

of 70 students, aged 13 to 18. The main purpose of the presentation was to spread the message that anyone can contribute to nature conservation: indeed, one does not need an environmental, agricultural or biological background to work for nature conservation, a concept that was fairly new to the students.

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The Success Story of Cota palestina

By intern Elsa Abs

Cota palestina is an aromatic plant native to Lebanon that blooms every year from April to May and gives white and yellow flowers. Cota palestina is a unique species and not simply because it is only found in the Levant. For scientists, its story and that of its sisters of the genus Cota has been recently turned upside down.

Although this plant has been identified and used for centuries, the name Cota palestina is only two years old. The plant used to be called Anthemis scariosa and considered as a chamomile. For years, Cota was a subgenus of the genus Anthemis because of morphological and properties resemblance. Biologists found difficulty in recognizing unique morphological features to differentiate and define smaller gatherings with the 190 species. They were, as a result, lumped all together under the genus Anthemis. In 2010, German researchers published their work proving, based on molecular and morphological evidence, that Cota and Anthemis are actually two different and independent genera. All the Cota species therefore had to be renamed according to their new genus and Anthemis scariosa became Cota palestina.

Cota palestina shows equivalent healing powers to chamomile and was used for centuries in Lebanon in folk medicine to treat stress, insomnia, stomach acidity and as an antiseptic and anti-inflammatory.

Researchers at the AUB Nature Conservation Center (NCC) started showing interest in Cota palestina in 2004. Since the creation of NCC (then known as Ibsar) in 2002, Dr. Rabih Talhouk from the Biology department initiated a survey

on indigenous plants of Lebanon that have been used for centuries in folk medicine. Wassim El-Juni, one of his student and the first student member of NCC, walked around Lebanese villages looking for local medicinal herbs shops and folk practitioners. Thanks to this survey, they collected 29 species, found to be the most commonly used in folk medicine. Dr. Talhouk and Wassim then started to look at the claimed bioactivities of each of these 29 species, and whether their crude extract had a toxic effect on cells.

Eight species showed potential anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory or antimicrobial activities and appeared to be the most promising plants for medicinal use. Researchers from NCC, coming from various science fields, chose the plants they wanted to study according to their respective specialties. Dr. Talhouk, a specialist in the anti-inflammatory effects, focused on three species: Centaurea ainetensis, Ranunculus constantinopolitanus and Cota palestina. Cota palestina is the only species on which he is still experimenting. Dr. Talhouk isolated the bioactive molecule which shows many similarities to a well-known molecule, Parthenolide, that is already under clinical trials. Parthenolide, which naturally occurs in the plant feverfew, has already shown very promising antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and even anti-bone cancer activities. The success story of Parthenolide is a good omen for the molecule found in Cota palestina. "I'm really enthusiastic about the molecule found in Cota palestina because it looks like Parthenolide but shows distinguishing features and is isolated from a plant that grows only in the Levant region", Dr. Talhouk explains.

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Update on the AUB-NCC MAREX Program

The unexploited and rich biodiversity of the Mediterranean Sea has attracted the interest of researchers seeking natural bioactive compounds. The MAREX program brings together researchers from Europe, Western Asia, India and South America in exploring marine bioactive compounds, testing their anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory activities,

and isolating compounds later to be used as pharmaceutical agents.

The AUB-NCC research team recently discovered that extract from the Mediterranean Sea Cucumber has the ability to inhibit the growth of new cancerous cells by 50%, and in particular, cells responsible for breast tumors. The team members are now directing their efforts towards isolating the compounds that are responsible for this particular bio-activity.

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The Mediterranean Sea Cucumber has the ability to inhibit the growth of new cancerous cells by 50%, and in particular, cells responsible for breast tumors.

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April 2013

May 2013

AUB Civic & Volunteering Fair

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IBDAA 2013

Outdoors

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Fri. April 26

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Send your news, articles, and editorial comments to nature@aub.edu.lb.Visit our website at www.aubnatureconservation.org Edited by Dr. Najat Aoun Saliba and Paul Samaha

Designed by Elsy Corban © 2013