Dedicated Post: Animals Lebanon

Ive been meaning to post about this for a while now. This is a post dedicated to the most amazing people I know. Truly the most amazing!!!

The team of Animals Lebanon. These are people who have dedicated their whole lives to save the lives of the most unfortunate innocent creatures of Beirut, Lebanon.

I tried helping them out a few years ago, but I honestly just couldn't do it anymore. You won't understand the amount of abuse, pain and suffering that animals go through until you see it in your own eyes. I'd always end up crying my eyes out and going back home.

Animals Lebanon on the other hand, has always been strong enough and dedicated enough to continue in their path despite the many obstacles that stood in their way. With the so little resources they have, in a country where not much of this is really supported, they have stood their ground and they continue to save hundreds of lives year after year.

Animals Lebanon is one of the very few non-profit animal welfare organizations in Lebanon. With so many animals to rescue and such a small team, they could really use your help.

Please, show them your support by donating, sponsoring or adopting.
Spreading the word, liking this post on Facebook or joining their fan page would all make a difference too.

I am also proud to announce that not too long ago, they won the 1st prize for the Most Authentic Arab Brand.

So please help out if you can. The animals of Beirut need you.

Thank you so much.
- Yasmine

Beirut Terraces by Herzog & de Meuron

Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron have designed this apartment tower with overhanging floor plates and terraces for Beirut, Lebanon.

Created as part of a wider masterplan to regenerate this area of the city that includes a marina, the building will comprise five different modular floor slabs used in varying combinations to create a mixture of overhangs and terraces.

The building will have vegetation on the terraces to provide privacy and in the main entrance space to act as continuation of the neighbouring green boulevard.

The project is due for completion in 2013.

More information on the project website.

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Brilliant Beirut On The Dieline

Check out what Jonathan Ford, Creative Partner of Pearlfisher, one of the most reputed branding agencies in the world, has to say about Beirut.

"In my third piece about the foreign creative influences that all designers should be aware of when looking for a fresh perspective, I'm going to talk about THE place that has left THE biggest impression on me recently: Beirut, Lebanon - a city with more texture than diamond-studded sandpaper".

Read the rest of the article here.

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Lebanon: Working On Our Image (as a response to my last post)

While Messrs Aoun, Nasrallah, Franjieh and the fabulously-named Zahle in the Heart bloc are hunkering down for the final showdown over who gets what portfolios, something called the National Brand Perception Index or NBPI has published its findings. Lebanon ranked 174th among 200 countries around the world and – and this part is really disgraceful – 15th among the 19 countries that make up the MENA region. The ranking is supposed to indicate the strength of a country’s brand by monitoring how often it appears in the media, but warns that frequency does not necessarily reflect quality. Ouch!

It is probably a dream too far to suppose that one of the priorities of the next government will be to improve on this mediocre placing; a feat made even more mediocre when one considers that much of Lebanon’s brand awareness is negative. A random survey taken in any major capital would probably indicate that people associate Lebanon more with instability, kidnapping, war, Hezbollah and terrorism than its undisputed assets. Wars have a habit of making it onto the front pages with greater ease than the Temple of Jupiter or a bottle of Chateau Musar.

Other, less-smug countries spend hundreds of millions every year in advertising themselves. They sell a dream to encourage investment, to promote key products or simply just to tell people to come and visit. You might argue, especially today when finding a decent table at a restaurant or a place to park is a herculean struggle, that Lebanon has enough visitors, but if the country is to move beyond its role as a playground for Gulf visitors and the diaspora, it needs to evolve.

The country benefitted from 9/11. When smoke cleared from Ground Zero and the US saddled up its horses, downtown Beirut opened for business, conveniently offering Arabs wary of vacationing in Europe and the US an alternative destination, one that spoke their language, didn’t judge their habits and wouldn’t humiliate them at passport control. They came and they spent, and we loved them for it.

But Lebanon has been sitting on its laurels and the world has moved on. This week in London, a 5-star hotel hosted an exhibition of luxury goods – watches, cars, and jewelry and the like – aimed at an Arab market perceived as being unaffected by the recent recession. Unabashed in its ostentation, it was an equally brazen attempt to woo Gulf high-rollers, perceived as the world’s biggest consumers of high-end items. The message was clear. London, at least, was screaming “we want you back.” If the rest of Europe behaves in a similar way, Lebanon will lose some of its luster. And then what?

Lebanon is not geared up for the non-Arab tourist: security perceptions, environmental realities and the lack of an infrastructure for anything more adventurous than a nargelieh will ensure they choose Croatia, Slovenia or any of the obscure Balkan or Baltic nations that have recognized and are selling their potential in the global marketplace.

It’s been said so often it’s become a cliché, but with the right focus Lebanon could be a truly international destination offering a glittering bouquet of attractions in such a small area. So far, all attempts to burnish Lebanon’s reputation have come from the private sector with almost zero government help.

No wonder no one wants the Tourism Ministry.

Article from NowLebanon. Thanks Mohamad!