29 April -05 May 2013 - orsam

Hence, many environmental issues often fall by the wayside, solely because they are called
―environmental issues.‖
We believe environmental concerns are not just a luxury for the well-off to worry about, and we
work hard to make our readers understand that these issues touch every level of society.
For example, there is nothing luxurious about demanding access to clean water and healthy food.
And what is overpopulation, other than an innate awareness that one‘s equal access to certain natural
resources, essential for survival, is being threatened?
We believe that if issues like these were to be treated and discussed as such, Egypt would be better
equipped to address its network of issues holistically. By embracing naturalist ideas, one‘s
perspective of the commonly referenced but loosely understood issues that appear to be threatening
the country, such as economic issues, can be broadened.
Mahmoud al-Mansy, spokesperson of the Sons of the Soil NGO, has fought for farmers‘ rights and
access to resources since the mid-1990s, when his family fell victim to the common practice of land
grabbing. He says the most important aspect of environmental journalism is that it‘s dedicated to
focusing on contentious issues over the long term.
―Our problems are not stories that appeal to headline journalists,‖ says Mansy. ―There is no story.
There is no catchy issue.‖
Problems facing farmers are not well-addressed in the media, he says.
―Our very existence from the day I was born is the issue. It is taken for granted that we will remain
poor and suffering so the mainstream debate can continue to take place,‖ he says.
Part of the issue is time, he adds.
―Nobody is interested in covering agricultural land and water issues because it is too timeconsuming,
and at the end of the day, it won‘t sell as many papers as the death of one urban boy,‖
Mansy says. ―But environmental issues are systematically killing our rural youth and destroying our
lives every day.‖
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