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22
SPRING
2012
It was in the wee hours on a hot June
morning that two figures emerged from
the shadows and silently made their way
to various spots around the city.They
deftly laid down a patch of green grass
and inserted a rod with a sign on top.
They moved quickly from one site to an-
other. In total, nine spots were conquered.
Early risers on their balconies may have
heard a few giggles wafting through the
streets and looked out curiously onto the
streets below. Their curiosity only abated
when the sun rose to reveal nine new
green spots in the city.The sign above
them read: “Enjoy your green space.”
The unusual spots certainly attracted pass-
erbys wondering who had planted these
green patches and why. Among them
were two young women who hovered
from spot to spot listening intently to
comments.They looked peculiarly like the
two shadows that had crept through the
city streets only a few hours earlier.
By the end of the day,
Dima Boulad
‘03
, and Nadine Feghaly, declared their
experiment a suc-
cessful triumph.
“People got it,”
said Boulad. “They
saw the irony of
it. Even the press
showed up and
wrote about it.”
Beirut’s 0.8 m2
per capita of greenery is 50
times less than what the
World Health Organization
recommends and is one of
the lowest in the world.
Somehow or another, the
two women were determined
to raise awareness about the
need to have public green
spaces in Beirut. Both bloggers, they
spread the message online. “We got a lot
of great attention there too,” she said.
It was only after Boulad, a graphic de-
signer, returned from her studies in
Paris that she realized how severely
overbuilt Beirut had become. As
her daily routine in Paris included
sitting on a bench, surrounded by
grass, and sipping her coffee while
immersed in thought, she yearned
for the opportunity to replicate this
experience in Beirut.
After complaining to her friend about it,
the idea suddenly dawned upon both of
them. Why not make the people in Beirut
aware that they too need green patches
here and there? They too need a place to
sit and relax. In turn, they would start
lobbying for greenery around them.
The women’s first venture was
in 2010 when they placed
the grass patches
and signs
around
the city.
Before
long, they
had attracted the attention
of several others who wanted to join their
efforts. “Beirut Green Project” was born
in 2011 with Joseph Khoros and Rana
BouKarim.Their first project was to green
a cement patch on Sassine Square in
Ashrafieh (Greenline, an environmental
NGO provided the grass), and simply
invited people to enjoy a “pop-up day in
the park”.
The heavy turnout - more than 300 peo-
ple – took the group by surprise. “People
showed up with their kids, dogs, and had
picnics,” said Boulad. “It was truly a day in
the park. It was amazing.”
The word began to spread. Blogs and
messages were lighting up the screens. It
was a good start. Yet, the group – not yet
an official NGO – is not under any illu-
sions of grandeur. Unless landowners de-
cide to turn philanthropic and transform
their lands into public gardens to increase
Beirut’s few measly parks, the group
has to focus on greening small unusable
patches of land leftover from building
projects. “We want to also raise awareness
to use them and make use of the already
existing parks,” she said.
Their efforts did not go unnoticed.
Boulad’s blog was apparently monitored
IC alumna spearheads efforts to
“Green the Grey” of Beirut
Dima Boulad laying out the grass in Sassine Square.