The Lebanese Environmental Forum stressed the importance of establishing and activating a national network of marine protected areas, considering it a fundamental pillar for safeguarding marine ecosystems in Lebanon, preserving the country’s natural and cultural coastal heritage, and ensuring the sustainable use of marine resources for present and future generations. This position was expressed during a visit paid by the President of the Forum, Engineer Malek Ghantous, to the Minister of Public Works and Transport, Mr Fayez Rassamni. The visit was attended by Mr Assad Serhal, Director General of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon and International Advisor to BirdLife International, Mr Rafic Makarem, Director of the Ras El Metn Hima, Mr Jawad Noueihid, Ecotourism Coordinator at the Upper Metn Association for Environment and Sustainable Development, and Brigadier General Dr Hassan Beshroush, Coordinator of the Marine Protected Areas Forum.

The Droub El Hima Programme brings agricultural terraces back to life, transforming them into living trails that connect memory with sustainable development In the village of Al Ghaboun, perched on the slopes of the Aley District, it is not only nature that tells its story. Stone by stone, the landscape speaks of the people who lived here, labored, built, and cultivated the land, shaping a deep and enduring relationship with their environment across generations. The agricultural terraces of Al Ghaboun extend like a living heritage mosaic, bearing witness to the ingenuity of ancestors who transformed steep slopes into fertile, green landscapes.

The Municipality of Hammana has taken a landmark series of municipal and presidential decisions that place the town at the forefront of community-based conservation in Lebanon, formally anchoring the Hima approach within local governance and positioning Hammana as a national model for Smart Hima implementation. Through an integrated legal and institutional framework, Hammana has officially adopted the Homat Al Hima approach, established a Hima Committee for 2025–2026, designated a municipal center as the national Hima hub, and committed to a long-term environmental vision that links biodiversity protection, sustainable livelihoods, youth leadership, and responsible eco-tourism.

Lebanon has officially welcomed Hima Aaitat as its 43rd Hima, marking a significant milestone in the national revival of the Hima system as a community-based approach to environmental protection rooted in Lebanon’s cultural, historical, and ecological heritage. The declaration reinforces a growing national movement that places local stewardship, municipal leadership, and collective responsibility at the heart of conservation efforts. The decision was formally adopted by the Municipal Council of Aaitat under Decision No. 26/2026, dated 8 January 2026, during a duly convened session held in accordance with the amended Municipal Law and relevant public accounting legislation.

Lebanon has marked a major milestone in its national conservation journey with the official declaration of Hima Aaiha, which becomes the country’s 40th Hima. This achievement reinforces a growing national movement that places community stewardship, local governance, and scientific conservation at the heart of protecting Lebanon’s natural and cultural heritage. Declared by the Municipality of Aaiha in partnership with the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon, Hima Aaiha stands as a powerful example of how municipalities and local communities can lead environmental action while aligning with global biodiversity commitments, including the…

Lebanon has reached another important milestone in its national conservation journey with the official declaration of Hima Sarhmoul, making the village the 42nd Hima in the country. This step further strengthens a growing national movement that places community stewardship, local governance, and cultural heritage at the core of environmental protection. With Hima Sarhmoul, the national Hima network led by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon now includes 42 community-based conservation sites across Lebanon. Together, these sites stand as a living testament to the power of collaboration between municipalities, local leaders, civil society, and partners, while positioning Lebanon as a…

Lebanon has reached a new milestone in its national environmental journey with the official declaration of Hima Batroun, marking the country’s 41st Hima and establishing one of its most emblematic marine Himas. This landmark decision places the historic coastal city of Batroun at the forefront of community-led marine conservation, reaffirming Lebanon’s commitment to protecting its natural heritage through local stewardship. With this declaration, Batroun joins the expanding Hima network led by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon, which now encompasses 41 community-based conservation sites across the country. Together, these Himas form a living model of cooperation between municipalities, local communities, civil society, and partners, positioning Lebanon as a regional pioneer in community-based conservation and aligning national efforts with global biodiversity targets, including the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the 30×30 goal.

Lebanon has marked a major milestone in its national conservation journey with the official declaration of Hima Aaiha, which becomes the country’s 40th Hima. This achievement reinforces a growing national movement that places community stewardship, local governance, and scientific conservation at the heart of protecting Lebanon’s natural and cultural heritage. Declared by the Municipality of Aaiha in partnership with the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon, Hima Aaiha stands as a powerful example of how municipalities and local communities can lead environmental action while aligning with global biodiversity commitments, including the…

High in the western Bekaa, where the slopes of Mount Lebanon descend gently toward the waters of Lake Qaraoun, the village of Baaloul has taken a decisive step to protect its natural heritage. With the official declaration of Hima Baaloul, the village becomes Lebanon’s 44th Hima, reinforcing a growing national movement that places community stewardship at the heart of environmental protection. SPNL’s growing Hima network — now reaching 44 sites — represents a living testament to the power of collaboration between municipalities, local leaders, and international partners. It also positions Lebanon as a regional pioneer in community-based conservation, aligning with global biodiversity goals such as the Kunming-Montreal 30×30 Framework.

A coordination and working meeting was held as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen sustainable eco-tourism and community-based conservation, in the presence of Dr. Zeina Haddad, Acting Head of the Youth and Local Authorities Department at the Ministry of Tourism. The meeting brought together the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon, represented by its Director General Mr. Assad Serhal, along with members of SPNL’s team, Ms. Bassima El-Khatib, Mr. André Beshara, Mr. Rami Kadrou, Ms. Fatima El-Hajj, and Mr. Hammadeh Malaaeb. Participants also included Mr.

Environmental conservation is often perceived as a modern response to contemporary crises. Yet, in this region, the idea of protecting nature through collective responsibility is far older than modern states or environmental laws. It is rooted in a living tradition that spans more than four millennia: Hima. The origins of Hima can be traced back to the Proto-Sinaitic writing system, developed between the 19th and 16th centuries BCE. At its symbolic core lies the root H-M-Y, where each letter carries meaning. H represents a boundary or fence, …

Between November and December 2025, the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL) intensified its work across Lebanon’s most sensitive ecosystems, rivers, wetlands, agricultural landscapes, and emerging protected areas. Behind a dense calendar of meetings, field visits, trainings, and technical reporting lies a unified effort to restore ecosystems, strengthen ecological connectivity, and embed conservation within communities and local governance. Across projects ranging from freshwater restoration to bird protection, climate resilience, and biosphere reserve planning, SPNL’s teams worked in parallel on one shared objective, turning science, policy, and community engagement into durable conservation outcomes.

In the early hours of the morning, when mist still lingers above wetlands and fields, Chadi Saad is already in the field. Notebook in hand, binoculars at the ready, he moves quietly through reedbeds, agricultural margins, and river corridors, recording what many pass by unnoticed. As Director of the SPNL Birdwatching Observatory in Hammana Reserve, Chadi Saad plays a central role in documenting Lebanon’s birdlife and translating observation into conservation knowledge. Between late November and early January, his work in the Beqaa Valley intensified, producing a steady stream of verified checklists and field reports across some of Lebanon’s most ecologically significant landscapes.

In a modest field cabin overlooking the hills of Mount Lebanon, surrounded by sketchbooks, cameras, plant presses, and reference volumes, the work of documenting life unfolds quietly but relentlessly. This is the daily reality of Husein Ali Zorkot, a field biologist, naturalist, researcher, and scientific illustrator at the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL). Between November 24 and December 25, 2025, his work reached a critical point of convergence, bringing together years of field research, artistic production, and biomonitoring into tangible outputs that form part of one of Lebanon’s most ambitious biodiversity documentation efforts.

Lebanon, a small country with an outsized ecological role, sits at the heart of one of the world’s most important migratory bird routes. Every spring and autumn, nearly 200 species of birds pass through Lebanese skies as part of their long journeys between Eurasia and Africa. Yet for millions of them, Lebanon has become not a passageway, but a killing ground. According to an in-depth commentary “Blood in the Sky: Lebanon’s Slaughter of Migratory Birds”, 27 December 2025 by journalist Jonathan Cole, published by Badil – The Alternative Policy Institute…

Four Thousand Years of Natural Resource Management Hima is not a recent invention nor an isolated historical practice. Rather, it represents a surface layer built upon a deep structural foundation formed through the continuous overlap of Proto-Sinaitic letter memory, a Sabaean water–institutional experience, and an Arab–Islamic crystallization of environmental governance. Accordingly, the revival of Hima today through modern initiatives—most notably those led by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL)—does not constitute merely a contemporary resource-management tool, but rather a conscious continuation of a civilizational trajectory extending nearly four thousand years.

In the heart of Lebanon’s northern Bekaa, where natural landscapes are closely intertwined with local livelihoods, the Union of Deir El Ahmar Municipalities hosted an advanced awareness and experience-sharing session on combating illegal hunting. The session was organized by the Anti-Poaching Unit (APU) and marked another step toward reinforcing community-based protection of biodiversity through direct cooperation between hunters, municipal police, and environmental organizations. Bringing together members of the municipal police and more than 15 local hunters, the session went beyond a traditional lecture format. It created an open space for dialogue on responsible hunting practices, legal frameworks, and the crucial role of municipal police in enforcing regulations while safeguarding both nature and the ethical practice of hunting.

In a digital space driven by speed, trends, and fleeting attention, it takes something special to pause the scroll. On TikTok, where stories are often compressed into seconds, TinyTales25 has carved out a distinctive voice, one that proves that short stories can still carry deep meaning. @tinytales.25 Hima - Ancient Arabian Sustainable Land Management Discover the ancient practice of "Hima," a remarkable system of sustainable land management that has its roots in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula. This video explores how tribes of Arabia developed a unique approach to environmental stewardship, emphasizing preservation and community well-being long before modern conservation movements emerged.

Reading the Past through 1960s Topographic Maps and Rediscovering Traditional Conservation Landscapes By Bilal Alaouiyeh, Remote Sensing and GIS Expert, Specialist in Spatial Environmental Governance and Biodiversity Mapping. By revisiting a set of official topographic maps drawn more than six decades ago, a quiet truth reemerges from Lebanon’s landscape. Long before modern conservation jargon, before GIS layers and biodiversity indicators, communities across the country practiced an organized, place-based system of environmental stewardship known as Hima. Far from being an abstract tradition or a romanticized memory, Hima is etched into Lebanon’s spatial record itself.

As part of ongoing efforts to combat illegal hunting and protect biodiversity in Lebanon, and based on complaints submitted by sustainable hunters and environmental activists, the Anti-Poaching Unit (APU), with support from its Investigation and Follow-up Division and the Electronic Tracking Team, pursued a number of documented violations across the country. Following verification of the facts, complete violation files were prepared and submitted to the Operations Room of the Gendarmerie Command, which in turn mobilized the relevant units to apprehend offenders and take legal action in accordance with the nature of each violation.

The Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL), in collaboration with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), held a presentation on December 19, 2025, at its Luc Hoffmann Hima Home in Kayfoun to share the outcomes of the 2025 activities and outline the plan for 2026 under the project “Beirut River Valley: Towards Establishing Lebanon’s First Natural Park.” This end-of-year event brought together key project staff, donors, technical partners, and community representatives to reflect on the progress made and to discuss upcoming actions aimed at conserving the…

This iconic species is among 42 migratory species of wild animals that countries will consider as needing international conservation at the UN wildlife conservation meeting in March 2026 Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) have submitted proposals to add 42 new migratory species to the Convention’s appendices as needing international conservation. Due to its increasing population, one species – the Bukhara deer – is proposed to be removed from the list requiring the highest protection. An environmental treaty of the United Nations, CMS convenes governments and stakeholders to address the conservation of migratory species and their habitats.

By the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon Context The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is one of the world’s most endangered marine mammals, with fewer than 600 individuals currently surviving.[1] The species is described as ”critically endangered” by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). The Mediterranean Monk Seal was formerly found all over the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and northwest African coast. Whereas the former distribution was continuous throughout its range, the present distribution is discontinuous, with probably little exchange between the separated populations (Johnson et al., 2006)

On a crisp morning in the village of Btater, footsteps echoed along the Safa Trail as it stretched toward the village of Ghboun, marking more than a sporting event. The environmental and sports activity, joined by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL), was a living reminder of how nature, heritage, and community can converge along Lebanon’s historic pathways. Far from being a simple hike or race, the event formed part of a broader vision to revive traditional trails that once served as vital arteries between villages.

Biosphere reserves are often celebrated as success stories of modern conservation, spaces where nature protection, sustainable development, and community participation coexist. But a peer-reviewed study published in Sustainability challenges this narrative in the Lebanese context, revealing deep gaps between conservation ideals and on-the-ground realities. The study, “Biosphere Reserves in Lebanon: Rifts between Conservation Discourse and Practice,” authored by Sarah Karam, Giuliano Martiniello, Ali Chalak, Mounir Abi-Said, and Shadi Kamal Hamadeh, examines how one of Lebanon’s flagship biosphere reserves has reshaped rural life, often without the consent or participation of the people most affected.