About Us
Who We Are?
Our team consists of international experts with many years of experience in the fields of sustainability, agriculture, resource and water management, community development, renewable energy, architecture and urban planning. Gebal’s team members originate from Egypt, Germany and the USA, and have expertise in project management, research, sustainability design, and in implementing sustainable solutions across Egypt and the Middle East.
Dr. Tina Jaskolski
Co-Founder
Voluntary Adviser
Sustainability and Community Development
Dr. Tina Jaskolski is a human geographer and adjunct assistant professor of sustainable development. Trained in Germany and Australia, Jaskolski has carried out research in Australia, Indonesia, Germany and Egypt and has led numerous research and development projects in communities across Egypt. She has taught courses on sustainable resource management, environment, development in Sociology, Engineering, Biology, Sustainable Development and Gender Studies at The American University in Cairo. Tina works as a researcher for the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT and has also acted as a consultant in Australia, Germany and Egypt for UNDP, GIZ, the Arab Water Council, Griffin NRM, AUTARCON, Sustainable Concepts and Princeton University. Jaskolski is passionate about participatory approaches and Design Thinking. As a co-owner of GEBAL, she acts as a voluntary adviser to the company.
Eng. Hassan Husseiny
Co-Founder
Fundraising and Partnership Lead
Irrigation and Water Management
Eng. Hassan Husseiny is an Agricultural and Irrigation Engineer. He leads GEBAL’s fundraising and partnership portfolio and has designed and implemented numerous technical solutions for GEBAL in rural areas across Egypt. Prior to co-funding GEBAL, he worked for several decades as Irrigation Manager and Water Management Specialist at the Research Center for a Sustainable Environment of The American University in Cairo. He has designed and implemented farms and irrigation systems, rooftop gardens, installed renewable energy systems, sewage and drainage recycling systems, solar powered drinking water systems, solar- and wind-powered irrigation systems, and climate-controlled greenhouses. Husseiny trained as a trainer in the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, and has taught courses on irrigation design, solar pumping, and greenhouse management. He has consulted for SEKEM and for GIZ and Princeton University projects.
Eng. Mohsen Nawara
Co-Founder
Operations Lead
Sustainable Agriculture and
Farm Management
Eng. Mohsen Nawara is an Agricultural Engineer. He leads GEBAL’s operations and management portfolio and has co-supervised and implemented multiple of GEBAL’s sustainability projects across Egypt. Before co-funding GEBAL, he managed a large research farm of The American University in Cairo for decades, heading all operations and managing multiple agricultural research trials on desert agriculture and irrigation. Mohsen has extensive experience with farm design and management, farm operations, field crops, horticultural crops, greenhouse and irrigation design and management, as well as livestock production. He was trained in the Netherlands as trainer of farm management, quality control, and on gender equity. Mohsen has also acted as a consultant for farm management and horticultural production for several export-oriented companies.
Eng. Amr Khairy Ereiba
Co-Founder
Technical Lead
Engineering and Renewable Energies
Eng. Amr Ereiba is an Electrical Engineer with extensive experience in renewable energy, solar system design, solar-powered irrigation, and water desalination. He leads GEBAL’s technical team and supervises the implementation of all technical solutions. As such, he has managed several of GEBAL’s projects in Egypt’s rural areas, co-designing and implementing technical solutions in partnership with local communities. Amr has also led several youth environmental education and entrepreneurship projects in rural areas. As electrical engineer, Amr has experience with the design of power grids and has assessed hybrid micro grids across Africa.
Dr. Hussein Sharkawy
Co-Founder
Adviser
Contracting, Architecture, and Urban Design
Hussein Nawara
Finances and HR
Hussein has a degree in accounting from the University of Tanta. He has extensive experience with financing and HR systems and is responsible for all of GEBAL’s finance, bookkeeping, and HR procedures. Hussein also takes care of a several legal and administrative company procedures and is responsible for GEBAL’s filing system. As our focal point in the office, Hussein keeps the entire GEBAL team organized. Moreover, he keeps track of office operations and maintenance and makes sure everyone has a comfortable environment to work in.
Hadeer Zayed
Fundraising and Communications
Hadeer has a Bachelor’s of Science in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Tennessee in the USA and a Master’s Degree of Science in Environmental Management from Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland. She leads GEBAL’s fundraising and communication activities and is responsible for project proposal and report writing, the company’s social media accounts, and all of GEBAL’s knowledge and communications products. She also manages the relationship with our partners and clients and ensures that GEBAL’s network of partners keeps growing. Hadeer also lends her engineering skills and creativity to project conceptualization and design.
Dalia Farag
Project Implementation
Dalia has a degree in sustainable agriculture and is responsible for the implementation of agricultural, youth, and community engagement projects with GEBAL. She has extensive experience working in rural areas and has led several training, entrepreneurship, gender and womrn’s empowerment, youth, and environmental stewardship projects. Dalia has experience with organic agriculture and is passionate about nature conservation.
Hisham Eltayb
Project Implementation
Hisham has an engineering background and is responsible for the implementation of projects with GEBAL. He has worked extensively in rural communities across Egypt, for example on agriculture, construction, and community development projects. He has also led youth, training and capacity development, entrepreneurship, and environmental stewardship activities in Egyptian villages, using a participatory, hands-on approach.
Marwa El-kot
Capacity Development
Marwa is GEBAL’s capacity development specialist. She has led several training progams in rural areas, including courses on women’s handicraft and entrepreneurship, environmental awareness, nutrition, and health, as well as youth environmental stewardship and leadership programs.
Team Meeting
Team’s Experience
Having worked in rural and urban locations across Egypt, particularly in the Delta, the Western Desert, Upper Egypt, on the southern Red Sea coast, and in informal neighborhoods of Cairo, our team members are well connected with local partners in localities across the country. Our previous work experience has taken us, among others, to the following parts of Egypt:
- Giza Governorate: Geziret El Dahab, Bahariya, El Heiz
- Cairo Governorate: El Khalifa, Saft El Laban
- Fayoum Oasis
- Monufeya Governorate: Sadat City, Shubra Qubala
- Upper Egypt: Dandara, Esna
- New Valley Governorate: Abu Minqar, Farafra, Dakhla, White Desert National Park
- Port Said
- Red Sea Governorate: El Quseir, Abu Ghusun, Qulaan, Wadi El Gamal National Park
Our team members have also been members of international research and development consortia, working in other countries of the MENA region, including Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Some of our team members have conducted and participated in projects in the USA, Australia, Germany, Indonesia, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
Publications of GEBAL’s Team Members
2020 (forthc.)
The Salam Canal Project. People and Water, Dar al Maraya.
Jaskolski, M. and Udoh, I.: Building Cross-Cultural Sustainability Competence through
Virtual Exchanges among University Students: An Example from Egypt and the United
States.
Shaltout, M. and Jaskolski, M. and Hoving, K.: Rooftop Farming, a Sustainable Food
Production Initiative in Cairo, Egypt. In Gadhoke, P., Brenton, B. and Katz, S. (eds.),
Transformations of Global Food Systems for Climate Change Resilience: Addressing
Food Security, Nutrition and Health. FAO.
2020
Otter, P., Sattler, W., Grischek, T., Jaskolski, M., Mey, E., Ulmer, N., Grossmann, P., Matthias, F., Malakar, P., Goldmaier, A., Benz, F. and Ndumwa, C.: Economic Evaluation of Water Supply Systems Operated with Solar-Driven Electro-Chlorination in Rural Regions in Nepal, Egypt and Tanzania, Water Research, 187, 116384. Transformations of Global Food Systems for Climate Change Resilience: Addressing Food Security, Nutrition and Health. FAO.
2019
Jaskolski, M., Schmitz, L., Otter, P. and Pellegrino, Z.: Solar Powered Drinking Water
Purification in the Oases of Egypt’s Western Desert, Journal of Photonics for Energy,
(4), 043107, doi: 10.1117/1.JPE.9.043107.
Wydra, K., Jaskolski, M., Wagner, L. and Essam, Sh.: Nexus Approach to Solar
Technology for Energy and Water Supply for Sustainable Rural Development in
Egypt: A Review, Journal of Photonics for Energy, 9(4), 043108, doi:
10.1117/1.JPE.9.043108.
El Gabry, L. and Jaskolski, M.: Offering Engineering Students Global Perspective
through Experiential Learning Project in Wind Energy and Sustainability, Journal of
Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, 141(10), 101008 (11 pages).
Rap, E. and Jaskolski, M.: The Lives of Women in a Land Reclamation Project: Gender,
Class, Culture and Place in Egyptian Land and Water Management, International
Journal of the Commons, 13(1), 1-21.
2016
Management of Solar Water Stations in the Oases of Egypt’s Western Desert, The
Middle East’s Architectural Association Journal, 1(2).
Jaskolski, M.: Sustainability, Education and Youth-Based Discourses in Denpasar, Bali.
In Kallio, K., Mills, S. and Skelton, T. (eds.) Politics, Citizenship and Rights, Volume 7.
Geographies of Children and Young People. Springer, Singapore.
Jaskolski, M. and Diniega, R.: Lost Roots: Challenges of Sustaining the Architectural
Heritage of Egypt’s Western Desert, The Middle East’s Architectural Association
Journal, 1(1), 5-10.
2004
Democracy in a Tasmanian Local Government, Environment and Planning B: Planning
and Design, 31, 311-324.
2003
of Community Participation in Two Tasmanian Local Governments: A Case for Agnostic Pluralism?, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 28, 462-472.
2003
of Community Participation in Two Tasmanian Local Governments: A Case for Agnostic Pluralism?, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 28, 462-472.
Other Publications
2020
Jaskolski, M., Dawoud, M., Tawfik, A.: Beyond Trees Newsletter, Special Issue on Green Forestry and Farming in the Middle East, U.S. Forest Service, August 2020.
https://www.beyondtrees.global/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Beyond-Trees-MENA-STUDY-TOUR-Full-Edition-Newsletter-Hi-Res-1.pdf
Jaskolski, M. and Shaltout, M.: Claiming Urban Green Space: Environmental Justice and Rooftop Gardening in Cairo, MENASP Blog,
https://www.menasp.com/en/opinion/claiming-urban-green-space-environmental-justice-and-rooftop-gardening-in-cairo/
2019
2017
2016
Jaskolski, M. and Otter, P.: Sustainable Drinking Water Solutions for Egypt’s Remote Areas, German Science Monitor, 3, December 2016, 16-20.
Jaskolski, M., Otter, P. and Aulich, H. (eds.): Proceedings of the First International Conference on Solar Energy Solutions for Electricity and Water Supply in Rural Areas. 7th-10th of October 2015, The American University in Cairo, Cairo.
Jaskolski, M.: The Social Side of Water – Sustainability and Community Management of Solar Water Stations in the Oases of Egypt’s Western Desert. Proceedings of the First International Conference on Solar Energy Solutions for Electricity and Water Supply in Rural Areas, 7th-10th of October 2015, The American University in Cairo, Cairo, 86-97.
Jaskolski, M.: Small Scale Solar Energy Projects for Local Income Generation in the Oases of Egypt’s Western Desert – A Field Report. Proceedings of the First International Conference on Solar Energy Solutions for Electricity and Water Supply in Rural Areas, 7th-10th of October 2015, The American University in Cairo, Cairo, 98-106.
2003
Jaskolski, T. and Caliendo, S.: Agricultural Subsidies and Sustainability – Some Points of Discussion. – 4th Working Paper on Socio-Economic Sustainability Studies / Hydrostar.
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