An alliance serving life
Since 2007, Green Orient has been working to protect the environment, support farmers, and promote local know-how. With financial backing from ALAM Suisse, the organization is now launching an ambitious agroforestry project: combining trees, crops, and beekeeping to restore ecosystems while creating new economic opportunities for local communities.
For Wendela El-Kareh, agricultural engineer and member of Change Lebanon, the aim is clear:
“Agroforestry is about reconnecting agriculture and forestry. It’s a way to help communities live better lives while supporting nature.”
Training, sharing, and hope
The project focuses on three pillars: ecology, training, and youth engagement. The first workshops are dedicated to beekeeping, since bees are essential for pollination and ecosystem regeneration.
“We want to build the confidence of young people so they can start their own hives and create additional income,” explains Nabil Sarieddine, founder and president of Green Orient.
Hands-on training sessions — pruning, composting, planting thyme and medicinal herbs, forest management — equip young people and cooperatives with practical skills to diversify their livelihoods.
The project focuses on three pillars: ecology, training, and youth engagement. The first workshops are dedicated to beekeeping, since bees are essential for pollination and ecosystem regeneration.
“We want to build the confidence of young people so they can start their own hives and create additional income,” explains Nabil Sarieddine, founder and president of Green Orient.
Hands-on training sessions — pruning, composting, planting thyme and medicinal herbs, forest management — equip young people and cooperatives with practical skills to diversify their livelihoods.
A human response to crisis
In a region where many young people live in uncertainty and sometimes despair, this initiative offers a path to resilience. As Wendela El-Kareh highlights:
“The most important thing is the human side. These villages are regaining a breath of hope and a reason to get involved.”
For the 30 young people directly involved, the project could provide monthly supplementary income of $200–400 — a significant support amid Lebanon’s ongoing crisis.
In a region where many young people live in uncertainty and sometimes despair, this initiative offers a path to resilience. As Wendela El-Kareh highlights:
“The most important thing is the human side. These villages are regaining a breath of hope and a reason to get involved.”
For the 30 young people directly involved, the project could provide monthly supplementary income of $200–400 — a significant support amid Lebanon’s ongoing crisis.
Building long-term sustainability
Beyond the economic benefits, the ecological impact is equally strong: reducing wildfire risks through pruning, improving soil fertility with composting, and enriching biodiversity with new aromatic and medicinal crops. As Bassem Tarabay, treasurer of Green Orient, puts it:
“Bees pollinate, sustain crops, and open new opportunities for young people. Through them, the entire community regenerates.”
A model for the future
By bringing together local expertise and international support, Soueijani is becoming a living laboratory for rural innovation. This initiative shows that it is possible to combine tradition and modernity, ecology and economy, youth and future. By reviving forests and fostering cooperation between communities, the Chouf agroforestry project stands as a model of sustainable development—rooted in people, and rooted in hope.
