The Christian Science Monitor

In rural Jordan, pulling power from the wind to make change on the ground

Mamdouh Al Rafoua, a community leader in Tafila in southern Jordan, stands amid rows of barley on his farm, which he has leased to the Tafila Wind Farm, April 25, 2018.

Mohammed, 14, walks, as he does every day each spring, with his flock of 200 sheep along the still-green slopes of southern Jordan.

Above them, fan blades 170 feet long whirl in the sky.

“That is the future,” he says, pointing his wooden staff toward the wind turbines. He nods to his sheep. “And this is our present. Side-by-side.”

In a troubled tribal town in Jordan, residents are turning to wind energy to lift the region up from underdevelopment, unemployment, and unrest, and as a model for green energy.

In the town of Tafila and surrounding villages, known collectively as the Tafila governorate, 100 miles south of Amman, some 96,000 residents have long lived in the shadow of the capital.

There is little investment or industry. Most private-sector enterprises are farms and mom-and-pop grocery and supply stores. Most Tafila residents have long relied on government jobs such as the police and the army. The

Overcoming distrustLandowner rightsUrban flightMore wind farms on tap

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Christian Science Monitor

The Christian Science Monitor2 min readInternational Relations
Victories against Russia – outside Ukraine
For Ukraine, military victories against Russia have become harder to achieve since the 2022 invasion. Yet that is not the case on a less visible front against other types of Russian aggression – in nearby countries that also have a minority of Russia
The Christian Science Monitor5 min read
The New Story Of Old Age In Rural America: Neighbors And Community Lend A Hand
Beverly Wight Smith has seen a lifetime of Maine mud seasons in this former farming town. From growing up on a farm during the Great Depression, to seeing neighbors clop through the mud on horseback during World War II when gasoline was scarce, to wa
The Christian Science Monitor5 min read
Canada Is A Role Model On Immigration. But Many Canadians Feel It’s Lost Its Way.
The bright headquarters of ApplyBoard effuses the spirit that has long defined Canada’s immigration narrative. Founded in 2015 by three brothers from Iran who came to Canada as international students, the company has taken its place in the tech clust

Related