February is widely known as a month filled with love. As it comes to a close, it has us reflecting more broadly on the connection between the care we hold for our land, resources, communities, and future generations with the responsibility to protect them that naturally follows.

A new year invites reflection, intention-setting and the urge to define what comes next. As we settle into 2026, we’re choosing to re-centre ourselves around our shared passion: sustainability.

In recent years, we found that sustainability conversations in and around the MENA region have been fragmented, often reduced to buzzwords and distant policy mentions. This was one of the motivations to launch SAWA. As we grow our network and set our own New Year’s resolutions, SAWA is focusing on our core principles: what does sustainability mean when it’s grounded in culture and collective responsibility? What does it look like when solutions are shaped by the realities of our region and its diaspora? How can I be more sustainable in my day-to-day life?

This month’s newsletter edition is an invitation to our community to reset our compass. In 2026, we hope to reconnect with sustainability on a personal and regional level, understanding it should be at the heart of our people, land, culture and future.

We’re looking forward to starting this new year with you. Exciting things are coming.

Ahla w Sahla! We are so happy you are here.

We are thrilled to share the inaugural edition of our monthly newsletter: a space created to bring together sustainability professionals across the Arab world and its diaspora. Each month, you can expect spotlights of environmental stories, regional innovators, career opportunities, upcoming events recommendations, and lessons learned from our members and founders, and much more.