the founder

Marina Andes wrote in Al Diyar:

Most individuals often go to exercise in the open air, as a result of the high prices experienced by the people of Lebanon, and the collapse of their national currency against the dollar. This led him to think once and twice about registering with the sports club and practicing sports there. But can a person give up the place that secures him inner and physical peace so simply?

Rola, a girl in her thirties, told Al Diyar that she “doesn’t dispense with going to the gym, just like the rest of her friends, despite the tragedies she is going through.”

And she adds: “I will be able, by any means, to save 50 dollars a month, fresh, just to pay the monthly subscription to the gym. The economic situation will not change this issue and will not make me evade my responsibility towards my health. However, instead of going to the “gym” that I was used to, I signed up for another one, near my house, in order to save a little on the costs of the car and gasoline, as a result of the increase in fuel.

Cynthia’s case is like Rola’s in terms of staying in the gym, even if one dollar becomes 200,000, as she put it.

And she affirms: “These psychological difficulties that the people of Lebanon are going through, they must release a little of the negative energy that is formed within them, and sport is the solution to that, knowing that it has become very expensive, we will never dispense with the sports club.”

Cynthia points out that “going to the gym is not only limited to the monthly subscription, but also other costs for things that are all in dollars, namely: sportswear and sports shoes, adopting a healthy diet and focusing on protein such as eggs, chicken and steak. In addition to milk, protein bottles, tuna, and nuts, all of these things have become really very expensive, and a thousand accounts are taken for them.

Sports club movement

Sports clubs have large swimming pools, which the subscriber benefits from, with the high entry prices to sea resorts.

Most clubs now price their subscriptions in dollars, and prices vary between them. The monthly subscription price ranges between 50 and 100 dollars, with offers for 6-month or one-year subscriptions. The price rises to more than $100 if the subscription includes swimming. As for the prices of private sports sessions supervised by a specialized trainer, they range between 300 and 400 dollars, depending on the number of sessions.

Despite the economic crises, the sports club remained in constant motion, in light of the inability of many to travel or spend on activities and outings, for many reasons, the first of which is the high fuel prices.

However, it appears from our conversation with a sample of sports club officials that the number of customers has not declined in an unusual way despite the financial crisis and the high operating costs, which explains the need for camouflage and the demand for sports that relieve stress and meet personal and health needs.

Al-Diyar newspaper toured some sports clubs in Beirut to find out how much the monthly subscription is, and it was noted that all of them are now priced in dollars, even the ones in the farms. Prices vary, of course.

Regarding the pioneers’ turnout, an employee of a sports club in Sin El Fil said, “Currently, the polarization is lighter than the rest of the year, and this is normal with the improvement of the weather, because the number of participants usually decreases, as they prefer open spaces to practice their sports or go to the sea and the mountains.” ».

According to the human resources officer in one of the most important sports clubs in Lebanon, with all its branches, “the number is gradually increasing, especially with the variety of activities, dance and yoga classes, and swimming pools as well. By doing so, they benefit from sports and entertainment at the same time, as going to any swimming pool for two people is equivalent to a month’s subscription to the club,” according to the official.

Let us imagine for a while, a housewife who has been receiving his salary in the national currency so far, or a salary that does not exceed 200 dollars, and a housewife who is either without a job, or has an employee with 7 or 10 million LBP. Will they join the gym to improve their mood and physical health?

The answer is no! As much as they need sport, unfortunately it has become a luxury for many people, as is the case of Simon, who tells us that securing food and drink for his home and children is much more important than paying a monthly subscription to the gym at a value of $50.

And he says: “A kilo of peppers is 250 thousand, and a kilo of onions is 150 thousand. As for water prices, they are all by fire, and a bundle of bread is priced weekly. What gym are we talking about and what sports are we talking about?” Unfortunately, I trained for 6 years in the sports club, and after it was my first priority, today we consider it a luxury or a luxury.

The humble clubs are like the poor

Danny, one of the founders of sports clubs in the “Shehem” area, tells us that “no one visits his club anymore except his relatives or neighbors, while the rest of the people of the village have completely dispensed with this club.” And he says, “Although I tried as much as possible to ensure luxury for the customers, the economic situation negatively affected them and us, who depend on the subscription of three or four people, to live from their monthly subscriptions.”

Danny concludes, wishing that “things will return to normal, and the employer and employee will return to their normal life as before, because the situation is no longer tolerable.”

A flight attendant revealed the ten most important things that he is keen to put in the carry-on bag on the plane during travel, which he advises every traveler to be careful to put. Ben Whatman, Air New Zealand’s director of in-flight services, has been in business for nearly a decade, and always makes sure to pack his 10 essentials when he travels:

1- Lip balm due to severe dryness in the air.

2- Spray for the eyes, because the dry conditions inside the plane may cause itching and discomfort in the eyes.

3- Lens cleaner, to keep glasses and electronic device screens completely clean.

4- A misty spray for the face, to keep the skin moisturized during long trips, especially.

5- Soundproof headphones, such as the “AirPods Pro” headphones from Apple.

6- Phone charger and other electrical devices charger.

7- The Twelve South AirFly device, which connects to the chair’s screen socket, and allows the passenger to use headphones for the display screen, via Bluetooth technology.

8- A notepad and pens, to jot down ideas and write future plans, as the flight time represents a quiet and privileged time for planning.

9- To prevent breakouts due to air pressure, Ben uses Origins Super Spot Remover, which he says is a “miraculous” breakout.

10- Ben uses a zipped travel wallet to store and organize important documents and foreign currencies.​

The sudden collapse of the Silicon Valley bank sent shock waves through the entire financial sector and marked the biggest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis.

As the only publicly traded bank focused on Silicon Valley and startups for 4 decades, the rapid crash has rattled the venture capital community and left climate tech startups in crisis.

SVB has been well-known in the renewable energy world for its critical role in supporting small projects, including community solar projects, that have shunned other institutions because of the onerous legal and tax paperwork required to make their loans.
While demand for residential solar has rebounded in recent years as more Americans try to play their part in mitigating climate change, the harsh reality is that not everyone can get solar on their roofs.

Fortunately, community solar holds the promise of making solar energy affordable to nearly every one of the 130 million households in America, according to Oil Price.

Community solar projects allow families who are unable to install their own rooftop solar panels to buy power from local solar farms, which helps lower their electricity bills.

For decades, residential energy customers who wanted to switch to solar power were limited to two options: install their own solar panels or purchase off-grid solar power from their local utility.
Rooftop solar panels provide a lot of savings for the average homeowner.

Unfortunately, installation costs remain high with average system costs around $13,000 after tax credits.

Only about 23% of American households have easy access to rooftop solar.

Customers who choose to purchase solar power directly from their utilities or retail energy suppliers do not enjoy the full benefits of lower renewable energy costs.

While solar and wind power are often the cheapest source of electricity in most places, most of these cost savings do not pass through to the customer but end up in the pockets of the retailers.
Community Solar has introduced a simple model that promises to deliver clean power to anyone connected to the main grid for less than their current utility bill.

There is no national standard yet for what constitutes a community solar program, but the basic premise is that customers buy stakes in a new solar farm in their service area, which developers build, and the electricity generated flows into the main grid. These subscribers then receive credits that reduce utility bills by 10%.

Community solar provides flexible contracts that save energy through the construction of large-scale solar arrays. Developers are signing up customers months ahead of schedule with many solar projects completed in a year or less. Many plans allow customers to cancel with a few weeks or months’ notice.

Despite being 10 years old, the concept of community solar power has only recently begun to emerge.
Currently, community solar accounts for 5.6 GW of the 97.2 GW of installed solar capacity in the United States, and is set to double in the next five years.

Community solar power is available in 40 states although only 20 states and the District of Columbia have passed community solar legislation.

The average utility price discount in the community solar market is about 10% but is as high as 20% in New York thanks to a more mature and competitive market.

According to BloombergNEF, it is not yet clear how much funding the SVB has provided for community solar developers. However, SVB says it has committed $3.2 billion to innovative clean energy projects, leads or participates in 62% of the funding in US developments, and has more than 1,550 clients in the broader climate technology and sustainability sector.

BloombergNEF estimated that between 2020 and 2022, Silicon Valley Bank financed approximately $357 million in residential solar, excluding community solar.
Regional banks and other types of debt investors are now expected to step in to fix the gap, but it will not be without some rough corrections.

“Other financiers will step in, but the pipelines will stall for some time as those new relationships settle,” said Kiran Bhattraju, CEO of Arcadia Power Inc.

Bhatraju described SVB as a “trusted partner” for approximately 60% of the community’s solar industry.