Zeinab Mokalled

Zeinab Mokalled (Arabic: زينب مقلد) alias Mahmoud Makled Noureddine alias Mrs. Umm Nasser is a Lebanese educator, environmental activist and human rights defender.

Activism

At the beginning of the 70s, the first civil society was established in the village of Arabsalim. It was under the name of "The Working Women's Association". As a result of the exacerbation of the garbage problem in the village, it reached its climax in 1995. It was with the state’s neglect of it under the complex political circumstances. Mokalled and a number of village women decided to solve this problem by establishing the “Arabsalim Women Gathering” association. The association later turned into “Nida al-Ard". It was registered as a civil organization in 1998. In cooperation with the volunteers and her friend Khadija Farhat, who bought an old truck, they collected wastes from the village's homes for $40 per year from each contributor. Then, they sort the recyclable wastes into a simulated home garden. The reason for success of the garbage recycling project managed by Mokalled was that the village was not affected by the waste problems in Lebanon that occurred in 2015. Before her retirement in 2000, Mokalled established a public library at Nabatiyeh High School for Girls.