Zaila, an initiative of Ali Sbai

Ali Sbai advocates for the protection of the nomadic lifestyle in the desert through the association Zaila. It advocates for a sustainable development.

Ali was born in the south of Morocco, at a place called m'hamid about 500 km south of Marrakech. This area is situated between the mountains and where begins the Sahara desert, at the border of Algeria and Mauritania. Ali spent his younger years as a shepherd and has been waging a nomadic lifestyle. Ali Sbai has a phd in physics and now works at the United Nations ' specialized agency, the international telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva. Yet, it is still connected to this region and its inhabitants.

The number of nomads of the sahara decreases, and with it, the traditional knowledge on the desert are lost. According to Ali Sbai, because the nomadic way of life, to live in harmony with nature is threatened by the consumer society. The nomads have been successful for thousands of years to maintain their resources and survive in some of the most hostile environments on the planet without destroying biodiversity.