After the Hebrew holiday Succoth, families everywhere will have an extra etrog which can make a delicious jam. Just make sure the etrog is organic. Here’s Green Prophet’s recipe to make your own: Ingredients for etrog (esrog) jam 1 etrog (citron) 6 cups water 3/4 cup sugar Slice and remove as many seeds as possible. Try slicing the [...]
Jack meets with Better Place in Israel and talks shop about how their rechargeable battery solution can fix the grid. One of the biggest problems with switching an electric grid over to clean energy is storage. Most clean energy solutions are unreliable over short periods of time – when clouds come out, solar panels don’t [...]
Earth Day is April 22. Be a ripple in the pond. Spread the good news forward. Forty years after the the first Earth Day, the next one is just a few days away on April 22. Everybody is talking about how we can make the changes we need to our society so that we can [...]
See Virtual Tour of Earth at night. It’s easy to forget sometimes what all this is for. With Earth Hour behind us and Earth Day coming in a little less than a month it can be overwhelming when we are bombarded by the media: “Do this for Earth Hour” and “If you don’t do that [...]
The other night my dog passed away. Looking back over the past ten years I realized that I had learned many valuable lessons from her. This post is a summary of those lessons, for your benefit …and a eulogy. This is not a Thoreau-ian post about how we should get back in touch with nature, [...]
With the cold creeping in it is tempting to do all you can, no matter how wasteful, to stay warm. The good news is that you don’t have to be wasteful to be warm! Typically, energy bills climb in the winter months due to the use of heaters. But if you are cold, and the [...]
Every week, it is the custom of religious Jews to read their holy book, the Torah, and relate it to the world around them. This week our resident Eco Rabbi, Jack, talks about sticking up for our planet. At the end of last week’s segment, Joseph still had not revealed his true identity to his [...]
Every week, observant Jewish people read a section of the Torah. This week, our in resident Eco Rabbi looks at Parshat Miketz. Okay, this week’s parashah is a no-brainer. Seriously, how can an Eco-Rabbi NOT talk about Parshat Miketz? The parashah which contains the solution for dealing with famine… Parshat Miketz opens with Pharaoh, King [...]
This week we begin our celebration of the festival of Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights. The main event of Hanukkah is the lighting of the Menorah, a candelabra.The Menorah has 9 arms, one for each day of the holiday, plus one more candle for lighting the other ones. One of the lessons [...]
Most of us are familiar with the movie Fight Club, where the protagonist’s house is blown up as a result of a gas leak. Gas leaks are serious, if you smell a leak you should stop what you are doing immediately and call a technician. However, not all leaks are noticeable. You may have a [...]
In order to understand how your toilet may be overflowing I first have to take a step back and explain how toilets work. How Toilets Work There are, basically, two parts to a toilet. The “Tank,” and the “Bowl.” The tank is where the water is stored, waiting to be flushed. The bowl is where [...]
As creatures of habit we tend to get into bad ones… Habits that is. Here’s an eco-suggestion: Try to re-evaluate what disposable products you REALLY need to use. For instance. Do you go out for picnics? Can you buy a set of cheap reusable plastic plates and cups instead of disposables? How about the cup [...]
Pillows are made of not the best synthetic material for landfills. That plus the fact that pillow manufacturing companies recommend getting new ones every 6 months – 2 years. That can lead to a lot of unhealthy non-degradable fluff filling up our dumps. The good news is that there are plenty of wonderful ways to [...]
Not only does smoking pollute your lungs and the air around you, but at an average of $4 a pack, they are likely costing you between $1500-$3000 a year. If you want to reach the age of retirement, quit smoking. If you want to retire in comfort put aside $8 a day, the 2 packs [...]
Unlike popular belief, oil does not come from the remains of dinosaurs, rather from the silica based life-form called diatoms. Diatoms live in the top few meters of oceans and lakes and are able, unlike people, to convert sunlight into energy. In order to remain afloat and to store the energy they soak in, diatoms [...]
There are many gases, aside from C02, that cause harm to our atmosphere. The problem is that not all of them are included in the Kyoto Protocol meaning that they do not need to be reported. Take care to learn your gasses, if you are connected with the industry, so that you do not inadvertently [...]
When conversing with the “greenies” you may have come across the word “Anthropogenic” and wonder what it means… anthropogenic |ˌanθrəpōˈjenik| is an adjective that describes something as a pollutant, chiefly environmental, that originates in human activity. So the CO2 from your car can be described as “Anthropogenic”, whereas the CO2 from your neighborhood Volcano is [...]
Probably one of the most important green living tips I could suggest would be to educate yourself. Know what everyone is talking about. So, when greenhouse gases are being discussed you may have seen GWP mentioned… Carbon dioxide isn’t the only greenhouse gas, although it is but the one of primary concern presently. There are [...]
Instead of using synthetic sponges for your shower and dishes use a luffa! Sponges tend to collect bacteria and for heath reasons should be thrown out 1-2 times a week. But if they are not biodegradable, that is a LOT of waste filling up landfills. Additionally, the “antibactirial” sponges have a chemical called Triclosan which [...]
There are some very beautiful wine bottles around and it seems a terrible shame to just throw them away. Here are a few ideas of how to harness that beauty and make your house classier as well. Some fancy restaurants use empty wine bottles to serve water. It certainly looks more elegant than a plastic [...]
Summer can be brutal in the Middle East, and not everywhere has EWA Technologies’ Air Conditioning. But no worries. Many homes DO have built in cooling systems that many people don’t bother taking advantage of. Cross breezes can be a very effecting way to cool down your house. The key is making sure that windows [...]
I noticed a drip coming out of the base of my kitchen sink faucet. It was only a few drops, so I procrastinated. Over time it grew more and more. I thought: “it’s just a few drops, it can’t be too bad.” Finally I went out to the store to get a new faucet. When [...]
With the holiday season around, kids underfoot, family everywhere, now is actually the perfect time to do some greening. Collect the kids and do some projects to recycle throwaways. Also, with everyone around it’s a good time to discuss how to make your lifestyle more efficient and green.
In last week’s Eco Rabbi I discussed aspects of vegetarianism and Judaism. This week’s Eco-Rabbi post I discuss cleaning for the holiday of Passover. This week Jews all over the world are cleaning up their homes in preparation for the festival of Passover (Pessach in Hebrew). On Passover one cannot own, in their home, an [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In this week’s Eco-Rabbi post I discuss a Jewish approach to meat. I’m a vegatarian… sympathizer. (Seriously, could you really eat lamb after looking at that picture?) [...]
This week Jewish people everwhere, and in Israel, celebrate the festival of Purim, which I would call the festival of communal identity. The beginning of the Megillah (what Jewish people read on Purim) opens with King Achashverosh’s party, a seven-day-all-out-eat-your-heart-out party. After spending an entire half-year celebrating throughout the country, the king wanted to impress [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post I discussed how to create room for God to live within us. This week I discuss giving thanks to God for the energy [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post I discussed free trade and the commandments, this week I write about how to create room for God to live within us. [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed trees and the receiving of the Bible (Torah) on Mount Sinai, this week I’ll discuss free trade and the commandments. [...]
I am currently writing from the Jerusalem Twestival You’ll notice in the right sidebar there is a new widget. From there, I’ll be tweeting the people I meet so that those who aren’t here in Jerusalem can enjoy the experience as well. You can also follow us straight from our twitter page as well. Follow [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed water and life. In this week I will discuss man, trees and the receiving of the Bible (Torah) on Mount [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed the power of symbols. This week continues with discussing of water and life. Pharaoh finally agrees to let the Jewish [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed Moses’ fight for his people’s freedom. This week continues with discussing the power of symbols. Moses finally persuaded Pharaoh to [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed the Jews slavery in Egypt along with Moses’ first prophecy via a burning bush. This week continues Moses’ fight for [...]
The Experiment In today’s current recession, considering the current world support growing for “green” initiatives, would environmental stocks out perform the rest of the market? Just about a month ago I posted about this green financial experiment in conjunction with MarketGuru and turned to you, our community, for your input. We got some great tips [...]
Each week Orthodox Jews read one segment of the Five Books of Moses so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed Jacob’s passing on and blessing his children, this week begins several generations later. Jacob’s children have been living in Egypt [...]
Orthodox Jews read a segment of the Five Books of Moses each week so that they can complete the entire Five Books within the course of a year. In last week’s Eco-Rabbi post we discussed Jacob’s descent to Egypt and the grand cedars that he brought with him. This week’s segment, Parshat Vayechi, is the [...]
In this week’s segment, Parshat Vayigash, Jacob and his family go down to Egypt to Joseph, who is now second, only to Pharaoh, in Egypt. On his way down the Bible explains that Jacob went via Beersheba. The Midrash Bereshit Rabbah, a sixth century commentary on the bible, notices extra language used to describe that [...]
Joseph was sent down to Egypt by his brothers to remove him from the picture. Their father had favored Joseph and his brothers were not too happy about that. Upon arriving in Egypt Joseph found success wherever he went. Originally he was sold as a slave but very quickly he found himself in charge of [...]
A modified version of this post will be presented as part of Sviva Israel’s Eco Lights Hannukah Program Ever wonder why every day of Hanukkah we add another candle? The Talmud explains that this disagreement goes back to the great sages Hillel and Shamai. Hillel explains that we add another candle every day “for the [...]