For years it has seemed that Israel and Thailand were enjoying a trade agreement that should keep both sides happy: we send Thailand our pushy and notoriously litterbug tourists, and they send us their illegal workers to scrub floors for half price. But it seems that Israel has something else to offer Thailand in addition […]
Jerusalem, the Holy City for three religions, is often known as Jerusalem of Gold due to the yellowy-pink stones from which the buildings are cut. Until the winter that is. We’ve had heavy snowfall in the city this past 24 hours covering it in white and leaving schools, businesses and buses at a standstill (check […]
Kids in Beit Shemesh schools–religious and secular alike–will soon be learning about environmental issues. A new initiative on the part of Sviva Israel, a religious environmental NGO, is bringing discussion of ecological topics into the classroom. In particular, kids will learn how to recognize their “ecological footprint” and be encouraged to tread lightly with some […]
Israel was ranked #1 in the Middle East on Yale and Columbia’s 2008 Environmental Performance Index, a system which consists of variables that relate to environmental health and ecosystem vitality. But in comparison to the rest of the world, we’re #49.
Here is a video recap of Israel’s recent WATEC (water technologies), conference. We were there this past November, and collected tons of notes and brochures on clean technology and innovation you’ll be hearing about in the near future.See also the story on Israel21c.::WATEC
The beginning of this year opened up a new hunting season, hunting smokers! According to Haaretz smokers beware! They’re out to get you! “It seems that no law has ever been enforced in Israel with such speed and efficiency. An army of municipal inspectors invaded cafes and bars, as did dozens of activists and volunteers […]
Barely two weeks after advertisers were forced to cover up billboards along Tel Aviv’s Ayalon highway, as a prelude to taking them down altogether, the powers that be have decided to allow the billboards after all. After the signs were ruled illegal by no less than the High Court of Justice, Israel’s wise lawmakers, led […]
Well it’s not that scary, and a bit naive, but it does beg the question: what’s really happening in Haifa? Israeli guys that we know say that the best looking girls in Israel are from Haifa.Could it be an interesting mutation from all the pollution?Nature’s little joke?
Finance Minister Ronni Bar-On has presented, today, the proposals of the committee on green taxation to the government. The proposal suggests a sliding-scale taxation model based upon how good the car is for the environment. A car will be given “green points” from 1-100 based upon how bad, or good, the car is for the environment. Based […]
We have never seen these “green police” in action, but we’d like to believe that they exist, if only in our dreams. This video is a cheesy commercial for Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry police, and what they will do to you if you pollute. Watch out! It’s in Hebrew, which makes their Cops-esque slogan sound […]
It was neat to see the billboards are off of Ilan Pivko’s tower, in Tel Aviv today. The Ayalon Highway is pretty much free from all of the billboard clutter. In light of Ilana’s post yesterday, we thought we’d post this little ditty that we wrote for Heeb Magazine this summer, before they canned their […]
The Porter School of Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University is looking for a few good green men and women. Think you have what it takes to become a fellow? The school is seeking fellowship candidates for a potential faculty position. The fine folks at Porter have sent us a note that they are advertising […]
Environmental Energy Resources, Ltd. (EER) is using Israeli-developed technology to set up Romania’s first plasma waste treatment facility. The system was developed by scientists at the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, and the claim is that it can handle radioactive and medical waste as well as the more conventional kinds. Cost of the project: $30 […]
It wasn’t that long ago when wild beasts roamed the earth. Lions, tigers, woolly haired mammoths and even elephants traipsed over the changing ecology of the Middle East up to the start of the early 15th century. Lions remain as the roaring yet watchful emblem of Jerusalem. Now humans are the wild beasts that dominate, […]
Better known as the centre for three world religions, Jerusalem is increasingly becoming the focus for environmental activities and innovation. The start of 2008 will see the city hosting the launch of the Forum on Judaism and the Environment, a new initiative to bring together professionals, organisations and activists working in the field of Jewish […]
In a recent interview with this writer, Professor Pinhas Alpert, head of Tel Aviv University’s department of Geophysics and Planetary sciences, stated that “winters here in Israel are becoming warmer, with much less precipitation annually, and these extreme temperatures, at the minimum and maximum ends of the scale, also show a greater fluctuation between them.”Thats […]
“Israelis are tremendously committed to the environment. We can move mountains if optimism motivates us.” Alon Tal founded the Israel Union for Environmental Defense (IUED) in 1990 and has been working in public interest advocacy ever since. In 1996, he founded the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, an advanced academic center where Israeli, Jordanian, Palestinian, […]
I want to share with Green Prophet a great site that encourages participants worldwide, not only here in Israel, or in the UK where it is based, but every computer-using sentient being anywhere, to cut down their energy output: be it water, waste, or carbon in general … and monitor their own reduction levels, and […]
Greening is great! The best part is that when you green, you are not only taking a positive step towards rebuilding our environment, when done right there is great potential to save time and money as well. One of the major goals of greening is to reach a higher level of efficiency. How can […]
A long time ago, when we were more idealistic, we spent an afternoon at Salon Mazal. Feeling like an anthropologist, we studied the people who were hanging out there: self-named anarchists, squatters, Arab rappers, earth-lovers…you-name-it. (You can read the story here). Anyway, it turns out that Tel Avivian anarchists are not so scary after all. […]
Memos, agreements, bills, pacts, hand-shaking…we’ve heard a lot of talk about Israel and its intent to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The latest episode is yesterday’s announcement that MK Ofer Paz-Pines (Labor party) has submitted a bill to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Israel.
We’ve just learned that a national conference on business and the environment will take place in Kfar Maccabiah in Ramat Gan on January 21 – 22, 2008. Organized by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the conference is described as “a meeting ground between business and the environment and creating mutual integration and growth, both economically […]
Ever try hugging a cactus? That’s why treehugger types are having a harder time in the Middle East. It’s a bit sad that environmental awareness in the Middle East is years behind that of Europe and the US. But then again, have you ever tried hugging an olive tree or cactus? Although it may be […]
We not only made it to the list of top Earth-Hackers of 2007, we also made it to spot 25 of Discover Magazine’s list of Top Science Stories of 2007! A team of Israeli atmospheric scientists from Tel Aviv University explored the influence of intense lightning storms from East Africa on the world weather patterns. They discovered that “More than […]
The Israeli environment school, the Arava Institute, works to train young Israelis – Jews and Arabs alike – on developing a sustainable Middle East. Its graduates are going out into the world and making a big difference, for the environment and in politics. It’s the first model to bring Arabs and Jews together on behalf […]
