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 […]
With everything going on over the past month, many of our thoughts have been turned towards the southern area of Israel and the Negev. At more than 60% of the country’s land mass, however, the Negev desert should really be part of the Israeli consciousness more often. Community based NGO Shvuat ha-Adamah/Earth’s Promise, based in […]
Last night, my roommates and I hosted a dinner party for twelve. Out of the eight dishes, only the stuffed peppers had meat; the others were majadara (rice and lentils), garlic-mint carrots, and goat-cheese stuffed eggplants simmered in Hamutal’s amazing pepper sauce muhamarra. Muhamarra: the addictive red pepper and walnut spread from Syria This morning […]
Our resourceful friends at the Bedouin NGO Bustan are refusing to allow the current tension in the South of Israel affect them. Despite having to cancel some tree planting dates due to the war and the related school closures, they have upped sticks to Tel Aviv and are organising a benefit evening this coming wednesday […]
Tu B’Shvat is the Jewish holiday marking the beginning of a new year for trees, and is usually celebrated by planting trees and exchanging gifts of dried fruit with loved ones. While these traditional activities are great and we support going out to plant trees (thus increasing the amount of carbon-eating leaves out there), these […]
I went to see Scott Hamilton Kennedy’s documentary film, “The Garden,” at Tribeca Cinemas in Manhattan, part of docs on the shortlist for the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund. I went with a group of farmers living in New York, some of whom work on urban farming projects in and around the City. The film tells […]
In this week’s green book review, special guest desert dwelling activist and academic Lucy Michaels, gets to the heart of the matter with a classic eco text: “The burnt cliffs and lonely skies … all that which lies beyond the end of roads:” From Desert Solitaire and why Israel’s deserts need their own Edward Abbey. […]
Tu B’Shevat, otherwise known as Jewish Earth Day, is a time for Jews in Israel and beyond to focus on their responsibility to the environment. In the Jewish community, there are many innovative initiatives that fulfill this responsibility, and the Jewish newswire service, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) wants to tell the world about them.
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 […]
For those of you who hate scorching your feet on hot beach sand, the developers of one of Dubai’s latest luxury hotels has the ultimate pampering for you: the climate controlled beach. No more toasted toes on the way to the waves of the Arab Gulf, promises the Palazzo Versace. The beach will feature […]
Well, winter is upon us and the rain is finally dampening the earth but that does not mean that we should forget about our water conservation efforts. One way of saving water and keeping our little ones a little more dry-eyed is by cutting back on bath-time. Coming from England where water conservation was never […]
If being more environmentally friendly is one of your New Year’s resolutions, you might consider going to one of the great “green” events hosted by the Porter School of Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University this week. First up is a screening of Urban Legend – an environmental documentary by Nitzan Horovitz that was presented […]
With so much negativity in the southern part of the country and the Negev right now, it is refreshing to learn about positive things going on in the region, such as the blossoming eco-village Kramim. Founded recently by a group of visionary young Israelis and immigrant families, Kramim hopes to serve as a multicultural model […]
The Christmas season in Europe is often silly season for the world’s media outlets, when they outdo each other to find the strangest, weirdest and oddball news story to give people an extra sparkle to their celebrations. Strange shaped vegetables, or bagels that bleed are the sort of stories that crop up. Despite the crisis […]
Inspired by the Green Kindergarten initiative made by the Israeli government, I dug up this story I’d written earlier in the year on a unique environmental education center called The Greenhouse: Magical kingdoms and secret gardens don’t necessarily have to stay in the realm of fairy tales any more, proves an Israeli initiative – The […]
In a special ceremony, held in Bar-Ilan University earlier this month, some 48 green kindergartens located in the Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, central and southern districts of Israel were certified “green.” An additional 34 kindergartens were certified earlier in the month, on December 3 in Haifa, 8 of which came from the Arab sector, reports the […]
With winter upon us, now is the perfect time to get cozy with a pile of books. The latest in our eco-reads book review series is a great food and cooking reference – the Whole Foods Companion. Whole Foods Companion is a dip-your-toe-in book rather than a cover-to-cover book: it’s great for delving into when […]
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 […]
Want to learn about organic agriculture and how it’s done in the Middle East? Maybe you’re interested in making cheese from goat’s milk? Or perhaps letting come what may — being the assistant to an eccentric Kibbutznik’s experiment or mindless work on the production line. A number of Israeli kibbutzes are now privatized, leaving no […]
Ever wonder why every day of Hanukkah we add another candle? The Jewish religious source the Talmud explains that this disagreement goes back to the Jewish sages Hillel and Shamai. Hillel explains that we add another candle every day “for the days coming” and Shamai explains that we start with eight and remove a candle […]
Traveling through the mountains of Judea I am always struck by the stark contrast between the mountainous areas where there are villages and where there are not. The differences can be as sharp as night and day. There are even places where people are living but the land seems barren and there are other places […]
It was almost exactly a year ago that we enthusiastically wrote about Tel Aviv’s upcoming participation in Earth Hour 2008, as the only Middle Eastern city to join the worldwide campaign. We are now pleased to announce that although Tel Aviv (and other Israeli cities) will not be formally participating in Earth Hour 2009, the […]
In an overwhelming world of online social networks a new Israeli/Environmental network has emerged called “GreenChange“ using the Ning.com platform. The organization behind GreenChange is the “Heschel Center for Environmental learning and leadership“, which celebrates it’s 10th anniversary today. Its goal is to create an online environment where environmentalists can meet, share ideas and information […]
Dear Green Prophet folks, Hello! My name is Zohar Tobi — I’m an organizer for the US Youth Clean Energy Movement, and I’m writing to invite you to an event I’m facilitating in Jerusalem called the Awakening the Dreamer Symposium. Here are the basic details: WHAT: The Awakening the Dreamer Symposium WHEN: Wednesday, December 24th, […]
Green events are filling our social calendars this week – first there’s the Green Drinks event in Tel Aviv tonight (at 8pm at Gilda Bar on Achad Ha’am in Tel Aviv), and on Wednesday, the Heschel Center is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a sustainability conference held in the Tel Aviv Port. Don’t worry, they’re […]