Pollution in a Promised Land: Alon Tal on Israel and the Environment

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Here in Israel a few months ago we celebrated Yom Ha’atzma’ut or Independence Day with fireworks, barbecues, and mutual congratulations on how much we’ve achieved in 61 years –– absorbing millions of immigrants, sustaining a vibrant democracy, building a dynamic economy –– and a certain amount of soul-searching about how much we still haven’t: peace, intra-Jewish […]

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Eco-Activist Yeshiva in Jerusalem Brings the Torah Down to Earth

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The links between religion and environmental concern/activism are no news to Green Prophet.  We’ve covered them in our Eco Rabbi series, discussion of the environment and the Qu’ran, and in stories about multi-faith perspectives on the environment. But it was news to discover an Eco-Activist Beit Midrash (EABM) in Jerusalem’s Yeshivat Simchat Shlomo, which, in […]

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"Highway 6" Construction Firm Makes Big Bid on Solel's Solar Energy Tech

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Solar tech innovators in Israel seem to be always looking West for investment dollars, but in a surprising move, Israel’s Housing & Construction company –– Israel’s largest construction firm –– said it has made an offer to buy a significant stake in Solel Systems. This is the same company that played a role in the construction of […]

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Louise Looks At Eco-Travel With "The Guardian Green Travel Guide"

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Worried about your carbon footprint? Not sure where to turn for accurate information? This book certainly delivers what it says on the jacket. Drawing together a range of contributions from travel and green experts, it offers the reader opportunity to explore options for travelling worldwide which take least toll on the environment and which contribute […]

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Lebanon Running Out of Fish

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(Lebanese fishermen in southern Tyre clean their catch. Photo from AFP.) Southern Lebanese fishermen say their catch has slumped from 88 pounds a day in the 60s and 70s to a measly three or four-pound daily take because of aggressive dynamite fishing, overfishing and pollution. According to a report published by AFP, the Lebanese marine […]

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Benvenisti Mourns the Forgotten Rural Heritage of Israel in "Sacred Landscape"

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For readers who have driven or hiked past unmarked, run-down old stone buildings in Israel, former Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Meron Benvenisti’s Sacred Landscape (University of California, 2000) will reveal a layer of Arab ghosts inside Israeli towns, cities and the countryside. Born in 1934, Benvenisti spent his childhood accompanying his father on geographical tours of […]

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Hollywoood Stars Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts Plant Pistachio Tree in Galilee with JNF (VIDEO)

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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVZeLgs2aTs[/youtube] In Israel for the first time last week, Hollywood stars Liev Schrieber and Naomi Watts (and their two cute kids) planted a pistachio tree (and other trees) in the Galilee with the Jewish National Fund (JNF).  Though we loved their appearances in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and “King Kong”, we think that tree planting certificates […]

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Scientist, Environmentalist and Eco-Prophet James Lovelock Issues A Final Warning in 'The Vanishing Face of Gaia'

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“We became the Earth’s infection a long and uncertain time ago”: James Lovelock is perhaps the world’s best-known independent scientist; he has published a new book, The Vanishing Face of Gaia: A Final Warning. Lovelock has served humanity and the planet well by inventing a device (the ECD – Electron Capture Detector), which detected the […]

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