Green Prophet’s Karin recently made us aware of a carbon offsetting scheme here in the Middle East, named Libra/Sekem, which converts cash paid for carbon offsets into compost. The project based in the Sharkia region of Egypt, turns coffee grinds, raw food scraps and more (read one of our super-enriched Green Prophet posts on composting here) from the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian Cities into compost, which is fast activated, and used locally to enrich the desert soil.
With the Shavuot holiday coming up next week, harvest and cheeses (okay, mostly cheeses) are on everyone’s mind. Shavuot is related to ancient grain harvest customs in Israel, making it one of the more significant agricultural holidays in Judaism.
And agriculture has a big effect on the environment.
Non-organic agricultural practices, such as using pesticides and insecticides, have terrible effects both on the people eating the produce and on the environment. Pesticides can effect human health in a variety of ways, ranging from skin and eye irritations to cancer. Pesticides also effect the environment by polluting our soil and waterways.
In a celebration of the Shavuot harvest and organic farming practices, a weekly organic farmer’s market will be opening up this Friday at the Tel Aviv Port (across from Hangar 11). The market, sponsored by the Slow Food organization, will bring together the best farmers, cheese producers, bakers, and beer brewers from all over the country to sell their products themselves. This is a unique opportunity to meet the people responsible for making your food, learn how it was made, and enjoy the sun on a Mediterranean boardwalk.
Special species of fruits and vegetables will be offered for sale, which are usually reserved for export. You will also be able to find the finest cheeses, breads, products, and fresh artisan beer.
Tel Aviv Farmer’s Market, Tel Aviv Port:: Open every Friday starting from 30/5 at 08:00 until sundown
See also:: Slow Down, You Eat Too Fast and Community Supported Agriculture: Organic, Local and Tasty!
“Environmentally friendly” is not usually something you hear in a chemistry lab. But thanks to a groundbreaking discovery at Tel Aviv University, the chemical industry is a step closer to being green. Prof. Arkadi Vigalok from the School of Chemistry at Tel Aviv University has discovered a way to use water to make certain steps of a complicated chain of chemical reactions more environmentally-friendly.
Prof. Vigalok’s solution replaces chemical solvents, which can pollute the environment, with water. Though chemists have long thought it possible, Prof. Vigalok’s approach has only rarely been even attempted. His discovery was recently reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, International Edition.
First of all, to those of you who have followed us since our humble beginnings (which were initiated, as so many things are, over cappuccinos late at night)–thank you. Without your readership we would not be able to continue to update you on the latest news, cleantech innovation, and cutting edge eco-fashions. Where else can you go to find out about a life-saving, inflatable skirt, and still get serious environmental news?
Now our co-founder and editor Karin Kloosterman shares her thoughts on Israel and the environment in an interview with the New Vilna Review. There are even some sneak prophecies foretelling what the future may hold for our site.
Sample quote:
“People have to stop treating the environment as though it’s something romantic. I think buying organic clothing and food raises the awareness of certain health and chemical issues, but it is not the solution. Consuming eco-chic fashion and high-end non-chemicalized food is possible for the people who “have” in our society, but sometimes I feel the whole business is detracting from the bigger problem. What about the have-nots?”
Click here for the full interview.
The winner is going to be announced at the end of the week in a special ceremony by President Peres (himself a well-known bird watcher, according to media reports). But we are able to tell you, hot from the Green Prophet aviary, that of those who voted in our special Green Prophet Poll, the majority want the Hoopoe (Duchifat in Hebrew) (pictured above in all its glory) to be Israel’s National Bird. Good luck with that, and let’s see which feathered beauty the entire nation favours.
Take care to measure out the right amount of water needed. It takes extra energy to boil too much water. Not only will you be saving energy but time as well; your water will take less time to boil!
In one of our past prophecies we wrote about Israeli clothing company, Bagir, and their men’s suits made out of recycled PET plastic bottles. But the EcoGIR suit is not the only environmentally friendly product that this company has up its sleeve.
They’re always thinking of ways to make their suits greener.
I talked with Moshe Gadot, Bagir’s director of global development and marketing, and he told them that the company’s ultimate goal is to see the entire tailored clothing business go green and “retired” suits get recycled into new products. And so far, they’re doing pretty well on that front.
Parabens, a preservative used in cosmetics such as shampoos, deodorants, toothpastes and creams, are nasty things. They’re bad for our health, bad for the environment, and bad for all the creatures that we share this planet with.
Parabens have been proven to be linked to cancer, and a study in the UK has showed extremely high levels of parabens in breast cancer tissue. The parabens found in cosmetics that we use eventually gets washed off, too, meaning they also pollute our waterways and harm our animal friends. Parabens have been shown to disrupt the hormones in animals, causing things like genetic defects and extra legs on frogs.
In other words, bad news all around.
Can peace in the Middle East begin with the environment?
A plan is being outlined for the collaboration of Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Palestinian Authority, detailing mutual responsibilities for environmental issues that affect the country–regardless of what the country is called and whose land it is.
On June 2nd in Herzliya, Beit Hayal Ha’avir is hosting an Environment & Health Conference, titled ‘Environmental pollution and Disease Trends in Israel – what we know, what we don’t know and what we should know.’
We may all know someone who suffers from a pollution-caused disease, or perhaps we are all just getting ‘sick to death’ of the noxious fumes emitted from exhaust fumes, or the plastic and chemical pollution of our seas and other waterways, as in the picture above….it is time us ordinary citizens got ourselves better informed, and equipped with the hard science and relevant facts and figures to demand change in the legislation and business negligence (and consumer ignorance – look at the pollution left behind after the 60th celebrations…) that causes pollution of our land and our bodies.
Or maybe there’s some good news…..
For those of you who missed out on our first Great Green Prophet Giveaway, the competition is on again! And this time the prize is local, handmade, and recycled – so we’re especially proud.
Yoav Kotik, an Israeli artist who reinvents garbage materials into beautiful jewelry and other creations, has graciously agreed to give an earring and ring set made out of Israeli beer caps to the most creative bidder.
The earrings and rings are made out of Israeli beer caps (specifically Goldstar and Malt Beer, for those picky beer connoisseurs out there), and so they make a patriotic and environmental statement at the same time.
What do you have to do to win one of these beautiful jewelry sets?
Last week at Tel Aviv University’s Renewable Energy and Beyond (yeah the conference that Al Gore opened), and the venue where the University announced its desire to become a Supercenter for renewable energy, we met Isaac Berzin of GreenFuel Technologies. A Time Magazine most influential, Berzin now a fellow at the IDC, is back in Israel to establish a massive renewable energy project ten times the scale of GreenFuel.
While green funds in Israel have recently taken a dive, the general consensus seems to be that it still pays to invest in green in Israel. According to Haaretz, Google seems to think so, too. While the multi-billion dollar empire is reportedly interested in a number of Israeli cleantech companies, the only one which we know they have their eye on is Ormat–a world leader in geothermal energy.
One week a year, every year, Hebrew books get their chance to shine.
A tradition that began with modest book stalls on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv in 1926, Hebrew Book Week has since grown to enormous dimensions and every municipality and book store in Israel finds a way to celebrate the event.
Usually, this celebration includes the discounted sale of lots and lots of new Hebrew language books. Books are a great form of entertainment because they don’t require electricity, but on the other hand, they require lots of energy and resources to produce. In light of that fact, we would like to propose some alternative ways to celebrate this great national tradition.
To be perfectly honest, I received the news about Al Gore coming to Israel to collect a $1 million prize for his achievements in raising environmental awareness with a dose of skepticism. Does Al Gore really need more money or recognition, especially when there are so many committed, homegrown environmentalists in Israel, many of whom are so under-appreciated? Wasn’t his movie just a glorified Power Point, containing no significant new insights? And even if Gore is a relentless activist today, where was his sense of commitment when he was working from the White House?
However, after pondering it over a little, it became clear to me just what an enormous impact Al Gore has had on environmental awareness in Israel.
Although it is difficult to image today, with discussion of environmental issues so mainstream and widespread, it was only a couple of years ago when environmentalists were considered an obscure special interest group in this country. I remember being told by a distinguished professor in Tel Aviv University a couple of years ago that the environment was a “luxury” issue, which only the well-off could be expected to care about.
All of that has changed during the past year or so.
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