This recently published book’s full title is ‘A Crack in the Earth: A Journey up Israel’s Rift Valley,’ and it is just that; in 2004 Jerusalem-based writer and translator Haim Watzman took 2 weeks to travel up the Jordan Valley from Eilat in the south to Kiryat Shmonah in the far north, meeting a wide […]
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.
Last week, we set off in search of time out from hectic, sometime frazzled lives in the Holy City. Some 2 hours later, we arrived at the gate of The Castle in Kerem Maharal, an 11th Century Crusader castle, nestling within a moshav of the same name, deep within the Hof Harcarmel forest, between Haifa […]
It could only happen in 2008. During the year of Shmitta, which is every seven years, Jewish law dictates that we not work the land of Israel in any way. The Jewish National Fund customarily organizes tree-planting activities that attract thousands of people in honor of Tu B’Shvat…but not during Shmitta.
In Judaism it is traditional to make blessings. In fact sometimes it can feel, for the initiated, that one makes blessings for everything! It can be inconvenient, however, I believe that what lies behind, is the true nature of what it means to be green.
Israel offers such an incredible potpourri of cultures. They all seem to melt together through Rachel Oren’s Ethnicware.There you can find one-of-a-kind cushions handcrafted by Bukarians, Ethiopian embroidery, a Bedouin bag… so many treasures and delights.We love the driftwood bowl, but imagine that it’s been imported from India.No matter, Green Prophet thinks it’s a good […]
“You can trace the recent history of Tu B’shevat seders like branches on a tree.” Nigel Savage, originally from Manchester, England, founded Hazon (Hebrew for “vision”) in 2000. Hazon works to create a healthier and more sustainable Jewish community — as a step towards a healthier and more sustainable world for all. In 2000 Nigel […]
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 […]
“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, […]
Poetry lovers take note: from January 8-9, Tel Aviv University will be hosting a conference on literature and the environment, entitled “Poetic Natures: The Environment, Literature and the Arts. ” Guests include US Poet Laureate Robert Hass, a National Book Award Winner and Una Chaudhuri, Professor of English, Drama and Performance Studies at New York […]
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 […]
The other evening we were chatting with a friend from Hebrew Union College, which is located in the heart of Jerusalem’s city center. She told us that the HUC students have taken the initiative to stop using disposable coffee cups and cutlery, in an effort to make their daily meals and beverages more eco-friendly.
Ancient historians have described the export of ointments from the Judean Desert throughout the Roman empire and beyond, at least until the 2nd century BCE. Now the modern company, Herbs of Kedem, has revived the historical use of these herbs for medicinal uses. Amazed by their extraordinary success, researchers at Rambam hospital in Haifa have […]