IS THE TREE OF THE FIELD HUMAN? Exploring the holy paradox at the heart of Bal Tashchit

The Fruits of Our Labor

Accomplishments are more satisfying when we’ve invested our own time and energy into achieving them. Unfortunately, the effort itself may seem unsatisfying – filled with frustration, disappointment, and hard work. How can we resolve this challenge? The sages teach a lesson about this, using the metaphor of fruit trees, which

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Growing Torah for Adults and Children in the Orthodox Community: Two Orthodox Environmental Organizations Merge to Maximize Impact

[Proud and excited to share this new development for Orthodox Jews who care about the environment! – Evonne] GrowTorah and Canfei Nesharim, two Torah-based environmental non-profit organizations, have merged into one entity, effective Dec. 10, to strengthen their combined efforts and maximize their impact within the Orthodox Jewish community. Canfei

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Your One Vote Can Make Israel Greener

Recently, I’ve been more focused on teaching my baby to crawl than the state of the environment in Israel.   But even for us moms living inside the family bubble, there’s a world out there that sometimes needs our attention. That’s why I am proud to be part of the Green Israel

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The Tu b’Shevat After

When you are a Jewish environmentalist taking a break from the Jewish environmental world, you sometimes feel like you’re in your own personal exile.  It’s self-imposed, of course.  I suspect that I’d be welcomed if I tried to engage myself.  But I also know that I need this time.  (And when I

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Adventures in Being “So Kind”

Register. There it was on my list of pre-baby things to do. I had the feeling that people would want to buy things for us, and I knew they’d be asking if we had a registry. Setting one up seemed like the proper thing to do. It would help everyone

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Know When to Go

In March 2014, Canfei Nesharim announced that I would conclude my current relationship with the organization. This posting attempts to explain how I came to this momentous decision, and what I’m hoping for in the future. It began in trickles, in private thoughts that I thought I could never share.

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And on Day Eight of Creation, We Advocated for Change…

This year, my attention is on the power of advocacy and the opportunity for us to make a difference, as a Jewish community, in environmental policy. After spending a year with Jewcology and Canfei Nesharim focusing my attention on Jewish learning on the environment, and a second year focusing on

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Proud to be part of the 6th Annual Pearlstone Beit Midrash!

I am proud to be a presenter and to serve on the Advisory Committee for this conference! I hope to see you there. 6th Annual Beit Midrash Retreat Mar 7-9, 2014 – Pearlstone Center Breishit: A Journey through Creation Join us for an inspirational Shabbaton weekend filled with Jewish learning,

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Chanukah and its Wrappings

When I was a kid, my parents gave me Chanukah presents each night. I know that many people don't do it that way. They consider it the height of consumerism to give out eight gifts, one every night. But it's how I grew up and it's precious to me. I'm

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Honoring the Vera Lieber Memorial Garden

My local Orthodox Jewish day school, the Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy, has been on a green roll. It’s especially inspiring because it doesn’t seem like just one person has been pushing it. It’s more like a group of people slowly came to the same conclusion, that there should be

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In Memory of Jonah Meadows Adels

Observing my own year of mourning has made me more attuned to others’ sadness. More attuned to the requests for prayers, to the losses of my friends and neighbors. I’ve been sending more condolence notes and attending more shivas. Noticing the other mourners saying Kaddish. I don’t think it’s really

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Life is like a Silverware Box? A Wish for the New Year

In the month after my mother died, I suddenly looked around at my house and saw certain things that were just unacceptable to me. Things that I felt my mother was being polite about. She rarely judged things in my house; she had come to the conclusion that I had

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How much difference is enough?

Back in the spring, I wrote a blog post saying that I wasn’t trying to save the world right now. As I’ve been pondering how to get back into the work of saving the world, I’ve bumped up against a big problem. If I’m going to try to save the

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Diary of a (Not Quite So) Young Leader at ROI

From June 9 to June 13, I had the great privilege of participating for the third time in the annual ROI Summit, a gathering of 150 young Jewish innovators from around the world. The ROI Summit is the entry point into the ROI community, an ongoing resource for young Jewish

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Join the 2013 Battle of the Buildings with ENERGY STAR!

Did you know? According to ENERGY STAR (www.energystar.gov/congregations), most congregations can cut energy costs by up to 30% by investing strategically in efficient equipment, facility upgrades and maintenance. It's the perfect program for your congregation to join as part of the Year of Action. With free information and technical support

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Learning to Plant

On Sunday, I planted my first garden. We planted it in a little corner of our back yard, where we hope the sun will be strong enough and the fence will keep out the deer. It's a garden built on hope. I’m not a gardener. When I was a kid,

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Counting the Omer and Refining Ourselves

During the 49 days between Pesach and Shavuot we count the Omer. With its connection to the land, this is also a great time to increase our connection with and commitment to the planet. Here's how it works. Several years ago, Canfei Nesharim created materials to help us make the

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Success on Wind Power in Maryland!

Last year, I got involved in a state level legislative campaign promoting wind power in Maryland. Working with our local Interfaith Power and Light, I had the opportunity to speak in support of this bill at a town hall meeting on November 3, 2011. (See the text of what I

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