Why Jewcology Matters

It feels good to be back blogging on Jewcology after a 6 month hiatus.  During this period, my wife gave birth to a baby boy and we moved from NYC to Maryland.  Although it has been a very hectic time, as those with children or nieces/nephews know, the birth of a child changes one’s perspective on the world.   I have been involved with Jewcology since its inception and think it serves a very important purpose.  I am thrilled that a new group of individuals has become involved, breathing a new sense of energy into the movement, including the launching of the redesigned website.  When asked to continue on as a blogger for Jewcology, I did not hesitate to say yes because I think Jewcology presents a vital forum for Jewish environmentalists to interact with each other and share ideas.  Jewcology was initially born out of the realization that there was an extraordinary amount of activity taking place worldwide in connection with Jewish environmentalists, but often very little sharing of ideas or coordination.  Please note that I use the word environmentalist in the broadest sense, which is one of the major points I want to convey about Jewcology.  I hope that people come onto Jewcology, not only to share ideas about Jewish teachings, advocacy, or programming, all of which should be shared and are a huge part of what makes Jewcology amazing.  But I also hope people will share and discuss experiences and interactions they have with nature, such as a hike, or even just pictures of nature that have meaning to the person sharing.  Jewcology should be a place for sharing ideas, but also a place to inspire each other, which sometimes only requires a photo.  Here are a bunch that I came across and happen to love: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2011/12/50_best_photos_of_the_natural.html

I started with Jewcology while working with an organization called Faiths United for Sustainable Energy, which unfortunately had to close its doors a few years back.  Though that organization I was able to meet a wide range of people affiliated with various religious organizations who cared deeply for the environment.  Through FUSE, individuals from different religious backgrounds were able to come together and collaborate in an effort to be good stewards of the planet.  I think the same applies to Judaism as, which is a very large tent containing a wide range of viewpoints.  If we as Jews can come together in order to share and exchange ideas, thoughts, and experiences in connection with  environmental  advocacy, activities, events, and Jewish teaching, we can create an even stronger Jewish environmental movement, in hopes of passing down a more sustainable world to the next generation, like my new son.

Please feel free to comment on this post or send me emails directly and I am always happy to discuss.  After all, that is the entire purpose of Jewcology.

I wish everyone a happy and sweet New Year.

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