Jesse Rabinowitz
Jesse is a recent graduate from the University of Maryland where he studied environmental politics and rhetoric. He has interned with AJWS, Uri L’Tzedek and Repair the World. Jesse now works for AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps. Jesse is active with Jews United for Justice, J Street, the Jewish environmental movement, and homeless advocacy. In his free time, Jesse can be found playing music, gardening, or cooking.
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Drawing Creation: Infusing environmentalism with color
This past Sunday, I asked my high school Sunday school class to design their ideal gardens. I handed out rulers and pens, but they were not used. Instead, they opted for colored markers as they sprawled out on the floor. I sat back and thought “they clearly didn’t hear my message of spacing between beds, the importance of the sun, or raised bet height.” Feeling discouraged, I began to think of my ideal garden. I drew measured, even ...
Changing the world through gardening
It’s official, Camp Sprout Lake in changing the world through gardening. Today, the campers had a crash course in Rambam’s levels of Tzedakah, Pe’ah— a Jewish agricultural law regarding mandating the corners are the fields are left for the poor— and the pandemic of hunger plaguing the world. Campers began the activity not understanding the importance of justice, not willing to share their privileged lives in the form ...
It is revolution time
To those living in the world of social justice, the idea of a violent revolution seems repulsive. Taking the lives of many to improve the lives of others is oxymoronic, paradoxical, a nightmare. We live in the world in which we dream of peaceful revolution, one of love, respect, and gardens. To wrap up the first session of the gardening and environmental education at Camp Young Judaea Sprout Lake, I decided to welcome participants into the ever ...
The answer is blowin’ in the wind
Today was political action day in the Amir project garden at Camp Sprout Lake. Over 100 letters were written to the senators of New York, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island tackling issues of litter, climate change, rainforest preservation, safe water and hydrofracking. As the eleven and twelve year olds were busy listening to protest music while trying to convince their parents’ elected officials that those ...
Blessings for all
Jews love blessings. We bless our food, our weather, and our new clothes-nearly everything. Why then do we not have a blessing for planting? Today at camp, we began planting our garden. Campers were able to dig their hands—too often used for texting and videogames— into rich soil. They planted tomatoes, brussel sprouts, sweet peppers, basil, cabbage, and kohlrabi, but before we put these life-sustaining plants into the ground, we took a ...
All we need is love
The kids are here. 183 screaming, excited and overly energetic 2nd-8th graders, and they are ready to change the world. Rather, we want them to be ready, but, is it reasonable for adults to expect these campers to make significant social change from our camp bubble in upstate New York? Is it fair of us to ask them to attempt this mission that my generation and the generations before have failed at? I am not sure, but I do know that we can and must ...
The world is sprouting at Camp Sprout Lake
It has been three days of hard work, blisters, and buckets of sweat, but it is almost time to sprout, literally. Next week, the campers of Young Judea Sprout Lake in upstate New York will arrive. For this eight-week summer, I have one goal in mind, to make clear the intimate connection our tradition has with the earth. As staff has slowly trickled in from across Israel, Canada and the United States, I am impressed by the continual excitement when ...
