67 results for tag: Direct Educational Programs and Experiences

A Tu B’Shvat Seder to Heal the Wounded Earth

The New Year – for Rebirthing Trees: [This version of the Haggadah for Tu B’Shvat has been greatly adapted by Rabbi Arthur Waskow of The Shalom Center from a Haggadah shaped by Ellen Bernstein, as published in Trees, Earth, and Torah: A Tu B’Shvat Anthology (Jewish Publ. Soc., 1999, ed. by Elon, Hyman, & Waskow). Bernstein wrote introductory remarks to sections of that Haggadah, many of which have been included or adapted for this one. They are indicated in the text by the initials “EB.” * The desire for such a Haggadah grew from discussions of the Green Hevra, a network of Jewish environmental organizations. ...

Environmental Tip of the Week: Apology and this week’s tip: Dumpster Adventures

http://environmentaltip.blogspot.com/2013/12/apology-and-this-weeks-tip-dumpster.html I'm not blogging much lately due to certain matters going on in my life. Sorry, I know this is supposed to be a weekly post but life happens.... Anyway, here's this week's tip. This applies if you live in a place where there's a central dumpster where people dump their garbage: When you take out the garbage, keep your eyes open for things that might not really be garbage but perhaps someone was just trying to get rid of the item without it occurring to them that maybe someone else could use it. If you find something useful, go ahead and take it home! For example, ...

Transformative Judaism and our Planetary Crisis

Since human action has endangered the web of life on earth, human action can heal it. And the religious and spiritual communities of our planet have the wisdoms and the tools to do the healing. Judaism is especially relevant because, unlike most world religions, we preserve the teachings of an indigenous people in the biblical tradition –- the spiritual wisdom of shepherds and farmers. And yet as a world people, we can now apply the earthiness of our origins to the Whole Earth. That does not mean simply repeating the ancient practices. For instance, the ancient code of kosher food does not take into account that we now “e...

Transformative Judaism and our Planetary Crisis

Since human action has endangered the web of life on earth, human action can heal it. And the religious and spiritual communities of our planet have the wisdoms and the tools to do the healing. Judaism is especially relevant because, unlike most world religions, we preserve the teachings of an indigenous people in the biblical tradition –- the spiritual wisdom of shepherds and farmers. And yet as a world people, we can now apply the earthiness of our origins to the Whole Earth. That does not mean simply repeating the ancient practices. For instance, the ancient code of kosher food does not take into account that we now “e...

Support the Year of Engagement

Exciting news! Canfei Nesharim is teaming up with the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL) through our Jewcology project, on a new joint fundraising campaign. Together, we aim to raise a total of $10,000 by the end of Tishrei, October 3. MAKE AN ELUL DONATION TO SUPPORT JEWCOLOGY NOW! With your support, in 2014 Jewcology and COEJL will partner on a "Year of Jewish Policy Engagement on the Environment," which will provide tools to help Jewish environmental activists and local leaders become more involved in environmental action at the policy level. COEJL will provide advocacy guidance and connection with ...

Pearlstone’s 5th Annual Beith Midrash!

May every person get to experience the communal and collective power of prayer, learning and celebration at our 5th annual Beit Midrash this year at the Pearlstone Center in Reisterstown, MD on February 15th-17th! For the past 4 years, a gathering of brightly spirited, intergenerational and diverse teachers, students, children and individuals have profoundly experienced and impacted the environmental Jewish movement at our annual Shabbaton. Nestled away in a beautiful green landscape, we participate in deep learning, meaningful prayer and connection, and transformational experiences. Join us this year as we dive into themes devoted ...

Sneak Peek of Upcoming Pearlstone Programs!

As the days shorten and the farm remains dormant for the winter, the Pearlstone program team is continuing its hard work and preparation for the upcoming season. Here's a sneak peek at a few of the exciting upcoming opportunities: 5th Annual Beit Midrash and Bonus Day: Sacred, Sustainable Rhythms of the Jewish Calendar. The Beit Midrash is an inspirational Shabbaton filled with learning, celebration, and groundbreaking Jewish thought. Join an intergenerational, pluralistic community of Jewish farmers, rabbis, educators, scholars and consumers from across the country. To learn more, visit http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/...

Shabbat Noach is Coming!

In celebration of Parshat Noach this coming Shabbat, Jewcology is proud to share a wealth of resources on the topic of Noach. Please enjoy and share these resources from many of our partners and participants so we can all benefit from the lessons of Parshat Noach. Explore all of our Parshat Noach resources Here's a sampling: Countering Destruction - Lessons from Noah Although the flood and the life of Noah occurred thousands of years ago, the story of Noah offers important lessons about how our actions affect the world. The Torah teaches that ten generations after Creation, all life on the planet had "corrupted its way on the earth"...

Jewish Outdoor Adventures: Burning Bush Adventures

Burning Bush Adventures has been a leader in combining wilderness and Jewish experiences for 20 years. To learn more about BBA visit our web site at: www.burningbushadventures.com June 8 - 10: Delaware River Water Gap canoe shabbaton: We will paddle a stretch of the Delaware River entirely within the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area (DWGRA). There is an abundance of wildlife (no promises we’ll see any) and the river is lively, offering several exciting stretches. The trip includes baking challah in a dutch oven, kabbalat shabbat services under the stars and more. 300.00 per person. July6 - 8: AdirondacksShabbat ...

JEI Teen Group Native Plant Sale/Rain Barrel Raffle a Success

The JEI Teen Group organized its second annual Native Plant Sale/Rain Barrel Raffle on April 29. Over 100 plants were sold. Those attending also learned about the benefits of rain barrels as a way to reduce runoff and water waste. Thanks to Robinson's Rain Barrels for its wonderful rain barrel demo and for donating a rain barrel. Congratulations ton Fran Cantor who won the rain barrel raffle.

Cleaning and Greening Our “House” for Passover

In the days before Passover, Jews around the world traditionally spend time cleaning and checking our homes for “chametz” – leavened foods forbidden during the holiday. It is also traditionally a time for soul searching, for clearing out old “stuff” and ways of doing things. During this season of renewal, we at Teva Ivri are finding ways to check not only our homes but also our “houses of prayer.” Along with the Council for a Beautiful Israeland Green Now, Teva Ivri has just announced the first “Greenest Synagogue Contest” ever held in Israel. By launching the contest during the ...

Curiosity = Freedom?

As we move towards Passover, we journey through the narrow places (mitzrayim) of Winter into the open, lush landscape of Spring. We can feel the season working its magic: the more time we spend outside, the more Spring does to us what it does to the cherry blossom trees! As we read in the Hagaddah (the Passover seder story), we are asked to celebrate our freedom and to remember: "Today, we are slaves. Next year, we will be free." The Exodus is a story of our past, but it is relevant today - for one, it's time to explore how we can more fully experience liberation and the world that we envision. Connecting with our land and community ...

Mysticism and Making a Difference: Tu b’Shevat in Silver Spring

My local community group, the Kayamut Silver Spring Sustainability Circle, held our Tu b'Shevat Seder on February 7. It was the first time in a long time that I hosted a Tu b'Shevat Seder that was actually on Tu b'Shevat. So I wanted to make it special. Instead of being a mock seder or a model seder, it was a real seder and an opportunity to experience Tu b'Shevat for itself. I know that Tu b'Shevat has mystical meaning in addition to the more modern, environmental meaning we've given to it. For this seder, I wanted to blend a little of the mystical back into our understanding of Tu b'Shevat. I believe that this ...

Fruit Trees

(reposted from Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin's blog: http://blog.bjen.org/ dated February 17, 2012) I just returned from a whirlwind trip to Israel, which serendipitously coincided with the season of Tu B'shvat, the day that marks the new year of the trees. Since the times of the early rabbis, this holiday has been a sacred day on the Jewish calendar. In modern Israel, it is a day of joy, when school children go out into the fields and countryside to plant trees, put on plays and celebrate the glories of a returning spring. Friends and family visit each other, exchanging gifts of dried figs and dates, almonds and apricots. Wherever we ...

The Owls of Shevat

Dear Friends, Can you hear the owls of Shevat calling? They are beckoning us to find ways to bring our Jewish communities outside. I’d like to share a simple program that gets our community of different aged folks bundled up and joining a night hike filled with owl calls, wind song, star gazing, storytelling and fair-trade organic hot chocolate. Here’s what we do. We gather when the Shevat moon is waning, on a Saturday night post Tu B’Shevat. Peak owl listening time may be 4am, but we just ramble around after dinner, wide open and trusting to the mystery of what we may experience, happy to simply experience the night ...

Take an online, college-accredited course on Judaism and the environment!

Introducing an online, college-accredited course on Judaism and the environment! The course, ‘A Jewish Perspective on Environmental Sustainability,’ relates to contemporary environmental issues from the lens of Jewish teachings. The units covered include the Garden of Eden and a stewardship paradigm; Jewish sources on agriculture and globalized food production today; and the Torah’s injunction not to waste in regards to food and energy waste in modern society. The course is being offered by the New York-based Theological Research Institute, and has been accredited by the national PONSI accreditation agency in New ...

Educating Teens About Environmental Issues (CJN November 2011)

This "Sustainable Jew" article appeared inthe Canadian Jewish News November 3, 2011 During the time surrounding the High Holiday period, I had the opportunity to speak to Grade 8 Science classes at a number of the Toronto Jewish Day Schools. My talks are generally drawn from materials I have access to as a result of being trained by Al Gore as a Climate Reality Project volunteer presenter. Recently, Mr. Gore hosted a 24 hour effort, 1 for each time zone in the world, where local speakers would explain climate change and global warming in the global and local context. What was new this time were some of the videos and ...

Intern at Israeli Green Companies (CJN July 2011)

This "Sustainable Jew" column appeared in the canadian Jewish News on July 7, 2011 Once a year, Moses Znaimer convenes the Ideacity conference in Toronto. This year, the focus was the concept that the rate of cultural and economic progress depends on the rate at which ideas are having sex. The idea was first proposed by Matt Ridley, author of The Rational Optimist. Saul Singer, co-author of the book Startup Nation: the Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle, spoke at the conference and made a valiant effort to connect Israel’s transformation from a semi-socialist backwater into a high- tech superpower to the theme of ...

Energy Conservation in Israel (CJN March 2011)

This "Sustainable Jew" column originally appeared in the Canadian Jewish News March 17, 2011 I was recently in Israel to represent the company I am currently on contract with, and to speak at a renewable energy conference in Eilat, co sponsored by the UJA Federation of Toronto. As part of a delegation, put together by Canada's National Research Council, I wanted to understand the current Israeli state of mind with respect to energy conservation and advances in renewable energy. At the same time I was tasked to determine if there was an opportunity to expand my client's energy consumption benchmarking software to Israel. ...

Reducing Toronto’s Environmental Footprint (CJN Janaury 2011)

This article originally appeared in the Canadian Jewish News on January 20, 2011 In 1975, Mark Mietkowitz and I were co-councilors at Camp Massad, near Torrence Ontario and a year apart at the Community Hebrew Academy in Toronto. I could not have imagined that 36 years later we would be columnists in the Canadian Jewish News. Mark’s recent columns touched on various aspects of water in Israel, and the innovations that Israeli entrepreneurs and scientists have brought to take what would seem to be a disadvantage in a desert climate and turn it into a world beating export industry. Perhaps it was a way to welcome me to the ...