201 results for tag: Energy Policy

 Ten Ways to Help Create a Vegan-Conscious World

Eating meat and other animal products is destroying the planet, ruining our health, mistreating billions of farmed animals,  and contributing to hunger and the wasteful use of water, energy, and other valuable natural resources. Despite the increasing need for a shift toward veganism to counteract the present epidemic of diseases and the many environmental threats caused by the production and consumption of animal products, progress has been relatively slow. It is time for a consideration of new strategies to promote veganism more effectively. The ten ideas suggested below are designed to start a dialogue that will lead to positive changes. It is my ...

Two Articles Relating Tisha B’Av to Current Environmental Issues and Threats

1. Relating Tisha B'Av to Today’s Environmental Crises                         Tisha B'Av (the 9th day of the month of Av) which we commemorate in 2018 on July 21 - 22, reminds us that over 2,000 years ago Jews failed to heed the warnings of the prophet Jeremiah, with the result that the first Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed--the first of many negative things that occurred on that day, including the destruction of the second Temple as well.       Today there is no Jeremiah or other prophet, but it is thousands of climate exerts warning us that now it is not just Jerusalem but the entire world that is threatened by climate ...

The Youth Climate March (Saturday, July 21)

  In Washington D.C., youth will march on the National Mall to advocate for their own rights to a safe and livable future. We will rally and highlight the voices and stories of youth on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Then, we will flood the streets as a demonstration of youth power and show how #ThisIsZeroHour to act on climate change. There will also be a Youth Climate Weekend with a Youth Climate Lobby Day on Thursday, July 19 and Art Builds and Community Building on Friday, July 20. To learn more and register for the events: http://thisiszerohour.org/the-march/  

The Youth Climate Weekend – Thursday, July 19 – Saturday, July 21

WE LOBBY - JULY 19 Zero Hour is not mobilizing just for the sake of mobilizing. We, the youth, are demanding an end to business as usual on climate change, so we have created science-backed demands for both our leaders, and the general public to take action on. On July 19th youth are taking over Capitol Hill to deliver our demands to our politicians. We are giving them the exact asks that we are marching for—so they have no excuse not to take action. ART BUILDS & COMMUNITY BUILDING - JULY 20 We will prepare for our mobilization by having art builds around the DC area to celebrate our movement and earth through art. In any movement, it is ...

Acclaimed documentary, “A Sacred Duty: Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet,” to be shown in Jerusalem

Please forward the message below to Israelis you know who might be interested. Thanks. If you have not yet seen the documentary mentioned or haven’t seen it in many years, I strongly suggest you see it and consider how you might use it to promote veganism in Jewish communities. A complimentary DVD will be sent to you if you would like to arrange a showing. You can freely see the one-hour video at www.ASacredDuty.com or by going to You Tube and searching for A Sacred Duty. Thanks. Kol tuv, Richard ======== Thursday July 5th Gathering and refreshments at 6:30 pm, starting @ 6:45 pm Screening of “A Sacred Duty; ...

This Mother’s Day Be Good to Mother Earth.

Here are ways you can be “greener” for Mother’s Day and going forward: Reduce. Try to buy less — especially those things that have a negative impact on the environment, such as plastic tableware if you have company coming for Mother’s Day dinner. Reduce your energy needs. Winter is finally over and it’s warmer inside and out. Open your windows and let the fresh air in. If it is really hot, set your thermostat no higher than 78°F (26°C) when you are home and higher when you are away (information from the U.S. Department of Energy). A programmable thermostat can make this easier to do. Reuse. If you go out to eat, bring your own ...

My Climate Change Statement and the Lists of the 43 Israeli Orthodox Rabbis and 34 Israeli Masorti Rabbis Who Signed So Far

I hope to seek signatures of IsraeliReform Rabbis in conjunction with a future climate change conference STATEMENT ON THE CLIMATE CRISIS (signed so far by 43 Israeli Orthodox rabbis and 34 Israeli Masorti rabbis). “In the hour when the Holy One, blessed be He, created the first man, he took him and let him pass before all the trees in the Garden of Eden and said to him:  "See my works, how fine and excellent they are.  Now all that I created I created for your benefit.  Think upon this and do not corrupt or destroy my world.  For if you destroy it, there is no one to restore it after you.” (Midrash: Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:28) Today, ...

Summary of my efforts to help revitalise Judaism and heal the world

     Below is a summary of my writings and activities that aim to revitalise judaism and help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path.They are based on my strong belief that Jewish values can make major differences and are needed perhaps more than ever before.       I welcome your comments and suggestions and would be very happy if you would join in my efforts and/or suggest others who might be interested in doing so.  The second edition of my book, “Judaism and Global Survival,” can be freely read at www.jewishVeg.org/schwartz. It discusses how Jewish teachings on compassion, justice, peace, environmental sustainabili...

“Interfaith Climate Change and Renewable Energy Conference” on May 9th

This blog discusses the conference and also efforts to get many rabbis and other influential Israelis to sign a climate change statement (below) that will help get media attention. ------------      You are cordially invited to join me in attending a potentially transformative event, an “Interfaith Climate Change and Renewable Energy Conference.” It is scheduled for Wednesday, May 9, from 9 AM to 6 PM at the Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem. You can attend part of the conference if you want.      Admission is free if registration occurs on April 25 or 26 and is 70 shekels after that. You can sign up when you register online ...

What People Are Saying About My Book, “Who Stole My Religion?”

The many endorsements below are included to show that it is not just the author, but many other people also - including Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist Jews, as well as Christians, and Muslims - who think their religion has been "stolen" by right-wing politics, but who still believe that compassionate religious values have relevance to current crises. Provision of a blurb here does not imply that the person who provided it agrees with everything in my book. However, it is hoped that the voices of the people who submitted the statements below, as well as many more voices, will be raised, each in their own way, ...

Starting a Major Campaign to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet

Shalom, It is time for a major effort for committed Jews, preferably joining with others, to apply Jewish values to help heal our imperiled planet. Here are some issues to be considered: The world is rapidly heading toward a climate catastrophe. Many climate experts think we are close to an irreversible tipping point when climate change will spin out of control, with disastrous consequences, unless very significant positive changes soon occur. My article: “Climate Change: An Existential Threat to Israel, the US, and the World,” published in the Jerusalem Post on May 2, 2017, can be read at: http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Climate-change-An...

Questions That Can be Discussed at Tu Bishvat Seders and Suggested Answers

by Richard Schwartz ~ It is hoped that the questions below will be helpful to people leading Tu Bishvat seders as a way to increase audience participation. Suggested responses are given following the questions. Suggestions for additional questions & answers are welcome. 1. What is the origin of Tu Bishvat? 2. Where is Tu Bishvat mentioned in the Tanach? 3. Why are we considering trees, fruits, and nature in the middle of the winter? 4. Why was the 15th of Shvat singled out for special consideration? 5. What was the dispute between Hillel and Shammai about the date of Tu Bishvat? 6. What were the contributions of the kabbalists of ...

Please Help in this Important Effort That Can Avert a Climate Catastrophe and Help Shift Our Imperiled Planet Onto a Sustainable Path

There is increasing evidence that the world is rapidly heading toward a climate catastrophe. An exaggeration? Please consider: 2017 was the third warmest year since temperature records were kept in 1880 and this follows three consecutive years of worldwide temperature records, In 2017 there were three category 3 or 4 hurricanes, three extreme wildfires in California, followed by a major mudslide there,and other severe climate events in many of the world’s areas. Climate experts are predicting even more severe climate events as temperatures keep rising. Points that illustrate the extreme seriousness of climate threats are below in a statement on ...

Proposal for an Interfaith Conference on Climate Change in Jerusalem

Proposal for Interfaith Conference on Climate Change in Jerusalem Need Statement For decades, conflict and turmoil in the Middle East have gripped the world and made the region an epicenter of international focus and concern. At this time, some wonder whether Jerusalem can be a source of anything but violence and hatred fueled by religious extremists. In this region’s persistent unrest, many attempts have been made to bring the two sides together. Most of the attempts focus on the differences between the sides and work toward resolving these differences. Yet the reality on the ground is that people of different religious, ethnic, and national ...

Questions and Answers Re Judaism and Vegetarianism

This is chapter 7 of the 3rd edition of my book, "Judaism and Vegetarianism." The complete text can be found at www.JewishVeg.org/schwartz. ----------------- I keep six honest serving men, They taught me all I knew; Their names are what, and why, and when, And where, and how, and who. (Rudyard Kipling) DON’T JEWS HAVE TO EAT MEAT TO HONOR THE Sabbath and to rejoice on Jewish holidays? Rabbi Yehuda Ben Batheira, the Talmudic sage, states that the obligation to eat meat for rejoicing only applied at the time when the Holy Temple was in existence.1 He adds that after the destruction of the Temple one can rejoice with wine. Based on this, ...

Judaism, Vegetarianism, and the Environment

This posting is from the 2001 3rd edition of my book, "Judaism and Vegetarianism." The complete text of the book can be freely read online, along with my over 250 related articles at www.JewishVeg.org/schwartz . ------------------- THERE ARE MANY FUNDAMENTAL TORAH PRINCIPLES that express and make concrete the biblical concept: “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” (Psalms 24:1). 1. People are to be co-workers with God in helping to preserve and improve the world. The Talmudic sages assert that the role of humanity is to enhance the world as “co-partners of God in the work of creation.”1 There is a midrash ...

Animal-based Diets are Madness and Sheer Insanity

While vegetarians and vegans have truth, morality, justice, and other positive values on our side, that our case is rooted in basic Jewish teachings because animal-based diets and agriculture sharply violate at least six basic Jewish values, the Jewish community continues to generally ignore the issues and refuses to engage in dialogs and debates on “Should Jews Be Vegetarians or vegans?” As is well known, it is unlawful to shout “FIRE” in a crowded theater. EXCEPT if there really is a fire. And there is increasing evidence that the world is burning today, rapidly approaching an unprecedented catastrophe from global warming and other ...

Judaism and Climate Change

This posting is from chapter 10 of the 2nd edition of my book, "Judaism and Global Survival." While it was initially written about 16 years ago, I am posting it for its historical value, the concepts and ideas are still valid, and it has some insights that are relevant and seldom considered today. ------------ "Where there is no vision, the people perish." Proverbs 29: 18 Global climate change may be the most critical problem the world will face in the next few decades.There is a growing scientific consensus that we are already experiencing the effects of global warming, and that human actions are playing a significant role.[i] Global average ...

Jewish Teachings on Energy

This posting is chapter 9 of the 2nd edition of my book, "Judaism and Global Survival." While written in 2011, 16 years ago, it is perhaps even more relevant today as it makes a strong case that the Jewish approach to energy is CARE, conservation and renewable energy, an approach that can help slow or reverse climate change and other environmental threats. --------------- "A generation goes and a generation comes but the earth endures forever. And the sun rises and the sun sets -- then to its place it rushes;  there it rises again. It goes toward the south and veers toward  the north. The wind goes round and round, and on its rounds the wind ...

Relating Parshat Noach to Climate Change Threats

There are many lessons from Parshat Noach (Noah) that can be applied in response to today's climate crisis. Noach built an ark for 120 years but people did not believe that a catastrophic flood was coming. After all, why would anyone believe a crazy idea from a seemingly obsessed, delusional person when there was no other warning or indication of an impending flood? Today, we do not have a Noach, or a Jeremiah, who also had no success in warning people to change there ways in order to avoid destruction, and, to the best of my knowledge, nobody has been building an ark. But we do have science academies worldwide, an estimated 97 percent of climate ...