Recycling Subscribe
A selection of initiatives, blogs, resources and communities on Jewcology which focus on recycling.
From the Blogs
Alon Tal tells why it is important to vote for Green Israel Now!
- April 27, 2015
- 1 comment
Last chance to help us make Israel a greener, environmentally healthier land: Until the end of April you can vote online for the upcoming World Zionist Congress. The results determine, among other things, the division of power at the Jewish National Fund’s international board. For the past decade I have sat on the JNF board, largely because of the support and intervention of the Green Zionist Alliance – a wonderful group of young environmentalists who decided to get involved and improve Israel’s environmental performance. This support has allowed me to ...
Vote for Green Israel in the WZC Election before April 30th!
- March 27, 2015
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You can support the Israel you want to see. All American Jews can vote in the World Zionist Congress election going on right now. One of the most common questions, we get is why it costs $10 to vote. As Mirele Goldsmith, a Green Israel slate member answers: "The American Zionist Movement has contracted with an independent company to run the online election. This is to insure that the election is fair. The registration fee is being used exclusively to pay for the election. It is not a donation to the WZO. I wish there was no fee, but it is a small price to pay ...
GREENING YOUR PASSOVER IN 2015
- March 23, 2015
Passover celebrates the exodus of the Jewish people from slavery to freedom. It is also rooted in the agricultural cycle of the year and coincides this year with the beginning of spring. It references a time when our ancestors were more connected on a daily basis to the natural world. To become more connected to the Earth and go “eco friendly” for this holiday, consider following all or some of the tips below: Help the environment by reducing waste as you empty your home of chametz (leavened foods such as breads, pastas, etc). Give leftover bread and grain-...
Going Green for Valentine’s Day
- February 4, 2015
If there is a special someone in your life, Valentine’s Day is a day when you probably feel compelled to celebrate and give a gift. At the same time, this holiday can be the height of commercialism and yet another reason to shop for high end “stuff.” Consider rethinking the holiday and using it as a way to show love while being mindful of environmental impact. Below are a few ways to do so: --Give an eco-friendly gift: Avoid the mall or department store. Go eco-friendly with your gift. Some ideas include fair trade chocolate, organic handmade soap or a ...
Eden Village is hiring farm educator apprentices for 2015 growing season!
- January 26, 2015
Eden Village Camp is Hiring! Submit Your Application About Eden Village Camp: Eden Village Camp aims to be a living model of a thriving, sustainable Jewish community, grounded in social responsibility and inspired Jewish spiritual life. By bringing the wisdom of our tradition to the environmental, social, and personal issues important to today’s young people, we practice a Judaism that is substantive and relevant. Through our Jewish environmental and service-learning curricula, joyful Shabbat observance, pluralistic Jewish expression, and inspiring, diverse staff ...
Do’s and Don’t’s of E-Recycling
- January 9, 2015
With the large increase over the past few years in electronic communication devices, and the fast pace in which new versions of the latest cell phones and tablets come out, there is a potential for concern about what is happening to old electronic devices when they are replaced. Electronic gadgets that are simply tossed in the garbage or sent to an unreliable e-recycling organization can result in toxic waste that threatens health and safety. Keeping in mind the Jewish value of baal tashchit (do not waste) , there are a number of things you can do as you consider ...
Greening Hanukkah
- December 4, 2014
Hanukkah is a time where we celebrate the renewal of the eternal flame and rededication of the Temple. It is a great time to rededicate ourselves to the goal of preserving God’s creation, conserving energy and helping the environment. Here are a few things you can do leading up to, and during, the holiday to rededicate yourself to making the world more eco-friendly. GO GREEN IN YOUR HANUKKAH GIFTING: Give Alternatives to “Stuff”: Consider giving gifts that do not create waste. Give a museum membership, tickets to a play or ...
Make Your Thanksgiving Celebration Eco-Friendly
- October 29, 2014
Thanksgiving, while an ecumenical holiday, is a great time to consider the Jewish principle of baal tashchit (do not waste). There are many things you can do to make your celebration of this holiday more earth friendly. Reduce, reuse and recycle as much as possible: Try to buy only as much food as you need and look for food that either has no container or that has a container that can be recycled. Plan to compost any non-meat food items that can't be eaten (such as carrot peel) or that have to be thrown out after the meal. Also plan to use reusable cloth napkins ...
Tips for an Eco-Friendly Simcha
- October 1, 2014
Planning a simcha, such as a wedding, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, or bris, offers many opportunities to make an environmental impact. Every choice you make in planning your event can be a chance to make a statement about the importance of respecting and preserving God's creation, the Earth. Here are some ideas of ways to reduce waste as you prepared for the big day. Reduce paper use: Consider using the Internet for all or some of your announcements about your event. Invitations can be sent electronically. RSVPs also can be sent to a specially designated email address ...
Earth Etude for Elul 16- The Compost Bin in Our Hearts
- September 11, 2014
by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen My compost bins are so much more than just a place where compost happens. The area beside the three wire and wood bins is place where I often feel my father’s spirit – he was raised on a farm, and though he became a professional, gardening was in his blood, and he spent much of his spare time in his garden and his orchard. Yet, it is not just the reminders of my father or the sense of his hovering spirit that gives meaning to my compost bins. They are symbolic of so much – which may be more the truer reason that I think ...
Adventures in Being “So Kind”
- August 26, 2014
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 know what we needed. But the truth was, we didn’t need all that much. We had saved bags of clothing, toys and other baby gear from our older son. And we live in a generous community where neighbors had already given or lent us key things like a carseat, a baby swing, a jogging stroller and our choice ...
Green Your Home
- July 3, 2014
By David Krantz. Maybe Kermit was wrong — maybe it actually is easy to be green. Or, at the very least, it is pretty easy to start being green. There are many projects that you can do that will not just green your home, but will keep the green in your pocket, too. Plant a garden There’s no better summer treat than fresh fruits and vegetables grown in your own backyard. And no plot of land is too small for a garden, even if that garden is only a few potted cherry-tomato plants on your windowsill. Plant trees As long as you’re planting, ...
Earth Day Every Day – Join a Webinar!
- April 23, 2014
Tuesday April 22nd marked the 44th annual Earth Day! What will you do this year to protect our planet? Join the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (the RAC) in commemorating Earth Day with an online information session on how to successfully create a green “culture” in your congregation. How do we make our environmental efforts an integral part of the culture of our congregational communities? How do we align our actions with our Jewish beliefs of environmental stewardship? Our synagogues have the potential to model environmental behavior and ...
Speak Up! Advocacy for Systemic Change
- March 19, 2014
Originally posted in the newsletter of the Jewish Greening Fellowship What was Queen Esther thinking when her uncle Mordechai told her to speak up to King Achashverosh? Many readers of the Purim story have tried to answer this question with midrash (stories written to fill gaps in Torah texts.) One intriguing story claims that Esther hid for 4 years before the King’s agents found her and brought her to the palace. In this telling of the story, Esther wasn’t some firebrand eager to stand up against the ruling powers. She preferred to stay completely out ...
How Wonderful Are Hashem’s Creations
- March 17, 2014
Growing up I was constantly reminded of the importance of protecting the environment in which we live. As an elementary school student my friends knew about this and sometimes even mocked me and my family for this zealousness. Now I think they feel like fools for making fun of us. I am the youngest of three children. My older siblings were constantly talking about important issues at the dinner table, and as their younger sibling I wanted to impress them. Consequently, when an issue was important to them, the issue became important to me as well. Not only did I want to ...
Things I learned at a Recycling Plant
- July 9, 2013
By JEI Chair Susan Mlynarczyk The Jewish Environmental Initiative (JEI), a program of the Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis (JCRC) recently visited the Resource Management recycling facility. Sales Manager Gary Gilliam gave us a tour and lots of information: * Recycling is good for the economy. There was a time when recycling was done as a customer service at a cost to the trash companies, but now recycling has become economically viable. There is profit to be made from our recycled materials and the processing of recycled goods helps ...
3 new R’s for this season: Renew, Restore and Reclaim
- March 12, 2013
Hopefully we’ve all been recycling (or exposed to recycling) long enough to recognize the symbol that has become synonymous with the act: the triangle with the 3 arrows, moving in the same direction, creating a closed loop. Those 3 arrows actually stand for different acts, only one of which is recycle. This symbol is actually the graphic that was created for the 3 R’s: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. The order is important, as it is prioritized by the most desirable action first. Ideally, recycling is really the last resort. Ideally, we should be migrating ...
Sustaining Jewish Memory
- February 26, 2013
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I was recently speaking with a colleague about how much more green and sustainable we were in the “good old days.” Growing up in the Great Depression, many of our relatives integrated the lessons of conservation because economics dictated that they do so. How many of our bubbes would keep the house thermostat low in the winter and tell you to put on a sweater, reuse food containers for storage, darn socks or refurbish household items with leftover fabric and paint? More recent generations have become less frugal; we purchase products that make our lives ...
Sustainable living is more than the 3-R’s
- January 1, 2013
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Hopefully we’ve all been recycling (or been around recycling) long enough to recognize the symbol that has become synonymous with the act: the triangle with the 3 arrows, moving in the same direction, creating a closed loop, a cycle. Bonus points for those that know that each of those 3 arrows actually stand for different acts, only one of which is recycle. This symbol is actually the graphic that was created for the 3 R’s: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. The order is important, as it is prioritized by the most desirable action first. Ideally, recycling is ...
Green Gifting (for Hanukkah)
- December 5, 2012
In a prior Planet Jewish blog we provided you with suggestions for making your Hanukkah celebration more eco-friendly. In the spirit of reducing waste (baal tashchit) and tilling and tending planet Earth for generations to come, here are some specific suggestions for green gifting over the eight nights of the holiday. Give Alternatives to “Stuff”: Consider giving gifts that do not create waste. Give a museum membership, tickets to a play or a certificate to a local restaurant. Buy Gifts at Fair Trade stores: One way to show that ...
