Speaking for the Environment as Jews
Energizing the Jewish community at large to speak out and act on behalf of the environment is something we work towards every day at COEJL. Perhaps one way to address this is to look at the way our culture thinks about speaking out for the environment and how we can make a difference as Jews. For example, have you ever seen someone throw a cigarette butt on the ground and think, “I didn’t know the world was your ash tray!”? Or maybe you witnessed someone dumping anti-freeze into the sewer drain on the street or even leaving an old TV along the side of the road. Didn’t that make you angry? Then why didn’t you do or say anything about it? Most of us don’t for a variety of reasons, but mostly because it is not culturally acceptable to do so. But that needs to change. We need to speak up for the environment and make it culturally acceptable to let someone else know what they are doing is not right, just as it is acceptable to ask someone not to smoke in a public place. In a recent OpEd piece in the Baltimore Sun, COEJL friend and leader at The Sisterhood 50, Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin, speaks up for the environment and tells us why we all need to do the same, for the planet, for our health, and for the sake of future generations. Read her piece here and don’t be afraid to speak up for the environment next time.
Pakistan – A Sad New Benchmark in Climate-Related Disasters
U.N. officials and climatologists are now openly saying that the devastating flooding that has swamped one-fifth of Pakistan and left millions homeless is likely the worst natural disaster to date attributable to climate change. Estimates put the number of displaced people at somewhere between 15 million and 20 million, and the government believes about 1,600 are confirmed dead. 6.5 million people need food, drinking water and medicine. If ever there was a wakeup call for the Jewish community and the world to speak up and act on climate change, this is it. (NY Times)
States Push Their Own Cap-And-Trade Due to EPA Pressures and Congressional Inaction.
States in the west and the northeast are moving ahead with their own cap-and-trade initiatives reacting to the EPA’s regulatory plans and lacking leadership from congress. EPA plans to tighten restrictions on interstate air pollution from power plants under its planned “transport” rule, and its regulation on greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired generators, based on its endangerment finding on the threat posed by man-made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. (Reuters)
Blueprints for the Western Climate Initiative, the planned cap-and-trade system in the west, (http://www.westernclimateinitiative.org/) were released on July 27th just before Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s legislation to set up a federal greenhouse gas emissions trading system was delayed indefinitely. The WCI’s blueprint was crafted out of an initial set of recommendations published in 2008 and refined with the input of stakeholders, advisers and experts. Like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) (http://www.rggi.org/home) in the northeastern U.S., the WCI was conceived by a handful of state governors to develop a common greenhouse gas reduction strategy in the absence of comprehensive federal legislation to address climate change. The WCI includes: Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Montana and Utah, as well as four Canadian provinces. By joining the WCI, the states and provinces agreed to collectively reduce their greenhouse gas emissions 15 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020. The central feature of the WCI is a cap-and-trade system, which would cover 90 per cent of the region’s economic sectors when fully implemented in 2015.
Democrats Under Pressure to Move on Oil Spill Regulation While Relief Well Drilling is Suspended
Lingering concern among voters about BP’s massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico means that efforts to tighten regulations on offshore drilling will continue in the U.S. Congress. This has put pressure on the Democrats to get something done soon, where waiting until after the elections could make for an uphill battle considering their fears of losing valuable congressional seats. (Reuters) Democrats who control Congress have made clear that when members return in mid-September from a long recess, an oil spill response bill will be high on their agenda. Some 69 percent of Americans said they wanted stricter regulations on oil drilling, according to a poll for the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press conducted July 29-August 1 (Pew Research), two weeks after BP said it stopped the massive oil well leak. Retired Coast Guard admiral Thad Allen issued a directive Saturday for BP to suspend drilling of a relief well (USA Today) to conduct more pressure testing on the blown out well in the Gulf of Mexico. “We’ve asked them to give us options to control the pressure,” Allen told reporters during a briefing. “We will kill the well. It is just a matter of finishing up tests so we understand the conditions moving forward.” For another take on oil spill accountability and where some of the funds from oil revenues can go, you can read about the Land Water Conservation Fund (Flathead Beacon), which uses profits from oil companies to protect natural resources.
Rabbis Across Spectrum Energize Communities Environmentally for High Holy Days. On August 9th, the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL) convened a national conversation involving rabbis from five Jewish religious streams – Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Reform, and Renewal – discussing Jewish environmental resources and sermon materials for the High Holy Days and parshat Noach. COEJL has created a collection of resources from the call for distribution to all rabbinic leaders and communities as part of its broader Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign (www.coejl.org/covenant). The full resource sheet is available at: http://www.coejl.org/TISHREI_5771.pdf. Go to www.coejl.org for more information and resources.
1Sky Open Policy Letter
On August 6th, “The Skywriter” 1Sky.org’s blog posted “An open letter to all people and organizations working to combat global warming.” It is an open policy letter that explains where we are as an environmental movement, why we have not been able to succeed according to our goals thus far, and what we need to do to move forward towards success. http://www.1sky.org/openletter
Green Israel Summit 4: Green Renewal Shabbat! (Greenzionism)
When: Shabbat Noach, Oct. 8 — 10, 2010
Where: Eden Village Camp, just north of New York City
Who: Young Jewish environmentalists, ages 18-40 *
As we read about the Biblical flood and the renewal of the earth on Shabbat Noach, we will learn how to renew ourselves and the environment. Celebrate Shabbat Noach with stories, lectures and discussions in a welcoming, pluralistic setting. Explore the Jewish back-to-the-land movement and what Zionism means today. Learn about energy conservation, population growth, suburban sprawl, Negev preservation, and environmentalism during a time of war. Meet other young Jewish environmentalists from across North America. Green Israel Summit (GIS) 4 is run by the Green Zionist Alliance and co-sponsored by COEJL, the American Zionist Movement and Hazon.
Hazon Bike Ride
Hazon is hosting the 10th Annual New York Jewish Environmental Bike Ride on Labor Day Weekend, September 3-6, 2010. The NY Ride Jewish Environmental Bike Ride is more than a ride on a bike – it is a four-day event that includes a Shabbat retreat at Workmen’s Circle’s Camp Kinder Ring, a trip to Camp Eden Village, the new Jewish environmental summer camp is also included. More importantly, the event raises money for cutting-edge Jewish environmental projects in the United States and Israel. Learn more here.
Arava Institute for Environmental Studies “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,”
On November 14th, the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies based at Kibbutz Ketura (www.arava.org) is hosting “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,” with top speakers and performers, celebrating AIES’s groundbreaking work and its larger commitment to both ecological and communal coexistence. Visit www.withearthandeachother.org for more information.
