Pearl Salkin
C*EJL
Special to the Jewish News
•
coettion on the Environment and Xamish Utta
Profreting Creation, Generation to Gene:mean
Ott 7, VMS I 4 Tithret 5746
AtiOttr US
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TAKE At TIC`-
PROGRAMS
RESOURCES
Whorl Ilifiebh
About Protecting
the Environment
ACTION ALERT:
' DONATE TO PROTECT
.1 THE EARTH
protect the Endangered Soeries t - Call your Representatives
today I
Septernbr 21, 2005 - The 1, 10,)h Ajhanc2 1 holds national Dr.5$
confaronc.= announcing its creation to prevent congressional
attempts that would rollbad, and ssealen the Endangered
Species Act.
COEJL's Hadar SusslAnd
proorams (mp3)
'aaalattulteauQ.._
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eidainna
ANNOUNCE',1EN
COEJL's Rabbinic Fellow. Rabbi Larry Truster, travels to Tehran.
- n Arens n nvir monr . pa -o
Iran for an inern_
and the DialooLie among Civilizations and Cultures
_
COE3L IN THE NEWS:
Religigrrimittiga KCPW Radio tnterview with COSL's
Communications Director, Barbara Lerman - Goiomb, August 2005
The Eternal placed the hu
being in the Garden a E
to till it end to tend
NEWs HE AD11 ,4_ ,., F-PoN GRISM
Thecoloay. ADC Temple's Ouest to Live Licitly on the karth,
Reform Judaism, Summer 2005 itadf]
Environmental 'Cnsis" Can limit R , liorins Rabb.;
Doty ii, ewS, July 2005
C9, S
ElangQr
CELEBRATE:
The Days of Awe: Rosh Hashanah and Vern Ki0our
October 4-5, 2005 and October 13, 2005
MISSION STATEMENT:
coElL deepens the Jewish community's commitment to the
stewardship of creation and mobilizes the resources of Jewish
life and learning to protect the Earth and all its inhabitants.
Choot• You Can Lk*
4 Ichaol choice the anslieer to
sprawl'
kW end vatas
choice to head EN, ha.; iffy record
on endangered sperses
naked Lunth
Naked Chef hits reality TV to press
for healthy, qrcen school lunches
Wa Mar the World
world Bank study says pollution,
climate changer hurt millions
So a Prlart Wa1143 Into an
environmtntid protect
Brazilian priest on hunger strike to
stop water•diversion scheme
COEJL's Web home page
Eco-friendly ways to mark that magic
moment AND save the planet.
52
CELEBRATE • 2006
AN
T
hree days after my son Will ascended the bimah
as a bar mitzvah, I stopped by our shul to drop
off some books and thank the principal of the
Hebrew school and others who made his big day such a
wonderful experience.
I was still in a post-party stupor, floating through the
foggy downside of the roller-coaster ride/emotional
stress test that accompanies major lifecycle events. But
when I got back in my car and drove past the piles of
huge trash bags outside the shul's kitchen door, I got a
jarring jolt of reality.
The sights of tines of white plastic forks poking
through the black bags and the remnants of a deflated
Mylar balloon blowing in the breeze on a nearby treetop
were awful.
While I wouldn't classify myself as a tree hugger, I try
to keep conservation in mind when I'm at home or on
the go. I often remind my kids to turn off the TV and
lights when they leave a room for an extended period. I
won't run the dishwasher if it's not at least half-full. I
postpone trips to relatively distant locations until I have
more than one mission in the area.
Am I worthy of a medal for my paltry efforts to save
the planet? Hardly.
But I do feel guilty after making a hasty decision that
turns out to be harmful to the environment. Had I
invested a little more time and effort, I would have cho-
sen an eco-friendlier product to buy or way to do some-
thing.
Can you think of a better time to voice our concern
for our world and demonstrate our commitment to con-
serving its precious resources than during b'nai mitzvah
planning? I can't.
Selecting an environmental mitzvah project is a good
starting point. Then you can move on to celebration
specifics such as party invitations, oneg Shabbat and
kiddush tableware, centerpieces, balloons, banners and
beer. Just switching from bottles or cans to a keg at the
party can save some of the raw material and energy it
takes to make and recycle those containers and their
cardboard carriers.