Jewish National Fund

Each month, we'll be bringing you information about environmentally friendly businesses that can be found in our Eco-Directory. Please use this as a resouce for finding out about company's that are doing their part to help the planet. KATAN ADVENTURES Katan Adventures provides the very best in eco-minded, outdoor adventure travel for Jews and Friends of the Jew in their 20s and 30s to the most exciting destinations worldwide. All Katan Adventures reflect the fundamental value of tikkun olam. As a result, Katan Adventures has committed itself to sustainable travel practices; what it likes to call, "EcoloJEWcal" travel. Furthermore, Katan Adventures is one of the only adventure travel providers to automatically offset all carbon omissions from its participants' ground and air transportation through its partnership with TerraPass. For more information on Katan Adventures' surfing, rafting, hiking, mountain biking and skiing trips around the world as well as its EcoloJEWcal way of traveling, please visit their website. TIKKUN OLAM, LAC Tikkun Olam, LAC, is dedicated to creating specialty gift bags that are environmentally responsible. Our company, meaning Repair the World in Hebrew, uses the utmost care when researching, choosing, and creating products to include in our products. Tikkun Olam's goal is to provide our customers with a product that is not only unique and daz zling, but also boasts tree-free, organic, and renewable materials. We collaborate with Fair Trade companies for a number of our custom-made products, thus helping to provide steady wages to skilled workers around the world. Informational inserts, unique to the theme of each gift bag, provide fresh and inventive perspectives on how we can consciously construct more environmentally responsible lives. In addition, a percentage of all sales profits are regularly donated to several charities with whom we are affiliated. It is the responsibility of us all to protect and preserve our world, a sentiment exemplified by Baal Tashchit from the Book of Deuteronomy. One of Tikkun Olam's ongoing goals is to further reduce our company's carbon footprint. The use of tree-free and recycled products, the installation of solar panels on two of our office locations, and simply giving more than we take, are some of the "steps" we are making to do so. Also the use of recycled products, buying food from local organic farmers and composting our waste. Driving a hybrid car and encouraging my daughter's school to become more "green" Tikkun Olam offers outstanding and uncommon products that bring joy to recipients while spreading the message of love, awareness, and charity.

Click here to see where some of the money collected from GoNeutral is going.

Down on the eco-farm: Organic produce is the star of young adult dinner in Petaluma As David Retsky guided more than 100 people along the perimeter of County Line Harvest, his 28-acre farm in Petaluma, he offered up some simple instructions: Touch and taste anything. And, of course, they did. Participants at the Eco-Farm Dinner on Sept. 21 munched on sprigs of cilantro and devoured all kinds of lettuce for some light appetizers before sitting down to a family-style, seven-course vegetarian dinner made from the organic produce they sampled. "I really wanted everyone to come out and walk the land," Retsky said. "I wanted them to touch and taste, and breathe the air. There is so much more to learn out here than I could ever teach." The Jewish National Fund, Bay Area Tribe and Birthright Israel sponsored the event to help young adults make the connection between how crops are harvested and how they make their way to the farmers market, the local supermarket and the dinner table. Sherri Morr, regional director of JNF, thought of the idea for the Eco-Farm Dinner nearly three years ago, about the same time Retsky, her nephew, started farming in Petaluma. She deemed the event a success. "It was great to spend time on a farm and get out of the city," she said. "This was an opportunity to educate about Israel and create social connections." While walking around the farm, people shouted out questions, dug their hands into the soil and sloshed in hidden, muddy puddles. The tour ended with an uphill trek back to dry land where round tables decorated with votive candles and seasonal squash welcomed the group for dinner. Heaping portions of polenta with Red Russian kale and smoked tomato sauce, roasted Chioggia beets with baby Walla Walla onions and goat cheese, and Panzanella grilled bread salad with baby fennel were served alongside other unique salads. Fresh coffee and grilled pound cake topped with balsamic strawberries and crème fraiche rounded out the menu. "It's exciting to be a part of the emerging Jewish food movement," said Roni Ben-David, 28, of San Francisco. "It starts with realizing that food tastes better when it's local and seasonal. As Jews, we take pleasure in our food and eat mindfully." In addition to the farm tour and dinner, two students -- an Israeli woman and a Jordanian man -- from the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in Israel discussed with the crowd how the school also promotes dialogue and coexistence. "When I came to the institute to study the environment, I really wasn't ready to deal with coexistence," said Hadas Kammon, who studied at the Arava Institute as an undergraduate in Israel. "But we can't ignore this issue. It was a challenging experience, but I learned that I have to recognize another person's story." After the speakers, guests had the rest of the evening to mingle, taste wine from Israel and drink He'Brew beer before buses brought them back to San Francisco. "I'd like to see other people come out and support the farm family," Retsky said. "Come cook meals here and enjoy the land. It's another way of getting involved."

Israel builds its first 'eco-friendly' town It's one thing to adopt environmentally conscious behavior, such as recycling, taking public transportation, and saving water or electricity. But that's not enough for the future residents of the now developing community of Nurit. They plan to live green. That's because the Mt. Gilboa town of Nurit is set to be the first planned, eco-friendly community in Israel, with infrastructure and services designed not just to encourage, but to actually enforce environmentally responsible behavior. If you're planning on living in Nurit, says Danny Atar, chairman of the Gilboa Regional Council, you're by definition willing to go out of your way to save water, avoid excess waste, and in general reduce your carbon footprint. "Otherwise, Nurit is not for you," he says. The idea for Nurit stemmed from discussions conducted by Gilboa Regional Council officials nearly a decade ago, as they were seeking to build tourism in the area, as well as comply with new government requirements to introduce environmentally responsible educational programs and activities. "We are also considering putting up a new town to attract more residents here from the center of the country, and the whole project just sort of made sense," Atar tells ISRAEL21c. "Thus was Nurit born." First homes ready in a year And, after intense study and consultations with environmental experts around the world, the town is ready for prime time; work has begun on infrastructure, and the first 100 homes will be ready next year. By 2012, there will be 400 families living in Nurit, Atar says. Located on Mt. Gilboa itself, Nurit will take advantage of the mountain's wind and sun to generate power, and will install dozens of wind turbines and photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, enough to provide electricity for all the public buildings in Nurit - and then some. "We recently got approved for a program by the Israel Electric Company, where residents and public buildings will be able to mount solar PV units on their roofs and sell the electricity to the IEC," says Atar. "Together with turbines to generate electricity from wind, we expect that the electricity we generate will be enough to light most of the schools, offices, streetlights, and park lights in Nurit - as well as save homeowners money on their energy bill, since they can get credits for the power their roof PV systems generate that they don't use, selling it back to the IEC." Atar says. The regional council has a program that provides loans for residents to buy and install the PV panel setup, or residents can design the systems into their construction plans, he adds. Trees as cooling canopy Residents will also be asked to grow tall, leafy trees around their homes, creating a natural "cooling canopy" that will help cut down on the need for artificial cooling and heating systems, "saving electricity and reducing pollutants in the atmosphere," Atar says. And, residents will be asked to build their homes using effective insulation systems, to further reduce the need for air conditioners or heaters. "We hope to be able to limit the use of artificial heating and cooling solutions to the hottest or coldest days of the year," Atar says. Nurit residents will be required to save water - naturally. "In theory, Israel gets more than enough rainfall, but much of the rain is lost to evaporation or runs off to the sea," Atar says. "We are requiring all residents to build rain collection systems and mini-reservoirs to store rainwater. The water will then be funneled into the town reservoir, allowing us to cut down significantly on our use of water from Mekorot, which is drawn from either the Kinneret or Israel's underground aquifers." With the Kinneret [the Sea of Galilee] at an all time low, and Israel scrambling to build desalination plants to make up for projected water shortages, Nurit's efforts could serve as a model for other, non eco-friendly communities as well. Saving rainwater is important, but saving "gray water" is even more important, say many environmentalists - and Nurit is requiring all homeowners to install a gray water collection system, which will store waster water from dishwashing, bathing, and other non-sewage ("black water") sources. The storage of gray water entails building a separate drainage system, which funnels the water into a tank - and is then used for a variety of purposes, such as watering gardens, decorative fountains, etc. "No one in Nurit will be permitted to use fresh water to water his or her lawn," Atar says. "Residents will use gray water to water their lawns and run watering systems for plants or orchards." Unfortunately, Nurit won't be able to encourage its residents to trade in their cars for commuting by train, because there is no Israel Railways line in the area, at least for now. But the town will have a complete complement of local and inter-city bus service for those who need to travel. Actually, it is expected that most of Nurit's residents will work in the area, either at home businesses, in tourist-oriented services such as bed and breakfasts or restaurants, or at one of the industrial zones in the area. "Many of the homes have been zoned for use as businesses as well, so a resident can operate a small business in their backyard," Atar says. "There is an industrial zone three minutes out of town, mostly with light manufacturing or agriculture industry allied services. And tourism in this region is expected to skyrocket when regular horse racing begins at the Afula Hippodrome, only a few minutes from here," he adds. Nurit is open to anyone willing to live by the town's eco-friendly ethos - and many Israelis are willing, apparently, because there is already a long waiting list for lots. "We've already got about 700 families who have made a deposit to get into the lottery for a chance to buy a plot, with more signing up all the time," Atar says. "The lots, which will have extensive infrastructure to support the gray water drainage and reservoirs system, cost $120,000 to $150,000 - not particularly high for people coming from the center of the country, where many of the Nurit hopefuls come from, and certainly not expensive, when you consider the cost of the infrastructure." Most applicants are from big cities - Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and its suburbs. A few people from the kibbutzim in the area have signed up as well, but the majority are new to the lower Galilee. Which already makes Nurit a success, as far as Atar is concerned. "This is a beautiful part of the country to live in, and thanks to Nurit, hundreds of families are going to get the opportunity to find out just how beautiful it really is," Atar says.

JNF, El Salvador style Central American country decides to adopt Israeli model for redemption of land, environment protection Itamar Eichner YNET The El Salvador authorities have decided to adopt the Israeli model of the Jewish National Fund for the redemption of land and protecting the environment. In meeting held several months ago between Israeli Ambassador to San Salvador Mati Cohen and El Salvador's foreign and environment ministers, Cohen learned of their desire to invest resources in the promotion environmental education in cooperation with the El Salvadorian immigrants' community living in the United States. The Israeli envoy told the officials about the JNF organization and the affinity it creates between the Diaspora Jews and the State of Israel, as well as its relation to the redemption of land and environment protection for more than 100 years. Cohen suggested that the two ministers try and duplicate the JNF model and implement it in El Salvador, and recruited JNF representative in Argentina, Michael Adari, to help with the mission. A first-of-its-kind seminar was held by El Salvador's Foreign Ministry several days ago, attended by senior officials from the Foreign, Agriculture, Education and Environment Protection ministries, who learned about the JNF principles and ways to implement them in the central American country. Rabbi Yerahmiel Barylka, director of the KKL-JNF's Latin-American Desk, traveled to El Salvador to take part in the seminar.