IN THIS ISSUE:

CLIMATE CHANGE CAMPAIGN: Going Beyond the Bulb
TAKE ACTION: Keep the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Free From Drilling
CELEBRATE: A Water Aware Passover
LEARN: Wine of Joy, Wine of Conscience, by Rabbi Neal Joseph Loevinger
IN THE FIELD: CFLs Helping Low-income Families
GO GREEN: A Sweet Pesach - Sugarcane Biodegradable Tableware

Keep the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Free From Drilling

Designated by President Eisenhower in 1960, and expanded by President Carter in 1980, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge stands as one of America’s last true wilderness areas. The Refuge, located on Alaska’s northeast coast, is roughly 19 million square acres (approximately the size of South Carolina) and contains numerous fragile arctic ecosystems including the habitats of caribou, polar bears, wolves, arctic foxes, and snow birds. Perhaps the most notable ecosystem is found in the coastal plain, an area of about 1.5 million acres (about 8 percent of the refuge) along the Arctic Ocean.

These 1.5 million acres of invaluable land is now being considered for oil exploration and drilling, even as the other 95% of the northern slope is already available for oil companies.

Click here to take action on this issue.

A Water Aware Passover
Water holds special significance in the Exodus story which we reread and reenact every Passover. From the first moments when Moses is saved by floating down the river Nile to the same Nile turning red with blood; from the Israelite’s thirst for water in the desert to Miriam’s traveling well which nourishes that thirst, our Exodus story, like our bodies, could not be without this vital life source.

Click here for A Water Aware Passover [pdf]

Click here to read about “Coping with Water Scarcity,” the theme for World Water Day 2007, which is celebrated each year on 22 March.

Click here for: Mayim Chayyim: The Waters of Life, A Brief Exploration of Water in Jewish Texts and History

Wine of Joy, Wine of Conscience
by Rabbi Neal Joseph Loevinger

One of the most well-known customs of the Pesach Seder is to spill or pour out a drop of wine during the recitation of the ten plagues. There are various ways this is accomplished: with a spoon, tipping the cup, or using one's finger, but the basic point, explained in most printed Haggadot [Seder booklets], is that our feelings of sweetness and gratitude (represented by a full cup of wine) are diminished by the sufferings of others. Given that the "others" in this case are the very people who enslaved and oppressed our ancestors, the act of spilling wine is rather remarkable- it's not so easy to truly feel that one's joy is diminished because of the sufferings of one's enemy. In fact, the natural human reaction is the opposite, to rejoice in the sufferings of one's enemy; this ritual calls us to confront the moral implications of believing that all people are "b'tzelem Elohim," or made in the Image of God.

Click here to read more of "Wine of Joy, Wine of Conscience."

CFLs Helping Low-income Families
Joy Kingsborough from Tempe, Arizona runs her own energy efficient light bulb company, BulbMe! A self described spiritual woman concerned about the environment and social justice, Joy recently launched her own campaign in Arizona urging residents to replace their incandescent light bulbs with energy efficient compact fluorescent light (CFLs) bulbs and to raise money to donate CFLs to lower income families. CFLs produce a fraction of the heat of incandescents (useful in a state like Arizona) and use 75% less electricity. Beyond helping the environment and reducing carbon dioxide emissions, reduced energy bills will give lower income families a break from energy costs. Joy hopes to take the campaign nationally. Kol HaKavod!

A Sweet Pesach - Sugarcane Biodegradable Tableware

With Passover and outdoor summer fun just around the corner, does the thought of cleaning up after many guests and going home with dirty dishes from picnics seem unthinkable? Here’s a great eco-option... Biodegradable, compostable disposable tableware made from 100% bagasse - sugarcane fiber remaining after extraction of juice from the sugarcane. Sugarcane is not only a readily renewable resource, but using bagasse also avoids pollution from normal burning of sugarcane pulp after juice extraction.

Biodegradable tableware can often be found at your local health food store or chains like Whole Foods and Wild Oats.