Jewlicious Festival’s Green action program
“The just man as the date palm shall flourish, like the cedar of Lebanon shall he grow tall”. In the same way as there is nothing wasted from the date palm, whose fronds are used for holy praise, whose dates are eaten as fruit, whose trunk provides support, whose fibers are used for rope, the threads for nets and the branches for roofing — so the Jewish people comprises only worthy individuals: some know the Tanach, others the Mishnah, still others the Talmud; some know the Aggadah, some the commandments and others – lovingkindness. (Bereishit Rabba 41)
The Jewish people, and humanity in general, have many times throughout history been likened to trees. The Torah is referred to as Etz Chayim, the Tree of Life. Indeed, humanity’s first home was a great garden in Eden, and our fate is still closely linked to that of the Earth.
“Whoever has more wisdom than deeds is like a tree with many branches but few roots, and the wind shall tear him from the ground… Whoever has more deeds than wisdom is like a tree with more roots than branches, and no hurricane will uproot him from the spot.” (Mishnah, Tractate Avot, Ch.3, Mishnah 17)
Judaism has a holiday, Tu B’Shvat, which is also known as the New Year of the Trees. Tu B’Shvat highlights the deep connection between humanity and our environment. Tu B’Shvat originally marked the annual time to tithe fruit. Modern Zionsts used Tu B’Shvat to highlight reforestation and environmental rehabilitation in Israel. Since the start of the green movement in the 1970′s, Tu B’Shvat also serves as a focal point to discuss and teach Jewish views on environmentalism.
Many Tu B’Shvat teachings point to our responsibility to the planet we live on and the environment we reap resources from. But Judaism is a value system based on action – not just intent. Jewlicious Festival aims to bridge this gap between our lofty ideals and our uncertainty about how to put them into action.
Jewlicious Festival, now in its sixth year, and we are the largest Jewish young folks weekend in the country. We aim to be more than just environmentally aware, but actually takes steps to be “green” and educate participants about being green even after the festival is over. Jewlicious Festival, which non-coincidentally takes place within weeks of Tu B’Shevat, uses a hands-on approach during the festival to inform its participants about how to heal the Earth year-round. In 2008, students and staff at Jewlicious began meeting to create a guiding set of principals that would involve not only what kinds of programs we did, and the educational green content, but which would impact how we organized and produced the Festival. By making this mindset a vital part of Jewlicious, our volunteers and participants are changed by the festival, as they experience a completely green environment and realize that they too can apply these principles and practices.
Many conferences and festivals today opt for buying carbon credits, and other virtual solutions, but do not make any concessions to use a Greenthink strategy. Our students, alumni, and staff demanded a truly innovative approach and drafted the first version of the Greenkeit Manifesto for Jewlicious Festival 4.0 (2008).
We are updating Greenkeit for Jewlicious Festival 6.0. From the smallest things – that we have been doing all along – to larger steps that we’re implementing this year for the first time, Jewlicious Festival 6.0 will expand our consciousness to show us that there are better ways, and take us one step closer to fulfilling our Jewish obligations to be Shomrei Adamah (to be guardians of the Earth).
This year Jewlicious Festival is taking a two-stage approach to being green. First, throughout the planning process we have worked within a Greenthink paradigm to ensure that Greenkeit is integrated into the very fabric of the Festival. Secondly, we are providing opportunities at the Festival for participants to take Greenkeit into their own hands.
A note about the word GREENKEIT: In Yiddish, Judaism is called Yiddishkeit. Jews are called on to be Shomrei Adamah, guardians of the earth. So, the word GREENKEIT represents our Jewish environmentalism or our environmental Judaism.
We are posting on our website what we’ve done and what you can do to make your Jewlicious Festival experience more green.
BE A PART OF THE JEWLICIOUS GREEN TEAM!
Contact the head of our Greenkeit Program, Ezra Flom, today!
ezraflom [at] gmail [dot] com
* The above logo for Greenkeit is made using an Eco-Font that uses 20% less ink when printed.
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Save Gas
What we’ve done
Reduced transportation of goods & food by buying local
Created marketing groups on Facebook to connect university students and encourage carpooling
Made local hotels available, so long-distance transportation is not necessary during Jewlicious
What you can do
Carpool to Jewlicious or, even better, ride bikes
Take public transportation
Drive a smaller car- leave your SUV at home
Save Water
What we’ve done
We’re serving filtered water instead of bottled water
What you can do
Turn the water off when you’re brushing your teeth, washing your hair, or shaving
Take shorter showers
Shower with a buddy
Ensure your faucets are completely turned off and not leaking
Save Energy
What we’ve done
We’re turning off unnecessary lighting
The Festival is in the winter so we don’t have to crank on the A.C.
What you can do
Turn off unnecessary lights
Adjust your thermostat before you leave your house. It doesn’t need to be 69 degrees when you’re not there!
Reduce Waste
What we’ve done
We’re serving food on biodegradable plates, cutlery, etc.
We’re serving filtered water instead of bottled water
We’ve made reusable plates available
We’ve put up posters of the schedules, instead of printing individual pages for everyone
We’ve made reusable towels and recycled-content paper towels available at sinks
What you can do
Recycle with the Long Beach Conservation Corps
Use our compostable plates and compost your leftover veggies
Use our towels & eco-friendly paper towels in the bathrooms
Use a reusable plate and wash it with our revolutionary water saving dishwashing system
Buy and use Food Wisely
What we’ve done
Bought organic and local when possible
We’re avoiding foods that are out-of-season as much as we can
We’ll donate unused food to the Long Beach Food Finders
We’re baking our own challah!
What you can do
Don’t take more than you can eat. Start with smaller helpings.
More Green @ Jewlicious
Our Jewlicious t-shirts are American Apparel’s Sustainable Edition, made locally with organic cotton
Festival posters were printed on recycled content paper with soy ink
Our decorations are organic and reusable
We’re using organic cleaners
We will donate a portion of surplus merchandise
Our presenters’ nametags are made of recycled cereal boxes
Green Education: Where you can learn more at Jewlicious Festival
Attend the Festival Panel on GREENKEIT
Locate and read the Green Kite Signs with Eco-Info
Talk to one of our expert presenters or staff
Visit the Long Beach water department booth to learn about water conservation
