Monday, March 23, 2009

Beer Sheva’s Earth’s Promise Offers an Alternative Spring Break

Beer Sheva’s Earth’s Promise Offers an Alternative Spring Break

For those of you familiar with the typical American college student spring break, you know that it generally entails transporting an Animal House environment to exotic locations such as Cancun, Fort Lauderdale, the Bahamas, or the Carribean. However there has been a movement in recent years to offer students an alternative to these stereotypical spring breaks, in equally exotic locations - such as central America, eastern Europe, and yes, even Beer Sheva. [READ MORE]

Friday, March 20, 2009

A GoNeutral Love Story

Buyer’s remorse we’ve heard of, but dater’s remorse?

Brenda and David Jaffe experienced this phenomenon and it had nothing to do with their feelings for each other. No, the chagrin was over the effect their long-distance courtship was having on the environment. Their answer? Well, for starters they got married. And to address their environmental concerns they turned to Jewish National Fund (JNF) and its GoNeutral program.

The two of them, each in their mid 40s, were both divorced with two children apiece. Brenda lived in Dover, DE; David in Havre de Grace, MD. They met on JDate and took a liking to each other. So much so that between them they were soon driving almost 375 miles weekly just to see each other.

“That’s a lot of carbon let loose in the environment,” said David, a physician. “I try to leave as small a footprint as I can in whatever way I can, so I looked for a way to reduce our impact.”

The couple turned to www.jnf.org/goneutral, where, using a calculator, they were able to determine the approximate amount of carbon their cars had emitted during their three-year relationship, and then plant trees in Israel to help offset those emissions.

Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for photosynthesis, releasing oxygen into the air while sequestering, or storing, carbon. About half of the weight of a mature tree is carbon.

With over 100 years of experience as caretaker of the land of Israel, Jewish National Fund has planted more than 240 million trees, transforming over 250,000 acres of arid land into lush green forests. Because of JNF’s forestry expertise and commitment to environmental protection, Israel is one of two countries to leave the 20th century with more trees than it had at the start. The trees already planted by JNF have absorbed an estimated 110 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

“I am a supporter of the State of Israel, environmentally concerned, and Jewishly involved, so this was a nice way to do it all,” said David. The gift was announced at his son Micah’s bar mitzvah last year.

Now happily married and living in one place (Havre de Grace), the couple is indebted to JDate for helping them find each other, and to JNF “for making the courtship easier on the planet,” said Brenda.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Wear Green, Drink Greenly


Is it greener to drink from cans or bottles? The answer depends on how far you live from the place that produces your drink of choice. We figured this might be appropriate since there is a certain Irish holiday being celebrated today. [Read more]

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Tip Of The Week: Buy Used Products

Buying used items on sites like eBay and Craigslist can help you reduce the emissions associated with manufacturing and decrease the need for new raw materials. Check out this New York Times article below:

As Earth Day Nears, eBay Shows Its Green Side

In a new program centered on Earth Day, eBay is becoming the latest company to promote its green credentials.

EBay is now a green company?

Yes, said Alan Marks, senior vice president for global communications at eBay. Its business model encourages reselling old items rather than throwing them out, and buying used merchandise rather than making new stuff reduces carbon emissions that go along with production.

“We never set out to be a green business,” Mr. Marks said. “We realized it’s intrinsic.”
[read more]

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Turn Off The Lights

Earth Hour - an annual event led by World Wildlife Fund, asks cities, business and individuals to turn off their lights for 60 minutes March 28, 2009 at 8:30 PM in a unified call for action on climate change.

You can learn more here: http://www.earthhourus.org/