Used by permission of the author (and Darim Board member)  Yosef Kugelmass

There is a  midrash, going back to the first millenium of the common era. It shows remarkable foresight - as it was recorded long before humans had the technological capability  to seriously impact the entire planet. It  states that Judaism believes the natural world was created for man's benefit and that, concurrently, man must exercise self-restraint in his exploitation of these resources. 

"When G-d created the first Man he took him and showed him all the trees of the Garden of Eden and said to him "See my works, how beautiful and praiseworthy they are. And everything that I created, I created it for you. Be careful not to spoil or destroy my world - for if you do, there will be nobody to repair it after you. “

There is much to learn about what Judaism teaches about caring for our environment. Jewish tradition teaches us not to waste resources. The specific injunction for this comes from Deuteronomy where it is stated: "When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down." (Deut. 20:19) Rabbis have understood from this passage the greater principle of Bal Tachchit, do not destroy, a prohibition o­n wasting resources and an ethic of caring about the environment. (Midrash Song of Songs Rabbah) 

You don’t need to join a Green Party to make a difference for our world and future generations. Consistent with the teachings of our sages, each person’s actions are meaningful. As serious Jews we understand that we are commanded to be a holy nation "goy kadosh", which refers not to being superior, rather to work to make all of our relationships among ourselves, our environment and with God,  holy ones. 

Pursuing a ‘Green’ agenda is more than saving on paper goods. It’s about setting an example so that others will also want to emulate our practices in their own homes and organizations.

Below is a list of some ideas that we at Darim want to share with you. We’d love to hear about any initiatives you may already have taken to conserve, recycle or re-purpose. Feel free to post them on the walls of your organization, adding to it at will.

• Reduce postage costs
• Reduce paper costs
• Reduce staff time to collate, fold, stamp, take to PO
• If paper you must, recycle one-sided copies to run through the printers a second time, for documentation that will be staying on-site.
• Buy recycled, uncolored paper stock
• Reduce use of cardboard for signage and storage

Make people feel at home by treating them as you would a guest in your own house!

• Serve food items on real dishes
• Use real cutlery, coffee and tea cups.
• Keep the use of paper or plastic for catering events to a minimum.
• Linen not paper products, when possible

Landscape with nature in mind! If your building is surrounded by tracts of beautiful grounds that require regular watering beyond local rainfall, you have an opportunity to use water resources more responsibly.

• Consider planting water-wise plants, trees and shrubs.
• Use grasses that do well with very little water.
• Explore the use of different ground covers.
• While you’re at it, reduce use of pesticides in favor of more natural remedies.
• Mow lawns less frequently

Do an electricity inventory!

• Decrease night-time illumination outside the facility, consistent with good safety practices
• Encourage staff, faculty and students to turn off room lights when not in use
• Raise the temperature settings on AC and lower heating. One degree can make a huge difference!
• Use long-life, compact fluorescent bulbs to replace tungsten
• Open windows and doors, using natural ventilation, when this means you can reduce usage of heating or cooling systems
• Replace old fridges and freezers with energy-conservative models
• When renovating, choose flooring that needs vacuuming or polishing less often

Soon water may be as precious as oil! Start to educate your members early, asking them to participate in your efforts to lessen water consumption and reduce the costs you pay to utility companies:

• Install reduced flush toilets and automatic faucets in washrooms, when renovating
• Recycle your grey water for appropriate irrigation or cleaning purposes
• When renovating, choose flooring that tolerates traffic well, lessening the need to constantly clean with soap and water

Your leadership can blaze the way! Explore together ways to implement sustainable policies that promote responsible use of all of our resources. For example, in planning for future capital expenditures, including heating and cooling systems, windows, roofing materials, etc. that are environmentally sound, and the products you use in the office and cleaning the building are environmentally friendly.

Going Green means developing a communications strategy for your organization that will result in clarity of message and timeliness of information, without making constituents feel spammed by the very organization to which they pay dues. This strategy will result in more effective marketing and in a more robust and sustainable organization. It will also result in less wasteful use of paper, words, building resources, staff time, and constituent energy.

For SCHOOLS specifically: Most Jewish schools have already begun to participate in activities such as Earth day, Energy Awareness day etc. In fact, children are often the avatars of what’s friendly to the earth and the creatures on it. Let them lead the push to reduce our impact on the world they will inherit.

• Change the settings on all computer monitors in classrooms to power off when idle for 10 minutes and at the end of the day.
• Install sensors in all classrooms and washrooms that turn on lights when a person enters the room and turns them off when the room is not in use. Also, switch to energy efficient lighting.
• Use public transit instead of the car or car pooling. Cities in the United States and Canada use almost 50% of their land for roads and parking. In Europe, where cycling and public transit is far more common, cities use 10% of their land for roads and parking.
• Reduce by 50% the use of photocopies.  Scan and share digital copies. Every piece of paper saved means that a renewable resource is preserved. If you must, use recycled paper.
• Be a localvore. Encourage moms and dads to buy food produced locally and without pesticides or artificial fertilizers. Use a lunch pail and a cup so that you need not make use of a paper or plastic bag and aluminum cans.
• If you must use a printer, then make use of printers, inks, papers and techniques that are the most environmentally safe. Learn more about what works and what is toxic. Encourage your teachers and school administrators and librarians to order books from publishers who make use of environmentally progressive and safe publishing, marketing and shipping techniques.
• Must you support clothing manufacturers who make use of unfair labor practices? Can you think of clothing that is attractive yet  eco-friendly?
• Create a recycling depot in your school for electronic equipment such as monitors, dvds, desktops computers, etc. Donate usable items to local charities that upgrade and restore these items for use by others who cannot afford to purchase a new unit.
• Invite a local politician, community leader, advocate, or environmental activist to your school often to hear what they are doing to help the environment and to answer your questions.
• Create a blog or wiki linked to your school’s web site with information about how students can become involved in efforts to improve our environment. Make sure that this site also contains and inventory of progress to date and what is being planned for the future in your classroom and in your school.
• Create a joint student / faculty “greening the school" committee to discuss the projects that the school, students and faculty can develop and implement that will make a difference.
• Ever noticed how the grownups sit in their cars as they wait to pick kids up from school? Start a ANTI - IDLING PROJECT and enlist the school’s parents as your very first volunteers.

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