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Hakhel Blog

Spotlights on our communities around the world

Special Recent Posts

Dear Hakhel Communities, We wish you all, your families, and your communities, a Chag Pesach Sameach! Passover is the holiday of freedom. We tend to think of ourselves as free people living in free societies, at least most of us. And yet,[...]

Hakhel Newsletter March 2022

March 22nd, 2022

Dear Hakhel Communities, I hope you and your community celebrated a very happy Purim! We are now in the lull between Purim and Pesach (always shorter than you think!), but that doesn’t mean there’s an end to the work to be[...]

How We Can Help Our Partners in Ukraine

February 28th, 2022

Friends, We have watched, horrified, as Putin’s Russia has invaded Ukraine, causing bloodshed, destruction, and hundreds of thousands of innocent people fleeing. What you may not know is that Hazon operates a global Jewish intentional community network called Hakhel that includes[...]

Hakhel Newsletter February 2022

February 8th, 2022

Dear Hakhel Communities, What makes the world holy, and how can we increase the holiness of the world together? In this week’s Torah portion, T’tzaveh, the Israelites learn about how to organize a community with Torah at the center, in a[...]

Hakhel Newsletter January 2022

January 11th, 2022

Dear Hakhel Communities, This week’s Torah portion, Beshalach, is the scene of many incredible miracles that have captured the imagination of countless generations: the splitting of the Red Sea to allow the Israelites to escape Egypt; the manna that rained down[...]

Hakhel Newsletter December 2021

December 13th, 2021

Dear Hakhel Communities, What do you believe will come of you in the days and years to come? What about your loved ones and community? Why is this your vision? These are just some of the questions evoked in this week’s[...]

Hakhel Newsletter November 2021

November 9th, 2021

Dear Hakhel Communities, This week, we will read in the Torah portion Vayeitzei about Jacob’s Ladder. As Jacob is running away from Esau, he stops to rest and has a powerful dream about a ladder, with angels ascending and descending. What[...]

Hakhel Newsletter October 2021

October 11th, 2021

What's Inside: Community Spotlight | Sharing Resources | Monthly Quote Dear Hakhel Communities, Last week (October 9), we read the famous Torah portion that tells the story of Noah (Noach), the righteous man who built an ark that preserved animals and humans[...]

Hakhel Newsletter September 2021

August 31st, 2021

What's Inside: Sharing Resources | In the Spotlight Shalom, About 4 months ago Israel announced it had “overcame Covid”, opened everything and life returned to normal, to how it used to be before 2020. A few other countries were about to initiate similar[...]

Hakhel Newsletter July 2021

July 27th, 2021

What's Inside: Sharing Resources | Upcoming Events and Opportunities | In the Spotlight Have you felt like you needed to take some time off? Have you ever wondered where Academia got the idea of a Sabbatical Year from? In 6 weeks we will[...]

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Hazon means vision and Hazon’s vision is to create a vibrant, healthy Jewish community in which to be Jewish is to help create a more sustainable world for all. So what is your vision for how we can repair the earth and how do you play a role in that?

One of the reasons that I think it’s so hard for people to live sustainably is cost and convenience. Mostly convenience. But also cost. It’s just really, really convenient to get disposables and get things to go and most of the things that you have access to are disposable or just not good for the environment. I think that making sure that we have more sustainable options available is important. Obviously, it would be optimal if we got to a point where there were more sustainable options and not unsustainable options, but if there’s at least a comparable amount of both I think that is something that would make a huge impact.

Also, a huge thing that we do is equity and being sustainable can be really expensive.

Finding biodegradable or compostable cutlery or plates is a lot more expensive than buying a bajillion solo cups. So then obviously with the access and the process there’s a certain amount of privilege to being able to live sustainability. So I think that working with other companies and organizations, and helping them make more sustainable choices will end up having ripple effects. And I think that my role is, it’s actually interesting, because I read this article recently that was saying how someone living a low waist life is potentially not as impactful as living a regular waist filled life and reaching out to large companies who generate a lot of waves is important and actually asking them to make changes. I don’t know whether or not I agree with that, but it’s definitely something I’ve been thinking about. I try myself to live as minimally wasteless as possible. But something that I definitely want to work on is reaching out to different companies and organizations that are widespread or that have an impact on me and seeing if they can make more sustainable choices.

What role does tikkun olam play in your life and how is that connected to the Brit Hazon?

So many ways. One of the things that I love about Hazon is our three things that we call out for what we want for this world. We want a healthy, sustainable and equitable world. And I think that a lot of the different ways that we practice and improve and incorporate health, sustainability and equity is a form of tikkun olam. Making sure that animals are treated fairly and in doing so, doing away with factory farming, which is kinder to the earth, and abolishing all of these terrible practices, making the norm be ethical practices that would lower the cost of things. And I just think that it’s all tied together so that we’re helping the planet and animals and humans all be able to have the same access to live a healthy, sustainable and equitable life.

Joe Shmo

Hazon means vision and Hazon’s vision is to create a vibrant, healthy Jewish community in which to be Jewish is to help create a more sustainable world for all. So what is your vision for how we can repair the earth and how do you play a role in that?

One of the reasons that I think it’s so hard for people to live sustainably is cost and convenience. Mostly convenience. But also cost. It’s just really, really convenient to get disposables and get things to go and most of the things that you have access to are disposable or just not good for the environment. I think that making sure that we have more sustainable options available is important. Obviously, it would be optimal if we got to a point where there were more sustainable options and not unsustainable options, but if there’s at least a comparable amount of both I think that is something that would make a huge impact.

Also, a huge thing that we do is equity and being sustainable can be really expensive.

Finding biodegradable or compostable cutlery or plates is a lot more expensive than buying a bajillion solo cups. So then obviously with the access and the process there’s a certain amount of privilege to being able to live sustainability. So I think that working with other companies and organizations, and helping them make more sustainable choices will end up having ripple effects. And I think that my role is, it’s actually interesting, because I read this article recently that was saying how someone living a low waist life is potentially not as impactful as living a regular waist filled life and reaching out to large companies who generate a lot of waves is important and actually asking them to make changes. I don’t know whether or not I agree with that, but it’s definitely something I’ve been thinking about. I try myself to live as minimally wasteless as possible. But something that I definitely want to work on is reaching out to different companies and organizations that are widespread or that have an impact on me and seeing if they can make more sustainable choices.

What role does tikkun olam play in your life and how is that connected to the Brit Hazon?

So many ways. One of the things that I love about Hazon is our three things that we call out for what we want for this world. We want a healthy, sustainable and equitable world. And I think that a lot of the different ways that we practice and improve and incorporate health, sustainability and equity is a form of tikkun olam. Making sure that animals are treated fairly and in doing so, doing away with factory farming, which is kinder to the earth, and abolishing all of these terrible practices, making the norm be ethical practices that would lower the cost of things. And I just think that it’s all tied together so that we’re helping the planet and animals and humans all be able to have the same access to live a healthy, sustainable and equitable life.