On the first night of Hanukkah,
my true love said to me -
"Let's buy wind-power for
E-lec-tri-city"!
On the fourth night of Hanukkah,
my rabbi said to me -
"Car-pool tonight!
Give the Breath of Life
A chance to catch new breath
When we gather to chant of our delight!"
On the eighth night of Hanukkah,
My granddaughter said to me:
"Sit down and write!
Our Senators should know that I need to grow
And that means we should cut the CO2!"
The Eight Days of Hanukkah:
Eight Actions to Heal the Earth
through the Green Menorah Covenant
Please share this message with your friends, congregants, etc - and post the "eight-day actions" on your refrigerator door.
On Hanukkah, we are taught not only to light the menorah night by night, but to publicize the miracle, to turn our individual actions outward for the rest of the world to see and to be inspired by.
So we invite you to join, this Hanukkah, in The Shalom Center 's Green Menorah Covenant for taking action - personal, communal, and political - to heal the earth from the global climate crisis.
After lighting your menorah each evening, dedicate yourself to making the changes in your life that will allow our limited sources of energy to last for as long as they're needed, and with minimal impact on our climate.
No single action will solve the global climate crisis, just as no one of us alone can make enough of a difference. Yet, if we act on as many of the areas below as possible, and act together, a seemingly small group of people can overcome a seemingly intractable crisis. We can, as in days of old, turn this time of darkness into one of light.
Day 1: Personal/Household: Call your electric-power utility to switch to wind-powered electricity. (For each home, 100% wind-power reduces CO2 emissions the same as not driving 20,000 miles in one year.)
Day 2: Synagogue, Hillel, or JCC: Urge your congregation or community building to switch to wind-powered electricity.
Day 3. Your network of friends, IM buddies, and members of civic or professional groups you belong to: Connect with people like newspaper editors, real-estate developers, architects, bankers, etc. to urge them to strengthen the green factor in all their decisions, speeches, and actions.
Day 4 (which this year is Shabbat). Automobile: If possible, choose today or one other day a week to not use your car at all. Other days, lessen driving. Shop on-line. Cluster errands. Carpool. Don't idle engine beyond 20 seconds.
Day 5: Workplace or College: Urge the top officials to arrange an energy audit. Check with utility company about getting one free or at low-cost.
Day 6: Town/City: Urge town/city officials to require greening of buildings through ordinances and executive orders. Creating change is often easier on the local level!
Day 7: State: Urge state representatives to reduce subsidies for highways, increase them for mass transit.
Day 8: National: Urge your Senators to strengthen and pass the Lieberman-Warner "America's Climate Security Act." For easy addressing and a model letter to send them, go to --
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/602/t/4181/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=21544
Make our planet's Hanukkah a happy one!
No comments:
Post a Comment