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Apr 21, 2026, 6:24 PM

Nepal’s Wildfire Crisis: Can Biomass Help?

( Photo Credit wikimedia )

Nepal is known for its diverse landscapes, beautiful forests and the magnificently tall snow capped mountains, over 46 percent of the land is covered in forests according to a report published by the world bank in November 2025. In...

Jul 7, 2025, 10:41 PM

California-bound: An unintentional mitzvah

Someone, somewhere, in California is wearing a set of my tefillin. I don’t know who or where, but I do know why -- I donated my tefillin to him (I’m guessing that the recipient is a he, because most Jews...

May 27, 2025, 1:43 PM

Climate Change at My Doorstep

I don't need data to remind me of the climate change threat. That task was handled quite well by the April 30 blaze near my home in the Judean Hills region. For the first time in our lives, my...

Justine Johnston Hemmestad

May 7, 2025, 11:42 AM

Jerusalem Burning

Rural Iowa knows a thing or two about wildfires unfortunately, usually controlled burns that have gotten out of hand with the help of high winds. Though supporting a different climate than Iowa, Israel too has had its share of recent...

May 3, 2025, 3:25 PM

An equal-opportunity fire

The rains have barely stopped, and we are already on the second wildfire of the season. Some 20,000 dunam of forest and bush burned over the course of 30 hours before the fires were brought under control. Despite the rapid...

Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden

May 1, 2025, 11:20 PM

Israel Independence Day 2025, the most mixed ever

For 3500 years, our enemies failed. When will they learn? Independence Day in Israel always starts immediately after the Day of Mourning for those who died in our attempt to have a State. Today, we also have the still fresh wounds...

May 1, 2025, 9:35 AM

Exclusion, Inclusion and Closure: Parshat Tazria-Metzora

This week’s double parsha tazria-metzora starts out with the impurity of a woman after giving birth: For a boy “she shall remain in a state of blood purification for thirty-three days” and for a girl “she shall remain in a...

Rachel Steinhardt

Apr 16, 2025, 4:27 PM

From one Jewish home to another: Finding Judaica for LA fire victims

(Public domain)

It wasn't about saving money, but about connection and meaning. Or, as one woman said as she spotted the mezuzahs: 'I don’t have a front door yet, but I will'

Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden

Jan 25, 2025, 11:03 PM

It’s not raining cats or dogs in Israel

Yet, not all areas are created equally Rain in Israel In Biblical times, they had no baths and no Trump to complain about showerheads trickling down. But a drought in Israel meant a famine, for no crops could grow—the threat of...

Areyah Kaltmann

Jan 17, 2025, 5:40 PM

Don’t give us a speech, Rabbi! We need a Hug!

This past week, the world has been struck by tragedies of biblical proportions. Raging infernos never before seen have swept across the hills of Los Angeles, ravaging thousands of homes and businesses. Countless children and families are left homeless...

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