Jewish Hazon community agriculture programme
The word hazon is Hebrew for "vision." And the
vision of
Hazon
in the US is to create "a healthier and more sustainable
Jewish community - as a step towards a healthier and
more sustainable world for all."
Hazon is a
Jewish environmental organization based in New York but
with a much wider remit. In 2004 it launched a
Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) Programme called
Tuv Ha’Aretz – which means “Good for the land and best
of the land”.
It involves a synagogue or
several synagogues entering a partnership with a local
organic farmer, and committing to pre-purchase a share
of the season’s produce. For the farmer this guarantees
a market, for members this gives access to fresh,
organic produce at affordable prices. In the wider
context, it helps to preserve farmland, build community,
and protect surrounding wildlife and water systems from
pesticides. By early 2009 there were 32 Tuv Ha’Artez
locations in the US and Israel.
In 2009
those sites will put more than US$1 million of Jewish
purchasing power behind organic farms. One of the
members of the Tuv Ha’Aretz programme in 2008 was Rahm
Emanuel, now chief of staff to Barack Obama, President
of the United States. Hazon also organises an annual
Food Conference and a Jewish Farm school. It is looking
to work with other faith traditions to establish
faith-based CSAs in many more communities. Please
contact them through
www.hazon.orgif you are interested, or link to their website.
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