Lauren McCann, program manager of the Middlesex County Improvement Authority, shows a T-shirt completely made of recycled materials. With her is M.C. Blue, the authority’s official robot, who explained the county’s recycling program to children during the Nov. 16 program at Temple Emanu-El in Edison.
Photos by Debra Rubin
Temple Emanu-El congregant Bob Fechter of Edison shows Alanna Benderly, nine, of Metuchen a modular ball he made from 1,100 pieces of paper. Fechter conducted a workshop on making candy dishes and other useful articles from paper and plastic bottles.
At his table at Temple Emanu-El’s “It’s Easy To Be Green,” Carl Guastaferro, citizen action and activities coordinator for Clean Ocean Action in Highlands, holds a bowl of bottle caps to demonstrate his organization’s project to collect unrecyclable caps and create new containers.
December 2, 2008
Congregants from Temple Emanu-El and others learned that incorporating environmentally friendly policies into their religious and personal lives is easier than many people might think.
They gathered on Nov. 16 at the Edison synagogue for “It’s Easy To Be Green.” The day-long program’s diverse offerings ranged from a vegan cooking demonstration to a discussion on the ethical and practical benefits of organic farming versus factory farming.
The program was cosponsored by the New Brunswick-based Greenfaith, a statewide coalition of religious groups concerned about environmental protection and preservation.
“We really wanted to help our temple, communities, and schools go green,” said Sandy Wilson, the congregation’s social action chair. “We’ve been trying our best to get the temple green. We got rid of all our Styrofoam cups and began concentrating on our recycling, and it just mushroomed from there.”
The program also featured vendors displaying eco-friendly toys and shopping bags, while representatives of environmental groups dispensed information at tables.
“I think this is very important for all of us,” said Liz Cohen, social action cochair of the New Jersey West Hudson Valley Council of the Union for Reform Judaism, who sent out word of the program to all congregations in the region. “These things being discussed are tied in to the economic and deepening healthcare crisis. These issues really go to the core of what the Reform movement stands for.”
Stacey Kennealy, director of sustainability for Greenfaith, surveyed workshop participants on their use of resources, including hot water, meat, and fossil fuels.
Much to the surprise — and horror — of those in the room, Kennealy said that “it would take an average of five planets to sustain the world if everyone lived like you.”
Americans’ outsized environmental footprint, she said, is the result of gas-guzzling vehicles, wasted electricity, non-biodegradable packaging, and cleaning products that are unfriendly to the Earth.
Houses of worship, Kennealy said, can do their part by installing timers to control lights and their heating and air conditioning systems. Coffee and other beverages can be served not in Styrofoam or plastic cups, but in “real” cups that can be washed and reused.
According to Kennealy, Greenfaith entered into a bulk purchasing agreement with Rutgers University that allows houses of worship and parochial schools to purchase green cleaners, fuel, furniture, and other items below market price.
One such institution that has taken advantage of the agreement is the Solomon Schechter Day School of Essex and Union in West Orange, which now saves several thousand dollars annually on copy paper through the program.
Amy Goldsmith, executive director of the New Jersey Environmental Federation and Clean Water Fund, explained to the gathering how common household items can be substituted for more expensive and environmentally unfriendly cleaning products.
M.C. Blue, the robot mascot of the Middlesex County Improvement Authority, delighted the children in attendance as he made his way around the room explaining the county’s recycling program.
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