Comments on: Re-Greening Sukkot

By: Leah Koenig

Leah Koenig — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:32:59 +0000

I thought of this post a lot this holiday, Tamar, as I ate in a couple of sukkahs where EVERYTHING was made with non-dairy whip, and served on plastic plates and even a couple of styrofoam serving plates. I hate to be ungracious – and of course was happy to be welcomed in as a guest in someone’s home, but I felt like I had to stifle myself a good amount.

Luckily, my “home base” (my fiance’s family’s house) was much more in-tune with the holiday, serving delicious, healthy, seasonal foods and using sustainable, reusable and creative sukkah decorations.

By: Nina

Nina — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 02:10:38 +0000

Hey DM, if your cranberries still seem edible at the end of sukkot, you don’t have to waste ‘em. try drying them with the recipe at this link. It’s quite similar to one I’ve used before to great effect, though I use sugar, and since you heat them at a higher temperature before drying them at a low one, it should kill any bacteria that gets onto your cranberries in the sukkah.

Here’s the link:

http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/.....edcran.htm

By: Astra Libris

Astra Libris — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:05:18 +0000

Thank you for the wonderful tips that are so true to the spirit of the holiday! Chag Samayach!

By: DM

DM — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 18:44:44 +0000

When we finished building and decorating our sukkah yesterday afternoon, my housemates and I noted that we hadn’t bought *anything* in order to make it – except for a bag of fresh cranberries to string and hang (wasteful, true, but minimally – and beautiful!). Our sukkah poles and roof are made from bamboo that we harvested ourselves from the massive bamboo thicket at the dentist’s office. The walls are our picnic blankets and old sheets. We pruned our bushes and trees to make schach. We’re decorating with gourds we already had, a squash that we’ll eat later this week, and the aforementioned cranberries. The end result is a truly beautiful structure that I’m feeling really proud of, aesthetically and environmentally. (We promise, we’ll use real dishes, tablecloths, and napkins when we eat out there too.)

By: Kittysmith

Kittysmith — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:12:20 +0000

I wanted to use some wood piled by the roadside courtesy of Hurricane Ike, but couldn’t scavenge what I needed. This year I’m using paper plates & will put them in the compost heap, but next year I’ll buy a cheap set of resale china & use those from year to year. I do have a real aversion to consumerism and over-spent this year in spite of myself! Most of it will be reusuable for next year, though. Happy Sukkot everyone!

By: Daniel E. Levenson

Daniel E. Levenson — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 01:43:55 +0000

What a great post – I am always personally interested in finding not only ancient but modern ways to connect to the environment through Judaism. When you have a moment, I’d like to invite you to check out an online Jewish journal that I publish called the New Vilna Review (www.newvilnareview.com) which is focused on issues of modern Jewish identity. We have published several articles relating to Judaism and the natural world, which may be of interest to you.

By: debby

debby — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:49:46 +0000

Last year I painted fabric to make decorations. Once it’s painted and ironed, it’s weather-safe, and it’s a lot of fun. (Mine’s the 7 species, which felt right last year. Not sure whether I’ll have time to make another one this year.)

By: Joshua

Joshua — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 22:07:18 +0000

Great suggestions for the chag.. I did want to suggest consider carbon offsetting with the Good Energy Initiative rather than Terrapass. Good Energy is organization which has worked with Hazon in the past and was recently given a high score from our friends at the Jewish Climate Initiative (http://climateofchange.files.w.....guide1.pdf).. Just something to consider. The money goes to supporting local grass routes projects in Israel. Not a bad way to complete the cycle!