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CLAL Convenes Dialogue on Judaism, Business and the Environment

By Judy Epstein, Director of Public Affairs

Is it a mitzvah to protect the environment? Is there a common language between environmentalists and business people? These were some of the questions raised at a CLAL forum on Judaism, business and the environment held in Boulder, Colorado and New York City in October and December, 2000. The program brought together Jewish scholars, academics, corporate leaders, lawyers and environmentalists to discuss emerging ethical issues connected to sustainable development and corporate social responsibility.

In Boulder, using a traditional Jewish text (from Genesis) as a framework for discussion, participants were able to explore their ideas about environmental responsibility in a safe and neutral way. Many also brought in their own texts to generate new conversations for boundary crossing dialogues. The forum, which took place at the University of Colorado, Boulder campus, examined such issues as urban sprawl and land use -- key concerns for many local residents.

In New York City, participants were asked to bring in an ethical challenge facing them in their professional practice. Together, they worked through problems each other faced, thereby creating trust and common ground for further discussion. The event, which took place in a private home, addressed such topics as urban planning, renewal and life. Both programs explored spiritual issues and people's relationship to nature versus conspicuous consumption.

"The goal here is to create links across professional lines," said Dr. Robert Rabinowitz, CLAL Senior Fellow and leader of the forums. "We need to get these seemingly opposed groups of people to start talking together. Once in a conversation, they start to see some intersection for their concerns, and creative approaches for problem solving."

He continued, "Judaism has so much to offer us in these conversations. If you consider that Judaism is about life, and that the environment is one of the critical issues of the day, how could Judaism not include it?"

The forums are just the first step in what Dr. Rabinowitz hopes will be a series of 4 sessions per city on these topics. The program is designed to be a building block in creating a network of leaders engaged in similar conversations, generating new insights on the complex ethical challenges of a world of global markets and environmental constraints. It has been generously funded by the David Berg Foundation.

Said one participant, James W.C. White, Director of the Environment Studies Program at the University of Boulder, about his experience in the program, "A very clever and important way of framing the environmental debate because it's so hard to get people round the table and debate the issues without it becoming polarized between activists and business people."