
Olam Bashavua
Welcome to Olam BaShavua!
The purpose of this series is to educate, inspire and inform by highlighting advances in environmental work. While we are often inundated with all the troubling news of environmental challenges across the globe, here we highlight the good stuff. We generally look for news relating to our four core values: Incubating Emunah, Stewarding the Earth, Tzedakah, and Compassion for Creatures. Each of us holds significant decision making power in our personal and professional communities.
We hope these stories inspire and empower us to move our institutions in the right direction, yielding significant global impact.
For our educational coloring book on the weekly parsha, order Tiferet here.
If you’d like inspiring environmental news like the articles linked below sent to your inbox weekly, along with Divrei Torah for every parsha, please subscribe below.
Explore our archive of Divrei Torah for every parsha of the year here.
BEAVERS BEAT BUREAUCRACY (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.36) - March 5, 2025
BEAVERS BEAT BUREAUCRACY: A $1.2M WETLAND MAKEOVER / GROWING HOPE: HOW URBAN FARMS ARE COOLING A WEST AFRICAN CITY / LIGHTING THE WAY FOR CORALS: A ZOOPLANKTON REVOLUTION / CANADA TO BUILD ONE OF NORTH AMERICA’S LARGEST URBAN SOLAR PLANTS
Mushroom Coffee Compostables! (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.35) - February 26, 2025
ENDANGERED BIRD SPOTTED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OVER 30 YEARS! / COFFEE GROUNDS AND MUSHROOMS: A COMPOSTABLE PLASTIC ALTERNATIVE / LAND RESTORATION COSTS LESS THAN 0.3% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL GDP, STUDY FINDS / CORAL-INSPIRED TECH CUTS CEMENT’S CARBON FOOTPRINT BY 70%
Reforestation: A Win for Carbon & Wildlife (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.34) - February 21, 2025
REFORESTATION: A WIN-WIN FOR CARBON CAPTURE AND BIODIVERSITY / APPALACHIA’S COAL SITES REBORN AS CLEAN ENERGY HUBS / NATURE’S MARVEL: HUMPBACK WHALE SONGS MIRROR HUMAN LANGUAGE / CLEAN ENERGY COSTS SET TO DROP IN 2025
FROM HIGHWAY TO HAVEN (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.33) - February 12, 2025
INDIA’S TIGER BOOM: DOUBLING BIG CAT NUMBERS IN A DECADE / FROM HIGHWAY TO HAVEN: SEOUL’S STREAM RESTORATION INSPIRES URBAN TRANSFORMATION / BACTERIA TO THE RESCUE: ENGINEERED MICROBES BREAK DOWN MICROPLASTICS IN WASTEWATER / SOLAR AND ELECTRIC BUSES SAVE THE DAY FOR CASH-STRAPPED SCHOOL DISTRICT
Scientists Discover Enough Water to Fill 32 Million Pools (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.32) - February 5, 2025
OREGON’S CASCADES HIDE A MASSIVE UNDERGROUND LAKE / COLORADO WELCOMES 15 GRAY WOLVES IN HISTORIC REINTRODUCTION EFFORT / ECUADOR’S OCEANS GET A VOICE: COURT GRANTS RIGHTS TO COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS / 10 MILLION TREES FOR HOPE: ARBOR DAY FOUNDATION’S PLAN TO REBUILD AFTER HURRICANES
CHICAGO LEADS THE CHARGE (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.31) - JANUARY 29, 2025
CHICAGO LEADS THE CHARGE WITH 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY IN CITY BUILDINGS / BALCONY SOLAR: CITY LIVING’S BRIGHT IDEA / GEOTHERMAL ENERGY HEATS UP IN 2024 / REVIVING THE POWER OF WATER: THE MODERN COMEBACK OF WATERWHEELS
How Cyprus is Winning the Solar Game (and Why You Should Care) (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.30) - JANUARY 22, 2025
CHINA TURNS DESERT GREEN: A 3,000-KM DESERT SHIELD / ENERGIZING RURAL AMERICA: USDA'S $6B PUSH FOR CLEAN POWER / CONSERVATION PAYS OFF: PIPING PLOVERS SET NEW RECORDS IN 2024 / CYPRUS: SOAKING UP THE SUN, SAVING ENERGY
How MIT’s Recycled Glass Bricks Are Changing Construction (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.31) - JANUARY 15, 2025
2024: A BREAKTHROUGH YEAR FOR ENERGY STORAGE GROWTH / TINY GUARDIANS OF BIODIVERSITY RETURN HOME / NEW YORK REQUIRES BIG POLLUTERS TO PAY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE / REVOLUTIONIZING CONSTRUCTION WITH RECYCLED GLASS: MIT'S 3D-PRINTED BRICKS
Youth Activists Make History! (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.30) - JANUARY 10, 2025
FROM COAL TO CODE: VIRGINIA'S VISION FOR REPURPOSING ABANDONED MINES / YOUNG ACTIVISTS MAKE HISTORY: MONTANA COURT RULES IN FAVOR OF YOUTH CLIMATE RIGHTS! / JAPAN'S BOLD ENERGY FUTURE: 50% RENEWABLES BY 2040! / THIS NEW PITCHER PLANT LOOKS JUST LIKE AN ORANGUTAN—AND IT’S HUGE!
Alto Mayo's Marvels! (OLAM BASHAVUA 1.29) - JANUARY 1, 2025
ALTO MAYO'S SECRET SPECIES / UK UNIVERSITIES SEE RISE IN FOSSIL FUEL RECRUITMENT BANS / WIND AND SOLAR SURGE AHEAD OF COAL IN 2024 U.S. POWER GRID / SEAWEED TO THE RESCUE: CUTTING CATTLE METHANE BY 40%
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