Source: Hazon
Tu B’Shvat is an ancient celebration of the new year for trees. It has changed and evolved over twenty centuries, and has never been more vital or significant than it is today. We live in an era in which sustainable forestry is more widely practiced than ever before, yet deforestation is a powerful driver of climate change and loss of biodiversity. Trees play important roles in some of the most challenging environmental issues of our time, and the way we use them is important, even in ways you might not expect. For a simple example: saving paper does not just “save trees,” but also prevents burning fossil fuels in transportation and processing.
The resources below, including the newly updated 2019 Hazon Tu B’Shvat Haggadah, offer thoughts and ideas to help you celebrate Tu B’Shvat in your home or community. The texts, questions, activities, and suggestions below can serve as guides for viewing Tu B’Shvat through fresh eyes and recontextualizing the tradition.
Tu B’Shvat Haggadah: Hazon Seder and Sourcebook
We are pleased to introduce a new Tu B’Shvat haggadah which offers thoughts and ideas to help you celebrate the new year for trees in your home or community. The texts, questions, and activities in the haggadah can serve as a guide for viewing Tu B’Shvat through fresh eyes and recontextualizing the tradition. Our new haggadah features the blessings on wine and symbolic foods, and various thematic activities. Additionally, this haggadah uniquely focuses on the science and data around forestation and the role that trees play in sustaining a healthy planetary ecosystem while mitigating climate change.
This page also contains links to numerous other resources, events, music, recipes, sustainability tips, lesson plans and Tu B’shvat Seders.
Hazon is the largest faith-based environmental organization in the U.S. and is building a movement that strengthens Jewish life and contributes to a more environmentally sustainable world for all. As the Jewish lab for sustainability, Hazon effects change through immersive experiences and inspires individuals and communities to make specific commitments to change with a particular focus on food systems.