Jewish Farm School
by Karin Kloosterman, Tel Aviv 
on 12.14.07
We've heard of Jewish day school, but Jewish farm school?
Yup, that's right. Ever dream about living off the grid and building yourself a farm? If you're Jewish and want to get in touch with some of your earthly roots, consider an ecological farming apprenticeship with Shorashim in Israel. The next 5-month residential apprenticeship begins this February and there is space enough for 10 of you.
The apprenticeship takes place on a farm outside Modi'in. Living off the grid (that means no TreeHugger and no Internet for a long time), there will be lots to learn on environmental practices such as permaculture and the art of communal self-sufficiency (what's that about?).
Says the site website: "The Shorashim apprenticeship is set on a functioning farm, not in an isolated comfort zone. You will be learning by doing. This means you will be exposed to the sometimes difficult but realistic pressures and responsibilities of running a farm…which could mean long work hours and extreme weather conditions."
Volunteers, the description continues, can expect the work to be demanding and the blessings endless…a real-time education with practical experience, both the good and the bad, in daily farm happenings.
Who can you meet at the Jewish Farm School? It is an educational organization comprised of farmers, builders, writers and educators. The website concludes that their mission is to practice and promote sustainable agriculture in order to cultivate just food systems rooted in Jewish traditions.
We'd love to also hear about some farming initiatives in Israel that are rooted in Muslim/Bedouin/Druize traditions. Send us a shout-out in the comments section if you know of any.
::Jewish Farm School via David at World Changing
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I just wanted to voice my support for the Jewish Farm School. They're from my neighborhood in W. Philly, I've been to some of their programming in the area (I even bought their calendar). They're doing good work, and I'm sure the apprenticeship would be a fabulous experience.
Greetings from West Philly. I am the co-director of the Jewish Farm School and I was thrilled to see this post on tTeehugger-I've been a fan for a few years. Yigal Deutscher's Shorashim apprenticeship is a wonderful program, but won't be running again until September of 08. This is a shemittah, or a biblical sabbatical year and Yigal, the main farmer, is taking a sabbatical and not working the land. He is currently traveling in Australia and will return to israel in may to prepare for the upcoming seasons.
Meanwhile, we are running several programs in the US this coming year, including two week-long service learning trip for college students. Please contact us for more details.
This apprenticeship takes place on land that is recognized by the entire world, except Israel, to be illegally occupied. Palestinians, who used to farm this land, are now denied from even stepping foot on it.
Ethics on one level, travesty on another.
The town of Modi'in, where the apprenticeship takes place, is not a settlement and is not part of the occupied west bank. furthermore, part of the program is touring the country and visiting with Israeli, Palestinian and Bedouin farmers and discussing how the political situation affects agriculture.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modiin
Nati, I don't know where you get the notion that Modi'in is not a settlement, and to be honest I know enough from living a 10 minutes' drive from it.
But you can look up as many sources as you want,
such as this map from B'tselem, the Israeli human rights group, at: www.btselem.org/Download/Settlements_Map_Eng.pdf)
To get to Modi'in, you have to take by-pass roads that are off limits to Palestinian villages which they cut right through. On the maps, there it is, Modi'in, brand spanking shiny tree-lined settlement on stolen land. Just west of Ramallah, inside the Green Line.
I know this discussion is over a year old but these issues never die down.
Celine, please take a look at Google maps here (Google map of Modiin) and see for yourself that Modiin is not located over the 1949 Armistice line and thus not an "illegal settlement".
You could see very clearly that modiin is to the left of the line i.e. west of the west bank.
Also there are plenty of roads that arrive at Modiin without going through the West Bank.
Maybe it helps to stop being a palestinian apologist from time to time and think clearly before you post a hateful comment.
Btselem is not a credible source for anything related to Israel as they are known for fudging data and information solely to further the palestinian cause.