Preserving and protecting the environment according to Jewish values
The Southern Arizona Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (SAZ COEJL) is THE Jewish environmental group in Tucson. We are proud to be a regional affiliate of the national COEJL organization, which is a member agency of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs.
Our mission
- As leaders in our Jewish community, we remind Tucson area Jews to be more aware of our immediate surroundings – in this way, we will all be better able to understand our impact on our local communities so that we can more clearly identify opportunities to care for our environment as shomrei adamah – stewards of the land.
- We preserve and protect the environment, with a little twist … we use the wisdom of Judaism to help inform our decisions and actions.
- We raise awareness in the community about the relationship between Judaism and the environment.
Our vision
- We’re known to every Jewish household, synagogue, and organization as THE source for information on Judaism and the environment.
- We’re called upon regularly to help those entities integrate concern for the environment into the fabric of individual and organizational lives.
- We’re known to the local media as THE group to talk about Judaism and the environment.
What do we do?
- As does our parent organization, the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), we ADVOCATE, EDUCATE, and MAKE A DIFFERENCE. We partner with the community on environmental mitzvot, doing tikkun olam for the planet.
- We create holiday rituals with an environmental flair.
- We participate in public space Judaism.
- We provide community programs on timely environmental issues.
- We can help you do a home or organizational energy audit.
- We’ll arrange faith-based and secular environmental film screenings, for any size audience.
- We’ll create a program for any group that invites us. We’ll send a speaker to talk about Judaism and the environment, too.
Take a tour through our site and find out more.
What’s In It For YOU?
If you want to know why being Jewish and caring about the environment is different than “just” caring about the environment, we’ll help you find that path.
- If you’re from a synagogue or other local organization, we can partner with you on environmental programs, help create eco-Shabbat services, join you on hikes, provide a guest speaker, and more.
- If you’re looking for information, our resources section directs you to links to and information about some of Tucson’s green vendors, suppliers, farmers’ markets and the like and some cool local and national environmental organizations.
- And, if you are a vendor or organization that we’ve not included, drop us a line and we’ll add you to the list.
Contact us!
Want to get in touch with us? Join our mailing list, which keeps you up to date on programs, volunteer opportunities, and general environmental news of note. Suggest programs we could sponsor or join with you as a partner. Send us comments or suggestions or additions for this site.
