MembersIsrael and Climate Change

Through the use of science and technology we are better able today to understand the phenomenon of climate change, and how humans are responsible for harming God’s creation through carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

In Israel, climate change is not a hot topic. Even if temperatures are rising, especially in the summer, most people just aren’t bothered by it. The topic does get some coverage in the local media, but is never a leading headline. “That’s why we have air conditioners at home working overtime,” two friends recently told me. Most folks just don’t care if temperatures rise by one or two degrees on average. But this warming has resulted in things like glaciers and polar ice caps melting.

Incidentally, the average temperature in Israel has risen twice as much as in the rest of the world. Since 1980, the average world temperature has risen by 1.18 degrees, in Israel by 2.1 degrees. In the years leading up to 2100, Israeli climate researchers conclude that temperatures will continue to rise and rainfall will decrease. Israeli studies foresee...