Originally from London, Jacqueline Rose made aliyah ten years ago after receiving a Master's Degree in Environmental Studies from London University. Initially a volunteer with the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI), Jacqueline went on to a storied career in the environmental field, including stints with the Judaism and Environment Think Tank at Machon Lev and the Ministry of Environment, before returning to SPNI as the Green Map Coordinator.

What is the story behind the Green Map? How did it come to be and how did it come to Jerusalem? The Green Map is an international concept. It began in New York - the current Green Map headquarters - around 1995 and has since expanded so that today there are nearly 450 officially recognized Green Maps throughout the world. The Green Map is an attempt to map all social, environmental and cultural sites that cannot be found on a regular tourist map.

The Jerusalem Green Map began in about 2002, after SPNI heard about the Toronto Green Map and thought the concept would work well in Israel. We began collecting data in 2003 and launched the website in 2006. The Jerusalem Green Map is the first Green Map in Israel. In fact, it’s the first Green Map in the entire Middle East. There are currently plans to create Green Maps for Rishon LeTzion and Tel Aviv, but right now we are still the only Israeli Green Map.

Who is the Green Map aimed at? What is it trying to do? The Green Map is for both residents and tourists, for people who want to learn how to enjoy the city in an environmentally friendly way and for people who come to the city often and are looking to do something a little different. There are sites on the Green Map that you won't find elsewhere. For example, the Green Map lists bicycle routes in city, cultural fairs and community gardens. We're trying to emphasize local activities that people might not be aware of. There are over 850 different sites listed on the map – and because it's an internet map, it's very dynamic and is constantly being updated by numerous volunteers. If somebody notices that a site has closed down or a new one has opened up, we can update the map without having to wait for the next printing.

Nearly every morning the municipality waters not only the lawns of Sacher Park, but its pavement as well. We know how important it is to keep the park nice, especially after the weeks of abuse it has taken during the spring holiday season, but with the Sea of Galilee at dangerously low levels, it would be nice if the Jerusalem city government would take water consumption a bit more seriously.

While the municipality may be a little too lenient with our water, there are reports of solid plans to use our refuse. Yes, as is the custom of Jerusalem City Hall, a great plan has been put in order! This time the plan is to use the methane gas from the Abu Dis trash dump. So much methane is produced by our garbage that the trash dump has decided to offer us something in return. As reported by YNet:

An examination by the Afik Company on behalf of the municipality showed that considerable amounts of methane can be drawn from the dump. According to estimates, this amount would be 84,755 cubic feet per hour – to suffice in producing electricity for thousands of consumers. The factory producing and selling this form of electricity to the Israel Electrical Company is expected to earn about $5.4 million in profits. Methane is accumulated during the decomposition process taking place in dump sites over several years. By inserting pipes deep into the dump, the gas can be pumped and turned into energy.

So we're going to outsource a plant to take energy from our trash and sell it to the Electric Company. And who will ultimately profit from the project? Will Jerusalemites see their electric or arnona (municipal tax) bills going down anytime in the near future? Don't hold your breath.

Photo of Sacher Park's well-watered sidewalks by Greg Tepper.

Jerusalem has been stimulating the souls of artists since the first paeans to her beauty in the Hebrew Bible, and with nearly 41 years gone since reunification and 60 gone since becoming the capital of the new state of Israel, the city begs for a new round of artistic commemorations. And right on cue, the Municipality, in conjunction with the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel and the Alrov company, is rolling out Israel Draws Jerusalem, a large art display going up in the Mamilla Mall on June 1, in honor of Jerusalem Day (Yom Yerushalayim).

The initiative gathered 70 artists from all over Israel, hailing from nearly every major sector of society - Israeli natives, new immigrants, secular Jews, religious Jews, Charedi Jews and Arabs - and plunked them down in front of the Valley of the Deer, a broad valley in the heart of Jerusalem, near the Begin expressway, that has been allowed to retain its green character and serve as home to a small herd of eponymous mammals. Each artist produced a drawing or painting of the valley, committing to canvas his or her own unique viewpoint, aesthetic sensibilities and feelings for Jerusalem.

The paintings will be displayed starting from 18:00 on June 1 in the Mamilla Mall's Open Gallery. The exhibition, free and open to the public, will remain throughout the entire month of June.

Drawing by Dudu Panso, courtesy of the Department of the Arts, Municipality of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem might have a delicious root named after it, but the city is also the namesake for a griddled chicken innards dish.

World Vegetarian Week, which started yesterday, is certainly a much bigger deal in other cities, where restaurants jump on the activism bandwagon, but here in Jerusalem, where green living is on the rise, there are still plenty of options for vegetarian dining, including local favorites Te'enim and the Village Green - that is, should one choose to go that way.

Beyond places that market themselves as strictly vegetarian, our city is also loaded with a cornucopia of options for meatless dining, thanks to the popularity of kosher certification, which dictates that if you serve dairy, dead flesh in the kitchen is a nischt-nischt.

Noisy neighbors are no fun no matter where you live, but in Jerusalem, they have the potential of becoming a special kind of nuisance. Many of us live in buildings that are close together, and when Middle Eastern temperaments flare, the cacophony of enraged parents and crying children often becomes inescapable for a radius of several blocks. Of course, Israel's national bird is the construction crane (nyuk nyuk), so professional noise-makers can do their own breed of damage as well. And with Jerusalmite's offices located on the midrechov, street "musicians" and "performers" can also make concentration a challenge. 

Some of us have tried to take matters into our own hands, confronting noise pollution offenders, calling the Echut Hasvivah (quality of the environs) authorities -- or even calling the Police, but the results are always the same: continued noise and escalated levels of infuriation.

Apparently the elderly lobby still wields some power around here, though. While most Israeli laborers (and even some branches of banks) have moved away from the old-European custom of the mid-afternoon siesta, a new local Police squad has been established to enforce the quiet between 2 and 4 p.m. For more on the subject, check out this video news feature from the new Haaretz.com TV, which doubles as a delightful spoof of everyone's favorite reality program, Cops.