Nigel Savage
“If you asked many of our participants and our leaders, ‘Which is more important to you, having a Jewish impact or having an impact in terms of sustainable food systems or the environment?’ people scratch their head and say, ‘Why do I have to choose?’” That’s Nigel Savage talking to the Forward in March about Hazon, the Jewish environmental organization he heads.
A study on Jewish outdoor, food and environmental education had just put numbers on a trend Savage had observed for a while: More and more people participate in such programs, and for many, it’s what keeps them connected to their Jewish heritage.
Savage, 53, who hails from Manchester, England, founded Hazon in New York City in 2000. Since its inception, the organization (now with offices in San Francisco, Philadelphia, San Diego, Denver and Boulder, Colorado) has been a driving force raising Jewish environmental awareness.
In 2014, Hazon’s merger with the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, of which Savage had been a longtime board member, went into effect. The enlarged organization now also includes the Elat Chayyim Center for Jewish Spirituality, which has been a part of Freedman since 2006, and the Teva Learning Center.
For 5775, Savage, through Hazon, has brought the obscure practice of Shmita — the biblical Sabbatical year — into the 21st century, making it accessible and attractive to Jews of diverse backgrounds. Hazon brought the idea into the wider public eye, because, as its homepage suggests, “[t]he possibilities for social change are thrilling.”
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
