New course at Columbia’s Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies on the complexity of environmental sustainability and conflict in Israel

JWST G4610 Environment and Sustainability in Israel – Between the Local and the Regional

Call Number: 91198 Points: 4

Day/Time: R 6:10pm-8:00pm Location: TBD

Instructor: Shahar Sadeh

Since the establishment of the state of Israel, and even prior to it, the land has been subject to massive spatial and demographic change. Rapid development, mass immigration waves, high rates of natural growth, conflicts and wars, local and regional political processes, all created a complex web of environmental challenges and problems, as well as environmental achievements. Hence, Israel’s current environmental situation and the level of environmental protection that exists in it have much to do with past political decisions. Obviously, those decisions were influenced by the ongoing Israeli-Arab conflict.

By utilizing the concept of Sustainable Development the course will provide a bidirectional overview of environmental politics in Israel: We will explore the role of the environment in past and present political processes, and the way it was affected by such process. More specifically, the course will explore the relationship between the environment and Zionism as it was manifested during the nation-building process; Sustainable development in Israel; The environmental movement; Environmental education in Israel; Urbanism; The Israeli-Arab conflict and the environment; The role the environment in past peace negotiations; and the ways in which political conflicts create, sustain and escalate environmental problems.