By Harvey Michaels, Beth Israel Congregation Green Team
The Jewish Earth Alliance (jewishearthalliance.org) (JEA) is part of a growing wave of Jewish climate activism that treats environmental protection not only as a political issue but as a moral obligation rooted in Jewish tradition. Formed as a national, volunteer-driven network, the Alliance helps Jews across the country speak directly to federal lawmakers about climate policy—something its founders saw missing from both the Jewish communal landscape and the broader climate movement. Each month, the group issues action alerts tied to federal legislation, offering concise background briefings and step-by-step guidance for contacting members of Congress.
JEA also organizes two national lobby days per year, one around T’isha B’Av and the other around Tu B’shvat, where volunteers meet with congressional offices to advocate for emissions reductions, environmental justice, and investments in clean energy. Most meetings are half an hour long via Zoom. The tone is deliberately accessible: you don’t need to be a policy expert to participate, only someone who believes that protecting the planet is a Jewish responsibility.
The most recent lobby day was February 3. It was co-sponsored by 44 Jewish organizations across the country and drew 345 climate-concerned Jews who met with staff representing 55 Senate offices. Meetings were held with 34 Democrats, 19 Republicans, and both independents. The Michigan delegation met with staffers in Senators Elissa Slotkin’s and Gary Peters’s offices. Members of the Michigan delegation were from B’nai Israel and Beth Israel Congregation (Conservative), Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, Temple Kol Ami (Reform), Adamah, and the National Council of Jewish Women. Previous lobbying efforts have included members of Temple Beth Emeth in Ann Arbor and Congregation T’Chiyah in Ferndale.
We presented three requests to each senator:
- Strengthen FEMA by supporting and improving the FEMA Independence Act of 2025 (S.1246),
- Restore the Residential Clean Energy Credit and the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit, which were eliminated under H.R.1 (The One Big Beautiful Bill Act), and
- Support the prohibition of offshore drilling.
Although the political deck is stacked against us at this time, things change, and it is important for Republican senators to know that they have pro-environment constituents and for Democratic senators to know that we support them.