When asked by the head of our טב list for City Council -- Deputy Mayor Chagit Moshe - what I wanted to work on as a City Councilor, one answer I offered was to focus on sustainability in Jerusalem. Sustainable building, increased green spaces, more bike lanes, innovative environmental initiatives (maybe helping Synagogues interested in going green do so with training/subsidies/incentives). Part of my motivation behind this concern will be read in Synagogues across the country next week when we begin Sefer Bereishit, in which of course God commands Adam -- and all his descendants (that's us) -- to be a good steward of the world God created.
Towards that end, let me share with you an interesting proposal Noah Efron, a candidate for City Council in Tel Aviv, just offered:
"Carbon-energy neutrality: The list of Tel Aviv-Jaffa municipality property spans 165 pages and includes thousands of properties. In the next five years it is possible to equip the municipal buildings with solar systems, and build energy storage facilities, to make the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality the first municipality in the country to have energy carbon neutrality. The Municipality of Sydney, in Australia, reached this goal already in 2007, and the Municipality of Melbourne achieved the goal in 2012. Why not in Tel Aviv-Jaffa?"
I ask, why not Jerusalem?
I've decided to share this suggestion for a few reasons.
First, the idea is interesting by itself and deserves some consideration as Jerusalem seeks to become a (sustainable) Light unto the Nations.
Second, it highlights another idea I'd like to pursue as a City Councilor -- namely, fulfilling the adage of our Sages that "Who is wise? The one who learns from everyone." If someone has a great idea - wherever they may be, and whoever they may represent - we should listen and learn. More than that, we should scour the world looking for those good ideas. And even more than that, we should be a convener of those good ideas and a source from which those same ideas go out and influence the entire world. I believe Jerusalem is the center of the world, and as such, it could play an important role of bringing civic leaders together from throughout the world to discuss, share and learn from one another about the most compelling insights into local governance. The cross germination of ideas will not only bring new thinking and innovative policies for the benefit of all - including Jerusalem - but will also allow Jerusalem to fulfill an additional role of 'connecting' the whole world. I often say that Jerusalem should be the opposite from Las Vegas (in more ways than one). There, the expression is "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas." For us, it should be the opposite: What happens in Jerusalem should go out and impact positively the entire world. In other words, while our primary focus must of course be on the specific local needs of our city, we must nevertheless endeavor to 'punch above our weight' and influence beyond our borders as well. But the first step towards that vision is listening and learning from everyone.
Finally, sharing this insight allows me the opportunity to articulate my vision of political life. For many, I fear, politics is akin to war. In war, allowing even the smallest victory for your opponent might weaken one's position, and therefore no mercy is permitted. Demeaning one's opponent is therefore an appropriate strategy. Certainly ignoring his or her proposals is de rigueur. For me, though, I think of politics as a hevruta. Yes, there are times when two people studying Torah have to argue with one another, maybe even yell, each promoting and defending their respective position. But the result of that jousting - or as a Rabbi of mine once described it: two swords clashing with one another - is that both swords become sharper at the end of the battle. The arguing is not to 'beat' the other person, but to clarify and improve one's own view and in the process bring both parties closer to truth. In city political life, that 'truth' should be better services and better lives for our citizens.
Noah Efron, the person behind the environmental idea suggested above, is running as the Green representative in Tel Aviv, a party affiliated with Meretz in those elections. If he were running in Jerusalem, he undoubtedly would be running on a party different than my own. But that doesn't mean we would be at war with another. Rather, I'd like to imagine we'd be in Hevruta with one another.
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