קנאק זוכה לחשיפה גדולה לאור קירבתו לבני האדם. (צילום: facebook.com/thecrowandI)
העורב שזכה לכינוי קנאק זוכה לחשיפה גדולה בתקשורת וברשתות חברתיות לאור קירבתו לאזרחי העיר, והמעשים היוצאי דופן שמאפיינים אותו. לפני כשנתיים (במהלך חודש מאי 2015) בהיותו גוזל קנאק נפל מקן ונמצא על ידי ילד במזרח ונקובר, שגידל אותו בביתו ודאג לו מדי יום. כשהגיע הזמן לשחרר את העורב בחזרה לטבע התרחש דבר יוצא דופן. צעיר בשם שון ברגמן שהוא דייר ששוכר דירה מאביו של הילד הלך ‘ביום השחרור’ לצפות כיצד העורב הצעיר משתלב בחייו החדשים, בפארק הייסטינג שליד ביתו. משהבחין בו העורב הוא עף הישר אליו והתיישב על כתפו. מאז ברגמן והעורב הם חברים קרובים בלב ובנפש ומבלים שעות רבות יחדיו מדי יום.
ברגמן העניק לחברו העורב את השם קנאק והתקין טבעת פלסתיק אדומה על רגלו השמאלית, כך שניתן יהיה לזהות אותו בקלות, למרות שהוא משתייך לקהילת העורבים הגדולה של אזור ונקובר. ברגמן העלה אף דף בפייסבוק לציפור שנקרא “קנאק ואני”, בו הוא מתעד את מעשיו של העורב הכי מדובר בוונקובר. למעלה משמונים אלף גולשים עוקבים מקרוב אחרי מעשיו של קנאק שמתועדים בתמונות ובסרטי וידאו קצרים. במקביל אמצעי החדשות המקומיים מסקרים כל הזמן את מעשיו של העורב, שזכה אף במספר מקרים חשיפה עולמית.
קנאק שוהה בלילה בטבע בחברת חבריו. בכל בוקר בסביבות שבע הוא ממתין לחברו ברגמן ליד דלת ביתו ומלווה אותו בדרכו לתחנת האוטובוס הסמוכה, בדרך למקום עבודתו. ברגמן מנצל כל רגע פנוי שלו לשהות במחיצת חברו העורב ואכן הם מבלים שעות רבות יחדיו כמעט כל יום. הם משחקים יחדיו, הולכים יחדיו לכל מקום והעורב לא פעם שוהה בביתו של ברגמן. השכנים מתעניינים בקנאק ובאים כל הזמן לצפות בעשיו המצחיקים. כיוון שגדל כגוזל בביתו של הילד קנאק רגיל לחברת בני האדם, הוא אינו פוחד מהם והם יכולים אף ללטף אותו ולגעת בו כמו כל חיית מחמד אחרת.
קנאק זכה לחשיפה תקשורתית ראשונה בעת שהתיישב על צווארו של צעיר שרכב על אופניים בקרבת ביתו של ברגמן. האירוע צולם ע”י ברגמן והועלה בפייסבוק. תחילה הכל חשבו שהעורב מתקיף את הצעיר ותגובות נזעמות פורסמו בתגובה לסרטון. ברגמן הסביר (למי שהתבונן מקרוב) שקנאק לא פגע בצעיר, אלא פשוט היה סקרן לדעת מה יש בתיקו. אז הוא החליט לתעד את מעשיו של קנאק בקביעות באמצעות דף בפייסבוק, כדי ליצור מודעות שהעורב שגר בשכונה ידידותי לאנשים ולא מתקיף אותם. במקביל לסרטונים שברגמן צלם, הציבור הרחב שפוגש את קנאק במקומות שונים ומשונים ברחבי העיר מצלם אותו, ומעלה את הסרטונים ביוטוב. קנאק צולם כשהו גונב מפתחות, גונב כרטיסים של הגרלה בפארק שעשועים, נוסע ברכבת הקלה, מבקר במסעדת מקדונלדס ועוד.
קנאק הגדיל לעשות כאשר גנב סכין מגואלת בדם מזירת פשע במזרח ונקובר. התמונה של עורב עף כאשר הסכין עם הדם נעוצה בפיו זכתה לסיקור חדשותי ברחבי העולם. מה שהפך את קנאק לווי.איי.פי של ממש. לאור מעשה זה מספר הגולשים שעוקבים אחריו קפץ בן לילה בכחמישים אלף.
ברגמן אומר שבזכותו של קנאק הוא הפך למוכר ורבים עוצרים ושואלים אותו שאלות על העורב חברו הטוב. ברגמן מציין כי למזלו הוא מצא לו כחבר כה קרוב והעורב הפך את חייו לשמחים ומאושרים. הוא אומר: “בזכותו העולם הפך להיות נפלא כל כך. אני חייב לו הרבה”.
טרנד חדש: גידול משמעותי במספר המהגרים מישראל לקנדה. (צילום: DrRandomFactor)
מספר מבקשי המקלט יוצאי אפריקה שעזבו את ישראל ועברו לקנדה עלה משמעותית מתחילת שנה זו (2017), לעומת שנת 2016. זאת לפי נתוני רשות האוכלוסין וההגירה של ישראל. כך מפרסם עיתון הארץ.
בהתאם לנתוני הרשות בחלק הראשון של שנת 2017 היגרו לקנדה מישראל קרוב לאלף אפריקאים. רובם המוחלט (כתשעים אחוז) הם יוצאי אריתראה והשאר מסודן (כשישה אחוזים) וממדינות נוספות (גם כן כשישה אחוזים). זאת לעומת כתשע מאות יוצאי שתי המדינות שעזבו את ישראל ועברו לקנדה בכל שנת 2016.
המהגרים מישראל לקנדה מקבלים כאן מעמד חוקי במסגרת התוכניות לקליטת פליטים. ממשלת קנדה מעניקה להם תושבות קבע מיד עם נחיתתם באחד משדות התעופה הבינלאומיים המקומיים, כולל זכויות סוציאליות מלאות וכן גם ביטוח בריאות (מדובר ביתרון משמעותי על פני מי שמהגר לארה”ב). לאחר שלוש שנים מלאות של מגורים בקנדה מהגרים אלה יכולים להתחיל בהליך לקבל בקשה לקבלת אזרחות מקומית קבועה.
כיום קנדה היא יעד מספר אחד של מבקשי מקלט שמבקשים להגר מישראל לאחת ממדינות המערב. אחריה במרחק רב נמצאות: הולנד, שוודיה, ארה”ב ונורבגיה. בסך הכל במחצית השנה הראשונה של 2017 כאלף שלוש מאות יוצאי אפריקה עברו מישראל לאחת ממדינות המערב. לעומת זאת יש ירידה במספר יוצאי אפריקה שחוזרים לגור בארצות המוצא שלהם.
קנדה הפכה ליעד מספר אחד למהגרים האפריקאים בשל מדיניותה הנוחה לאפשר להם להגיע לכאן, להיקלט ולקבל עזרה ואף להשתקע במדינה באופן קבוע. בין התנאים לקבלת המהגרים שמציבה ממשלת קנדה כיום: 1. מתברר שהמהגר לא יכול לחזור יותר לארצו 2. המהגר עובר בדיקות רפואיות מלאות 3. המהגר מפקיד עשרים וחמישה אלף שקל ערבות שיבטיחו כי הוא יוכל להתקיים בקנדה בשנה הראשונה (גם אם לא ימצא עבודה). 4. הגוף שמסייע להמהגר להיקלט מחוייב לדאוג לצרכים הבסיסיים שלו בשנה הראשונה.
לעומת קנדה מספר מבקשי המקלט בישראל ירד משמעותית בחמש השנים האחרונות, מאז 2012 – שהיתה שנת שיא במספר המהגרים האפריקאיים שהגיעו לארץ (מספרם נאמד אז בלמעלה מחמישים ושישה אלף איש). כיום חיים בישראל לפי הערכה באופן מורשה כשלושים ושמונה אלף מהגרים אפריקאים. ממשלת ישראל לוחצת בשנים האחרונות על המהגרים אלה לעזוב את המדינה ולחזור לארצם. מי שעוזב מקבל מענק מיוחד מהמדינה בגובה שלושת וחמש מאות דולר. ישראל כידוע מקשיחה את החוקים והתקנות נגד אזרחי היבשת השחורה בשנים האחרונות.
הקלות בוצעו בהסכמי היצוא והיבוא בין ישראל וקנדה
ישראל וקנדה חתמו לאחרונה על הסכם חדש להכרה הדדית בין התוכנית “גורם כלכלי מאושר” שמפעיל המכס בישראל, לבין תוכנית מקבילה שמפעילה רשות המכס הקנדית ונקראת “שותפים בהגנה”. על פי ההסכם החדש גורמים מאושרים ישראלים, מדובר מלמעלה ממאה גופים שעומדים בקריטריונים פיננסיים, בקריטריונים ביטחוניים ובתנאי החוק (בהם יצואנים, יבואנים, סוכני מכס, שמלחים בינלאומיים, נמלים ימיים, מסופים לוגיסטיים ועוד), שיזכו להקלות בהליכי כניסת טובין ושחרור הסחורות שלהם בקנדה. בנוסף מטעניהם יזכו לסיכון נמוך ובידוק דבר שיגרום לחסכון משמעותי הן בזמן והן בכסף. במקביל גורמים מאושרים קנדיים יזכו אף להקלות דומות בדומה לגורמים הישראליים.
יצוין כי זה ההסכם הרביעי שמדינת ישראל חותמת מאז שנת 2011 בתחום הקלות ביצוא וביבוא. לישראל יש כבר הסכמים דומים עם שלוש המדינות הבאות: ארה”ב, דרום קוריאה וטייוואן. מנהל המכס הישראלי נמצא בימים אלה בהליכים מתקדמים לחתום על הסכמים דומים עם מדינות נוספות בהן סין.
George Heyman, MLA for Vancouver-Fairview, and Selina Robinson, MLA for Coquitlam-Maillardville, were elevated to cabinet. (photos courtesy of George Heyman and Selina Robinson, respectively)
Caviar and Lace entertain the audience at the final Empowerment Series session of the season. (photo by Stan Shear)
The fourth and final session of this season’s Jewish Seniors Alliance Snider Foundation Empowerment Series was held in partnership with Kehila Society in Richmond and the Jewish Museum and Archives of British Columbia on June 26. About 150 people came out to Beth Tikvah Synagogue for what was called A Day in the Life of Israel.
The theme of the season was “Eating Our Way Through Jewish History: Food, the Doorway to Our Culture” and the lunch, catered by Stacey Kettleman consisted of hummus, falafel, pita, Israeli salad, couscous, and cake for dessert.
After lunch, everyone moved to the sanctuary, where JSA president Ken Levitt welcomed everyone, reiterating the new JSA motto, “Seniors, stronger together.”
Michael Schwartz of the Jewish Museum reflected on the JSA-JMABC partnership for this season’s series featuring Jewish food, and introduced the guest artists.
Caviar and Lace, featuring Saul Berson and Michele Carlisle, were superb. Carlisle on keyboard and Berson on clarinet, saxophone and flute, got everyone moving, clapping and singing to Hebrew and Yiddish melodies. There were renditions of “Hinei Ma Tov” in two parts and “Heiveinu Shalom Aleichem.” The concert ended with a medley of wedding songs.
Toby Rubin of Kehila Society thanked the guest musicians and everyone for coming. It was a fitting end to a great season, which started in November 2016 with Sholom Aleichem Seniors of the Peretz Centre for Secular Culture, and was followed by the second session in January with JCC Seniors and the third at the Unitarian Centre in April.
Shanie Levinis a member of the Jewish Seniors Alliance board.
Robin Esrock speaks at the Jewish Family Service Agency’s Seniors Lunch program. (photo from JFSA)
Well-known travel writer Robin Esrock gave an inspirational talk to the Jewish Family Service Agency’s Seniors Lunch program, which took place at Congregation Beth Israel on July 11.
Esrock has written for several publications, has been a TV host and his book The Great Canadian Bucket List was on the bestseller list in Canada and Australia. He told the approximately 40 guests the story of how his adventure-focused career began and how he has been very fortunate in the unorthodox path he has chosen. He also shared his philosophy, which is “you are just where you are supposed to be.”
JFSA’s Seniors Lunch program comprises a kosher meal once a month at Beth Israel and twice a month at Temple Sholom on Tuesdays at noon. All Jewish seniors are welcome. For more information and reservations, call Queenie Hamovich at 604-558-5709.
Jeffrey and Elizabeth Nider, a local couple from Vancouver, were part of more than 200 North American immigrants to move to Israel on July 4. (photo from Nefesh b’Nefesh)
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The board of directors of Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and the board of governors of the Jewish Community Foundation are pleased to announce the appointment of Marcie Flom to the position of executive director of the foundation. Marcie brings more than 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience to the role.
Marcie Flom (photo from Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver)
Marcie previously served as both director of JCF and vice-president, financial resource development, of Jewish Federation, where she was responsible for the revenue functions of the organization, including the annual campaign, special projects and corporate funding of nearly $15 million annually. Prior to that, she had a consulting practice and held leadership roles at the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company and the National Ballet of Canada.
“I am very pleased to welcome Marcie into her new role,” said Ezra Shanken, chief executive officer of Federation. “Marcie has extensive development and planned giving experience, along with a solid record in major gift fundraising, which perfectly positions her to lead the foundation through the next phase of growth.”
“I am thrilled with Marcie’s appointment and look forward to continuing our strong working relationship,” said Judi Korbin, chair of the foundation’s board of governors. “In addition to her decades of experience and stellar track record, Marcie’s work is characterized by her donor-centric approach. On behalf of the board of governors, I would like to say that the Jewish Community Foundation is extremely fortunate to have Marcie as its new executive director.”
This newly created role is one of several outcomes of the strategic planning process recently undertaken by JCF under the leadership of Korbin and with professional guidance from a strategic management and development consultant. It is a central component of the three-year operational plan approved by Jewish Federation’s board of directors and adopted by the foundation’s board of governors. The foundation’s new strategic and operational plans were driven by Jewish Federation’s 2020 Strategic Priorities, and will serve to support the organization’s overall goals of generating the resources required to address the community’s current, emerging and future needs.
“The foundation is investing in resources, including full-time staff for the first time since the economic downturn in 2008. Re-investing in staff resources will enable the Jewish Community Foundation to grow, which is critical to the long-term viability of the Jewish community. The board of governors remains committed to ensuring the philanthropic goals of the foundation’s fund holders are fulfilled, that our community organizations are strengthened and that the continuity of the Jewish community is ensured through legacy planning,” said Korbin.
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At the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver’s annual general meeting on June 20, Karen James became the new board chair, while Stephen Gaerber is now immediate past chair. Marcie Flom was appointed executive director of the Jewish Community Foundation and Diane Switzer was appointed an honorary life director of Federation. The Young Leadership Award was presented to Bryan Hack and Mike Sachs, the Elaine Charkow Award to Lisa Pullan for her ongoing leadership role in women’s philanthropy and the inaugural Bob Coleman Award to Risa Levine for her leadership role on the local allocations committee, positively impacting Federation’s partner agencies.
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Rabbi Philip Gibbs (photo from Congregation Har El)
Rabbi Philip Gibbs is the new spiritual leader of Congregation Har El in West Vancouver.
Gibbs grew up in Marietta, Ga. He went to college at Washington University in St. Louis and graduated in 2012 with a double major in Hebrew and humanities. After college, he attended rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary, receiving a master of arts in Talmud and rabbinic ordination in 2017. During his time at JTS, he had the opportunity to work in different synagogues and appreciated the warmth and mutual support in synagogue communities.
Following his love of the outdoors, Gibbs led the Jewish Outdoor Leadership Institute at Ramah in the Rockies, and is looking forward to hiking and skiing in the Vancouver area. He served as the secretary to the Committee on Jewish Laws and Standards. Playing violin since childhood, he also had the opportunity to join the JTS house band, the Committee on Jewish Music and Standards, for celebratory occasions.
The entire community is invited to come and meet Gibbs at a Shabbat dinner at Har El on July 28. For more information about the event, click here.
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A true mensch resides in the Vancouver Jewish community, and that person is Aria Smordin. Aria has just returned from a gap year in Israel and, while there, did something that greatly impacted the lives of children with special needs in Jerusalem. Aria participated in the Shalva Ambassadors Program, investing time and energy volunteering at the Shalva National Centre.
At the centre, life-changing services are provided to thousands of flourishing kids every year. As an ambassador, Aria not only volunteered every week, but was responsible for bringing in new volunteers. Many of them ran the Jerusalem Marathon for Shalva, threw parties for the Shalva kids (where they all danced like crazy) and sleepovers, and even got their hands dirty painting the recycling centre and working in the therapeutic garden.
Aria’s choice to be in a position of giving is a true inspiration to us all.
In Aria’s own words, “Volunteering at Shalva was rewarding, uplifting and gratifying. There is a strong feeling of love and homey-ness that permeates the entire (beautiful) building. From the first time I visited Shalva, to all the times I came back to volunteer, these feelings always remained the same. The service Shalva provides and the care they take in doing so is inspiring. I am truly thankful that I was able to assist in carrying out their mission.”
Thank you, Aria. We at the Shalva National Centre are looking forward to seeing what you do next and to writing about next year’s fleet of mensches from Vancouver!
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Jeffrey and Elizabeth Nider, a local couple from Vancouver, were part of more than 200 North American immigrants to move to Israel on July 4, on a chartered Nefesh b’Nefesh flight, the organization responsible for removing or minimizing the financial, professional, logistical and social obstacles of immigration to Israel.
The charter flight took off from JFK Airport in New York City and is in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth Le’Israel and Jewish National Fund-USA.
The Niders will be moving to Beit Shemesh with their four children, ages 10, 7, 5 and 2. Both Jeff and Elizabeth will enrol in Hebrew classes and Jeff will be looking for work in pharmaceutical sales or in business development for a medical startup.
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The 35th Annual Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards were held on June 26 at the Commodore Ballroom, saluting excellence in theatre. Among the winners was Itai Erdal for O’wet/Lost Lagoon, presented by Alley Theatre in association with Full Circle: First Nations Performance, in the category of outstanding lighting design, small theatre.
With numerous theatre companies in the small theatre category, eight companies earned a Jessie, with Reelwheels (Rena Cohen, managing artistic director) leading the group with total of three for their production of Creeps, which co-starred David Bloom and David A. Kaye. The winners were Lauchlin Johnston for outstanding set design; the production itself for outstanding production of a play; and, for significant artistic achievement, Paul Beckett, Bloom, Genevieve Fleming, Brett Harris, Kaye, Aaron Roderick and Adam Grant Warren, recognized for outstanding ensemble performance.
Among the nominees for other awards in the small theatre category were Erdal for Walt Whitman’s Secret, the frank theatre company (outstanding lighting design) and Cande Andrade for am a, Mindy Parfitt and Amber Funk Barton Present (significant artistic achievement, outstanding innovation in video design).
In the large theatre category, Ryan Beil was nominated for outstanding performance by an actor in a lead role (Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, Arts Club Theatre Company), Erdal for outstanding lighting design (Moonlodge, Urban Ink) and Amir Ofek for outstanding set design (Pericles, Bard on the Beach).
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In recent decades, many individuals and organizations in Germany have raised awareness of a once-vibrant Jewish history and culture in their communities through educational programs, exhibitions, restoration of synagogues and cemeteries, installation of Holocaust memorials, genealogical research, development of websites, publications, stolpersteine, public programs and other activities. They have forged meaningful relationships with former residents and descendants of those who once lived in their towns. They are teachers and engineers, publishers and judges, artists and bankers, lawyers and business executives, and they come from every corner of the country. These volunteers have devoted countless hours to such projects.
The Obermayer Awards recognize and encourage those who have been devoted to such activities and bring international attention to their work. Five individuals and/or organizations are honoured each year.
The award program was initiated in 2000 by Dr. Arthur S. Obermayer and the awards are co-sponsored by the Berlin Parliament and the Leo Baeck Institute. They will be given in the Parliament’s Plenary Chamber on Jan. 22, 2018, as its principal Holocaust Memorial Day event. They follow in the tradition of recognizing righteous gentiles who protected Jews during the Holocaust.
Many American Jews have been beneficiaries of the work of these dedicated Germans, and the majority of the nominators have been American Jews – Canadians are also eligible to receive the award.
For more information, visit obermayer.us/award. A hard copy of the call for nominations can be requested by sending a letter to the attention of Betty Solbjor, Obermayer Foundation, 15 Grey Stone Path, Dedham, MA, 02026, or by email to [email protected]. The deadline for submission this year is Sept. 12.
The four lines in this diagram are projections based on four levels of fertility of the general population. In 2059, there could be more than 20 million people in the state of Israel. However, if the birthrate drops to the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman during her lifetime, in 2059, it would be only about 10 million. (image from population.org.il)
While by no means unique to Israel, with less space than most to work with, it is happening a little faster there – population overload. While some feel it is too late to do anything to alleviate the problem, one growing group of Israelis is putting its energy into making a bid to re-educate the public about the need for stabilization, as opposed to growth.
One of the leaders in the group is Prof. Alon Tal, chair of the department of public policy at Tel Aviv University (TAU). Tal was born and raised in North Carolina before making aliyah after high school, at the age of 20.
“I’m an activist trapped in the body of an academic,” he quipped. “For many years, I fought it, but I tried very hard to stay an advocate for environmental interests in the country.”
A father to three daughters, Tal decided to move to Israel, as it seemed like a unique and exciting place, and he wanted to take his Jewish identity seriously.
“In Israel, every year, we take open spaces and turn them into houses, highways and commercial centres,” he told the Jewish Independent. “We live in a small country. We have the responsibility to give quality of life, to find a better way. We’re not meeting our responsibility to our great land.”
Tal is at the forefront of Israeli leaders calling on the Israeli government to adopt a policy that stabilizes the population.
“We have to cancel financial payments to families with more than two children,” he said. “We should not be encouraging it [larger families]. It means that we need to strengthen the status of women in the communities, like in the Orthodox communities. We need to make contraception available free of charge, [grant] basic rights of women to abortion, by removing some of the strings attached…. We need a policy that [aims for] stability, rather than maximum growth.”
While most Israeli Jews are raised with the fear that the Arab population will outgrow the Jewish one, Tal is trying to make people aware that there are lower fertility levels being seen in most populations, including Arab ones, while Jewish are on the rise.
A main thrust to all this need for change, Tal said, is the alarming rate of vanishing nature.
“To me, it’s very clear,” he said. “Israel’s wildlife is disappearing. It’s happening faster than I thought it would. If we had 10,000 gazelles 15 years ago, there are only about 2,500 now and they were just declared endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Pretty much, when you go through that report, you can see everything is on the decline. One-third of mammalian species are described as endangered or extinct. It’s a horrible thing that Israel is letting this happen. I don’t want anyone to [be able to say] they didn’t know this was going on.”
When the Independent contacted Tal to be interviewed for this article, he was en route to the official opening of a new museum at TAU – Israel’s Museum of Natural History.
Tal has helped write new laws and has also been involved, indirectly, with Israel’s National Nature Assessment Program (NNAP). Recently, the first State of Nature report came out, explaining how construction and agricultural development have introduced some invasive species to Israel – to the extent that several bird species in southern Israel can no longer survive.
NNAP has established a program that operates out of the new museum, as part of a joint initiative with Jewish National Fund Israel, the Environmental Protection Ministry, and Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Its mission is to promote proper land management based on the science of open areas with Israel’s biological diversity in mind.
“It’s not a policy thing,” said Tal. “We want to save wildlife, set aside land, create ecological corridors, stop hunting and stabilize population growth.”
Although Tal acknowledged that the need to do these things is not news to many people, he is adamant that it must continuously be communicated in different ways to get to the tipping point of producing change.
“I was on television three times this week,” he said. “Every time I’m there, I mention what’s going on. I’m doing what I can do. Everyone needs to make a contribution.
“This is really about a change in Israel’s cultural DNA. We were raised on maximum population growth. We now have to stabilize. We have to tell people that, if we want to be responsible for other species that means we have to stop the incredible hemorrhaging of open spaces. If we don’t, then there won’t be any more nature.”
Tal plans to keep meeting with every willing influential person in order to educate enough people to swing the pendulum towards restoring nature. He anticipates that the new museum will be helpful in this regard.
“In order to change something, you have to know,” said Tal. “You have to look at the habitats, species logs, and take measures there. Anybody who considers Israel a promised land or has an emotional attachment to this holy place – Christian, Muslim, Jewish – we all share this responsibility. Just like how I make contributions for the Amazon rainforest, because I understand how it affects me. If you have an initiative you feel connected to, you should support it. Come to Israel and get involved, go on vacation and get involved, write letters to Israel’s decision-makers letting them know you expect the Jewish state to be a responsible trustee of its nature.”
בית המשפט לזכויות האדם במחוז קוויבק קבע בפסק דין תקדימי, כי מעצב שיער יהודי ממונטריאול ששמו ריצ’רד זילברג, יכול לעבוד גם בשבתות כבקשתו. בית המשפט אף קבע לזילברג (בן החמישים וארבע) פיצויים בהיקף של 12,500 דולר.
זילברג שימש ספר שכיר במספרה סלון אורזן של איריס גריסי, שאף היא יהודייה, החל מחודש מאוקטובר 2011. זילברג עבד במספרה שישה ימים בשבוע כולל בשבת, שמתברר שהוא היום העמוס ביותר בשבוע.
במהלך חודש יולי 2012 גריסי הורתה לזילברג להפסיק לעבוד בשבתות, במסגרת מדיניות חדשה שלה שלא לאפשר לעובדיה היהודיים לעבוד ביום זה. גריסי אמרה לזילברג שלא לספר ללקוחות מדוע הוא הפסיק לעבוד בשבתות. זילברג חשב אחרת והוא כן סיפר ללקוחות שלו מדוע הוא אינו עובד עוד בשבתות, וזאת בשל היותו יהודי. גריסי שמעה על כך כחודש לאחר מכן מלקוח קבוע שהתלונן בפניה על כך מעצב השיער שלו לא עובד יותר בשבתות. הלקוח אף כעס עליה והתחיל לריב עימה. בשל כך גיריסי פיטרה מייד את זילברג והיא טענה אז כי הוא הפר את הסכם הסודיות שהיה לו עימה.
בצר לו פנה מעצב השיער היהודי תחילה לנציבות לזכויות האדם במונטריאול, שלאחר מכן פנתה בשמו לבית המשפט. זילברג אמר אז: “אני בן לעם היהודי ואני אוהב את האמונה שלי. אבל אני יכול לבחור איך אני רוצה לחיות את חיי”. גיריסי טענה מצידה בתגובה לטענותיו: “אני פשוט אינני יכולה להיות גזענית נגד זילברג כיוון שגם אני יהודייה. הסיבה לפיטורין שלו לא קשורה לטענתו כי אסרתי עליו לעבוד בשבתות, כי זה אינו נכון. אני פיטרתי אותו כי הוא לא היה אחראי והוא אף רב עם עובד אחר, בזמן שהם עבדו ביחד בשבתות. יש לזכור גם אני לפעמים עובדת בשבתות. אני לא מתכוונת לשלם לזילברג פיצויים, כיוון שאני מואשמת במשהו בטעות. אני לא אוותר ואלחם על כך גם בבית המשפט”. על טענותיה של הבוסית שלו לשעבר אמר זילברג בהחלטיות: “אולי איחרתי פעמיים לעבודה במשך עשרה חודשים, אך הרקע לפיטורים שלי ממש לא נעוץ בכך”. כיוון שגיריסי לא נענתה לדרישותיו של זילברג עד חודש אוקטובר 2015, התיק המשפטי הועבר לדיון בפני בית המשפט לזכויות האדם.
שופט בית המשפט, איוון נולן, קיבל את טענותיו של זילברג שבאיסור עליו לעבוד בשבתות גריסי פוגעת בזכויות החופש, המצפון והדת, כמו גם שמירה על כבודו וכן גם על הזיקה לכבד את חייו הפרטיים. מדובר גם על אפלייה על רקע דתי לעומת העובדים האחרים שאינם יהודים. כאמור השופט אף פסק פיצויים למעצב השיער בגובה של 12,500 דולר. חלוקת הפיצויים היא כדלקמן: 6,000 דולר עבור הנזק החומרני, 4,000 דולר עבור נזקים מוסריים ו-2,500 דולר עבור נזקי עונשים שנגרמו לו. יצויין שנציבות זכויות האדם שהגישה את התביעה מטעמו של זילברג, דרשה במקור פיצויים בהיקף של 20 אלף דולר. זילברג היה מאוכזב שסכום התביעה במלואו לא התקבל על ידי בית המשפט. אך מצד שני הוא ציין כי ההמתנה הארוכה בת החמש השנים להחלטתו של בית המשפט הייתה שווה. לדבריו בית המשפט קיבל את טענתו שאין לפגוע במה שהוא מאמין בו. הוא הוסיף: “בפילוסופיה היהודית אין מקום לאפלייה אפילו לעצמנו, אפילו בין יהודי ליהודי”. גריסי לא הגיבה עד כה לפסק הדין נגדה.
This JunoCam image highlights Oval BA. (photo from nasa.gov)
The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently released the first findings of the Juno research spacecraft, which entered Jupiter’s atmosphere last year.
The Weizmann Institute of Science’s Dr. Yohai Kaspi is a senior member of the Juno mission team. The reason why this research is so important, he said, is because it will allow us to better understand how the solar system was formed.
“To do that, we really need to understand Jupiter and how it was formed because, then, we can understand earth, in sequence,” said Kaspi.
Dr. Yohai Kaspi of the Weizmann Institute of Science. (photo from WIS)
For Kaspi, the fascination with space came at the early age of 7, when his dad shared some pictures of the Voyager I and II and took him stargazing. His interest grew from there, including when he was navigating in the Negev while in the Israel Defence Forces.
“My hobby growing up was competitive sailing,” said Kaspi. “That drew my interest into meteorology and understanding why the wind blows the way it does. Growing up in Nahariya, which borders Lebanon … all kinds of stuff [are] coming from Lebanon – currents, trash. It was very obvious where the wind or current was coming from and that connected to sailing.”
Kaspi studied math and physics at Hebrew University before heading to the United States, seeking adventure and a doctorate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Soon after, he was recruited to be a professor at the Weizmann Institute of Science.
While at MIT, Kaspi became connected to the Juno mission, developing instruments to help measure atmospheric conditions on Jupiter.
“I was interested in space and the weather,” said Kaspi. “I studied meteorology, as it kind of brings them together … [with] planetary science. We have planets, which resemble earth in some aspects, but we don’t understand their features and circulation.”
While Jupiter is by far the biggest planet in the solar system (11 times the diameter of earth) and has the greatest mass (300 times that of earth), it is a gas planet (i.e. it has no liquid or solid parts). Kaspi has studied Jupiter’s different weather zones and deltas.
“I developed a theory for understanding how deeply they extend,” said Kaspi. “When you look at Jupiter, you have this red and white belt, or zone. That’s all at the cloud level, so it condensates at the same temperature. But, we have no information what’s happening underneath them. What we needed was a global way to survey what was happening underneath the cloud layer. And that’s exactly what Juno is.
“During my PhD, I developed a new method to relate between the gravity field of the planet and the flows underneath this cloud layer. To understand Jupiter, we need to understand what’s happening in its interior.”
Kaspi has been involved with Juno since 2008, along with 30 to 40 other scientists who form the core of the mission, developing and designing the experiments, and interpreting the data.
This enhanced colour view of Jupiter’s south pole was created by citizen scientist Gabriel Fiset using data from the JunoCam on NASA’s Juno spacecraft. (photo from nasa.gov)
“We’re trying to deduce the depths of the flows from the gravity measurements of the planet,” explained Kaspi. “The purpose is to see what’s happening inside the planet. It has nine instruments and each one probes in different ways what is happening in the planet’s interior.
“One is a gravity instrument…. We send a beam from the spacecraft to earth. The beam travels 800 million kilometres and reaches earth. A desert in California captures that beam.
“We try to see the accelerations and decelerations of the spacecraft around the planet … trying to understand … the flow field and the gravity field of Jupiter.”
It was only when we first saw earth from space that we were able to understand the changing atmospheric conditions that are part of what is largely considered part of climate change, said Kaspi.
“We’d be able to understand how the solar system was formed, including earth,” he said of one of the project’s possible results. “For example, it’s really important for us to know if there’s a core inside Jupiter. A planet with a big or small core would have a different effect on the gravity field. When we measure the gravity field, we can deduce what’s happening deep inside the planet, which would lead us to different theories of how the solar system was formed.
“The connection to earth is we see the objects of Jupiter’s atmospheres … we don’t understand their strengths, how wide they are and how deep they are. We don’t have theories for that. If you want to have a good understanding of objects on earth, you have to look at the sister planet.”
The data-collecting portion of the Juno mission will come to a close at the end of this year. After 10 years of research and six orbits, the data will be analyzed to determine the direction of the mission going forward.
“We have already a lot of good data and we’re reaching a point where we can have significant results for understanding the structure, depths and composition of the atmosphere, but it’s a process,” said Kaspi. “Basically, we have one measurement every 53 days. So, every 53 days, I get my stuff and go to the U.S. and stay there for a week, analyzing the data and analyzing it for the rest of the 45 days, and then go back.”
Regardless of the results, Kaspi will continue the work he is doing at the Weizmann Institute on climate change and working on an instrument that will be sent to Jupiter on board the 2022 spacecraft being built by the European Space Agency.
“It will be the first Israeli instrument that will go beyond earth’s orbit,” said Kaspi. “That’s exciting. So, we’re involved in that and a variety of projects, trying to achieve fundamental understanding.”
As far as space exploration for the purpose of finding another planet fit for human dwelling, Kaspi said, “I’m just going to say that, if there is life in the solar system, it might be in the moons of Jupiter … because they have liquid water, a deep ocean, tens to hundreds of kilometres deep. Maybe there is life there.”
Vancouver Talmud Torah head of school Cathy Lowenstein Lowenstein addresses those gathered for the closing of this year’s Mitzvah of Valuing Philanthropy program. (photo by Jennifer Shecter-Balin)
On June 15, Grade 7 students at Vancouver Talmud Torah celebrated the close of the year’s Mitzvah of Valuing Philanthropy (MVP) program. Started by the late Sari Zack Weintraub Greenberg nine years ago, MVP integrates a curriculum of tikkun olam (repairing the world), rooted in traditional Jewish teachings, into the students’ educational experience.
Head of school Cathy Lowenstein said Greenberg’s work “revolutionized the school’s tikkun olam curriculum.” Greenberg encouraged the students to “lovingly expand their universe of obligation,” said Lowenstein. The program is something that the kids look forward to in their Grade 7 year, she continued, noting that “tikkun olam is a cornerstone of the school.”
Since its inception, the MVP program has raised a total of $220,000. This year’s 39 Grade 7 students raised an impressive $27,000. On top of this fundraising record, this year’s Tzedakah Project has also contributed $10,000 as a grant to “motivate and inspire” the kids to develop their passion for tzedakah (charity/justice) and chesed (loving kindness).
VTT MVP Ariel Lewinski and Judy Boxer of Chimp. (photo by Jennifer Shecter-Balin)
The MVP group expressed thanks to Cambridge Uniforms for their ongoing support of the program. This year also saw the involvement of Chimp representatives Judy Boxer and Ariel Lewinski, who offered support via the company to this generation of philanthropists. Boxer and Lewinski gave gift cards totaling $10,000 out to the members of the audience on June 15. Each card could be used to donate $100 to a charity of the recipient’s choice.
The MVP program is support by the Irma Zack MVP Endowment Fund, established by Dr. David Zack – Greenberg’s father – in memory of his late wife, and the original seed funding was donated by Sylvia and the late Lorne Cristall. It is through these funds that the school has been able to run MVP and other such initiatives.
The MVP students followed a careful process of selection of charities to support. They picked ethical commandments to work with, such as healing the sick, helping others in difficulty, or feeding the hungry. They researched the agencies that satisfied these criteria and found contacts with whom to work. Having interviewed these contacts, the kids then had 20 minutes to convince their class to contribute to their agencies, turning classrooms into boardrooms for allocation meetings.
Funds were donated to 24 different organizations this year, including household names like UNICEF and Magen David Adom, and local beneficiaries like the Vancouver Aquarium and Big Sisters. Students also selected Down Syndrome Research and CEASE, an agency that supports women victims of sexual exploitation and domestic violence.
Several students offered their perspectives on the MVP initiative to the Jewish Independent.
Asher Teperson described how “we assumed the roles of principal researchers, primary investigators, bankers and lawyers to assess the needs in our community and respond to them in concrete ways.” For the MVP students, this was a rite of passage. “We had a taste of what it means to become an adult in the eyes of the Jewish community,” said Asher.
Estie Kallner echoed these sentiments: “How often are 12- and 13-year-olds asked to make phone calls to strangers, conduct interviews in corporate offices, request clarification on financial matters and pester agency executives on their overhead costs?”
Julia Huber closed the program remarks with a reflection on how much they had grown through the experience. She described a group of “restless, nervous and confused” kids at the start of the program. However, she said, “with support and encouragement, not only did we embrace the challenge, but we exceeded even our own ambitious goals.”
As another student, Isabella Leipsic, observed, the program left them with a profound sense of their own “strength” in “moral decision-making.” She added, with thanks to the program, “our lives will never be the same.”
Shula Klingeris an author, illustrator and journalist living in North Vancouver. Find out more at niftyscissors.com.
