Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

Arava Institute topic of discussion at Hillel

Amidst the violent turmoil in the Middle East, the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in Israel provides an educational resource for students of all faiths and nationalities.

Rabbi Michael Cohen, the director of the Institute’s North American office, will speak at 7:00 tonight at Hillel House about Arava’s benefits, and encourage University of Massachusetts students to study abroad at the Institute.

“The Institute was founded in recognition of the fact that the environmental issues facing each nation are not limited to the political boundaries we’ve placed on Mother Earth,” Cohen told The Collegian. He explained that it was for this reason that the Arava Institute recruits Jewish, Muslim, and Christian students alike.

Generally a third of all Arava students are North American, a third are Middle Eastern, and a third come from other regions. The Middle Eastern students come from both Israel and Muslim nations.

“The kibbutz [or communal living situation] shared by the students becomes a model for us living in this world,” Cohen said. “We share our resources and our cultures.

“In many programs where you study overseas, you end up living with other Americans,” he continued. “That’s what makes this program so unique. It’s a very rich, multicultural experience.”

The Institute serves as a regional center for conservation and environmental activities, and offers students of all faiths the opportunity to study the unique environmental ecosystems of the Arava Valley and the Red Sea. While many think of the Middle East as a wasteland, some of the ecosystems found there are actually quite varied.

The Institute is located on the grounds of Kibbutz Ketura, near the borders of Jordan and Egypt. Students who attend have the chance to travel throughout the region. UMass students can spend a semester or year abroad at the Institute, and have the option of earning undergraduate and graduate credits while studying there. The Institute is fully accredited by Tel-Aviv University.

Cohen plans to make mention of the attacks on America in tonight’s speech. Cohen was only several blocks from the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, and provided rabbinical services to the families of victims during the Jewish holiday season.

“I plan to weave Sept. 11 into what I talk about,” Cohen said. “It’s all clearly related [to the work we do at the Institute.]”

He added that attendance in the program has suffered slightly this year, presumably as a result of the attacks.

While some students may be hesitant to travel to an area as notoriously unstable as the Middle East, Cohen feels that the benefits of the program outweigh the potential dangers.

“In the Middle East, you’re confronted with a clear understanding that the earth is not affected by the political boundaries that we scratch on it,” he said.

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