Integrate Environmental Passion with Jewish Identity
“The art of communal self-sufficiency begins with the earth. Healthy land supports healthy plants. These living beings provide us with the food, fiber, medicine, and building materials necessary for our own livelihood. As we humbly receive these tools of life, we must be fully aware, conscious of how to take graciously and give back in return. Our hope is to enter this sacred relationship, cultivating a holistic community, guided by the wisdom of our ancient Hebrew teachings and the songs of the land that supports us.”
Yigal Deutscher, Eco-Israel Founder & Permaculture Instructor
Yigal Deutscher, Eco-Israel Founder & Permaculture Instructor
Program Curriculum
Field Work
Our classroom is the living-outdoors and the experiential education will be very-hands on. Agricultural work is centered on 5 separate hand-dug & bio-intensive garden plots, each filled with a great diversity of heirloom, open-pollinated vegetable varieties, as well as an abundance of perennial flowers & herbs, and a small orchard.
Work varies depending on the seasonal patterns and weather conditions. All work is done side-by -side, and with the assistance of farm staff.
Daily field activities can involve working in the vegetable gardens, with animals, in construction projects using wood, stone, and/or mud, and maintaining the general upkeep & order of the site.
You will be learning by doing. This means you will be exposed to the sometimes difficult but realistic pressures and responsibilities of running a farm…which could mean long work hours and extreme weather conditions. As an apprentice, the farm’s success will depend on you, your attitude and work ethic. You will need to have a certain level of mental & physical preparation to continuously approach this lifestyle.
As much as the work is demanding, the blessings are endless. You will have a real-life education with practical experience, that includes both the wonders and the challenges of daily farm happenings.
Class Work
Our guided educational component is broken up into the subjects of agriculture, permaculture living skills, plant crafts & culture, and Israel/Jewish Studies.
Agriculture Greenhouse management & plant propagation, garden bed preparation, compost & vermicompost, irrigation techniques, soil fertility management, plant botany, seed saving & the seed industry, social issues in modern agriculture, environmental issues in modern agriculture, history of agricultural evolution.
Permaculture Living Skills Using whole system thinking & design, we will study how our daily decision-making processes affect our greater ecosystem. Our experiential curriculum will teach you about: sustainable methods of energy production, organic food production and preparation, waste management and composting, water conservation and gray water reclamation, mud construction, recycling, and perennial-based agriculture.
Plant Crafts & Culture Applied herbology & medicine making, fermentations, canning, jams, wine & beer making, breads.
Jewish & Israel Studies As part of the broader Eco-Israel curriculum, participants will study Jewish land ethics and learn about the between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel through Jewish texts, traditions, and holidays. In addition, Eco-Israel provides a unique perspective for studying the modern state of Israel and Zionism through an ecological lens.
Hebrew Language Skills There will be an organized program that is tailored to each person’s level – classes taught by certified teachers, individual book work, and an emphasis on listening to and speaking with the Israelis living on the farm alongside you. You will be living in a community of Hebrew and English speakers, so you can take full advantage of the opportunity to practice your Hebrew whenever you wish.
Field Trips
As part of the Eco-Israel curriculum, you will travel, hike, and explore, from the Negev Desert to the Golan, a variety of ecological, cultural, and historical points of interest in Israel.
Our classroom is the living-outdoors and the experiential education will be very-hands on. Agricultural work is centered on 5 separate hand-dug & bio-intensive garden plots, each filled with a great diversity of heirloom, open-pollinated vegetable varieties, as well as an abundance of perennial flowers & herbs, and a small orchard.
Work varies depending on the seasonal patterns and weather conditions. All work is done side-by -side, and with the assistance of farm staff.
Daily field activities can involve working in the vegetable gardens, with animals, in construction projects using wood, stone, and/or mud, and maintaining the general upkeep & order of the site.
You will be learning by doing. This means you will be exposed to the sometimes difficult but realistic pressures and responsibilities of running a farm…which could mean long work hours and extreme weather conditions. As an apprentice, the farm’s success will depend on you, your attitude and work ethic. You will need to have a certain level of mental & physical preparation to continuously approach this lifestyle.
As much as the work is demanding, the blessings are endless. You will have a real-life education with practical experience, that includes both the wonders and the challenges of daily farm happenings.
Class Work
Our guided educational component is broken up into the subjects of agriculture, permaculture living skills, plant crafts & culture, and Israel/Jewish Studies.
Agriculture Greenhouse management & plant propagation, garden bed preparation, compost & vermicompost, irrigation techniques, soil fertility management, plant botany, seed saving & the seed industry, social issues in modern agriculture, environmental issues in modern agriculture, history of agricultural evolution.
Permaculture Living Skills Using whole system thinking & design, we will study how our daily decision-making processes affect our greater ecosystem. Our experiential curriculum will teach you about: sustainable methods of energy production, organic food production and preparation, waste management and composting, water conservation and gray water reclamation, mud construction, recycling, and perennial-based agriculture.
Plant Crafts & Culture Applied herbology & medicine making, fermentations, canning, jams, wine & beer making, breads.
Jewish & Israel Studies As part of the broader Eco-Israel curriculum, participants will study Jewish land ethics and learn about the between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel through Jewish texts, traditions, and holidays. In addition, Eco-Israel provides a unique perspective for studying the modern state of Israel and Zionism through an ecological lens.
Hebrew Language Skills There will be an organized program that is tailored to each person’s level – classes taught by certified teachers, individual book work, and an emphasis on listening to and speaking with the Israelis living on the farm alongside you. You will be living in a community of Hebrew and English speakers, so you can take full advantage of the opportunity to practice your Hebrew whenever you wish.
Field Trips
As part of the Eco-Israel curriculum, you will travel, hike, and explore, from the Negev Desert to the Golan, a variety of ecological, cultural, and historical points of interest in Israel.
Eco-Israel Staff
Yigal Deutscher, Eco-Israel Founder & Permaculture Instructor
Yigal grew up in New York City and began farming as an ADAMAH Fellow at the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center in Connecticut. He received a certificate in Agroecology from University of California, Santa Cruz (Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems), as well as a Permaculture Design Certificate from the Permaculture Research Institute in Australia. He is also a member of the Jewish Farm School Collective.
Naomi Katz, Education Director
Naomi received her BA from Brown University and MA from UC Berkeley. She taught middle and high school for several years in the US and also started a school garden program with students in East Oakland, CA. She began to connect with the land at Oz Farm, in northern California and subsequently studied clinical western herbalism at the Pacific School of Herbal Medicine. Naomi is currently studying Clinical Western Herbs at Ran Herbs College of Phytotherapy (Israel).
Nadav Solowey, Community Director
Nadav was born and raised on Kibbutz Ketura, located in southern Israel.
He was an active member of the Israeli Conservative Jewish youth movement –“NOAM” - for many years. In the army he served in the “Golani” infantry unit and still serves in a reserve unit. At Ben Gurion University, he studied Geology and worked for the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and the Jewish National Fund (JNF/KKL).
Nadav likes to hike, juggle, play capu’era, cook and bake. In summers he takes groups of tourists on jeep-tours in Turkey and Montenegro.
He was an active member of the Israeli Conservative Jewish youth movement –“NOAM” - for many years. In the army he served in the “Golani” infantry unit and still serves in a reserve unit. At Ben Gurion University, he studied Geology and worked for the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and the Jewish National Fund (JNF/KKL).
Nadav likes to hike, juggle, play capu’era, cook and bake. In summers he takes groups of tourists on jeep-tours in Turkey and Montenegro.
