Tu B'Shvat ... Trees Matter

TU B’SHVAT

TREES MATTER

Tu B’Shvat had humble beginnings. It was the Jewish April 15th, the cut-off date for tithes on fruit trees. Over time, it became a celebration of the power of nature, and our connection to the land of Israel. The Jewish mystics recognized how trees, growing towards heaven, could be symbolic of our own growth, and their fruit symbolic of our own needs for spiritual nourishment. In the modern world, we have added a new understanding of the fragility of nature, and our need to stay connected to it, even in an increasingly urban environment. Those of us who live, work, play, and pray in Sandy Springs have the opportunity to use it as a way to appreciate and increase the benefits we receive from the trees in our own midst.

Trees are critical to “City Springs,” the new name for Sandy Springs’ massive new downtown-district redevelopment and its surrounding neighborhood. The public-private development will include a new City Hall, apartments, commercial space, and concert and theater halls. When it is finished in late 2017, it is expected to anchor a downtown district that city officials believe will unify the city.

In conjunction with the University of Georgia Institute of Ecology Natural Resources Spatial Analysis Laboratory (NARSAL), the City recently completed a comprehensive tree canopy study that shows that Sandy Springs has a tree canopy of 62 percent, an increase of three percent over a 2010 study, and the highest it has been since the first study of this kind in 1991. This study places Sandy Springs among the top tier of American cities with higher percentages of tree canopy. Urban tree canopy studies quantify the percentage of tree canopy coverage of a given area, relating directly to air quality, storm water management, ecosystem balance and quality of life benefits.

This Tu Bishvat, and next Tu Bishvat, our B’nai Torah congregation will raise money to help the city fund the trees for the green space in City Springs. Executive Director of the Sandy Springs Conservancy said, “Purchasing trees on Tu Bishvat for City Springs is our investment in the future – for us, our children, and children’s children – but, even more than that, we confirm that our tree canopy is a public asset of great civic and environmental value on the New Year of Trees.”

If you would like to participate in B’nai Torah Tu Bishvat Fundraiser, please contact Wendy Leaf at wleaf@bnaitorah.org, or call 404.257.0537.