building intelligent cities

Dirty Issues

by Rabbi Nosson Slifkin

 
Urban sprawl is a hot topic. Although it has been studied since the 1950s, it has only recently sprung to the forefront of public attention. The current (December) issue of Scientific American features a study of the problem. A recent poll found that Americans are more concerned about urban sprawl and traffic than crime, employment and education, which is unlikely to come as a surprise to anyone who has ever been stuck in a sea of traffic on a six lane freeway.

There are a variety of approaches to solving the problem. But probably one of the most basic has actually been in legislation for over three thousand years. In an extraordinarily sensitive ruling, the Torah (Numbers 35:2) instructs that the cities reserved for the Levites are to have a green belt 1000 cubits wide surrounding a city, as well as a further 2000 cubits for agricultural use. Maimonides explains that these regulations apply by extension to all the cities of Israel.

 In one fell swoop, this places a stopper on urban sprawl and solves most of its environmental dangers. The city can no longer spread out uncontrollably, which means that there is a limit as to how much traffic and pollution will accumulate. Trees, plants and grass are able to grow, purifying the air and making a better environment for our children.

 But environmental legislation should not only apply to city planners. It is something that affects each and every one of us. And the Torah therefore lays down laws that govern how every Jew relates to his surroundings.

Rabbi Nosson Slifkin teaches about Judaism's perspective on the animal kingdom at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo and at other zoos worldwide, and he is the author of numerous books and essays on this topic. To find out more, visit www.zootorah.com

"Stumbling Blocks before the Blind"

by Michael Lewyn

The Bible states, "Thou shalt not . . . put a stumbling block before the blind."  (Leviticus 19:14.)  But American government at all levels has done exactly that, by making jobs and other opportunities unavailable to millions of blind people and other Americans who, due to physical disability, age, youth or economic hardship, do not drive cars.  Government at all levels has built highways to develop suburbs and other newly developed areas, thereby redistributing jobs, housing and tax bases to those areas, without providing public transit so that carless Americans can reach suburban jobs.   By doing so, government has kept the blind and other carless Americans away from employment and shopping opportunities. 

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