The Gifts of Tu Bishvat: A Springtime Conversation
Part of Our Learning Series, Seasons of Responsibility: Interreligious Conversations on Environmental Justice and Repair
Seasons of Responsibility begins with Tu Bishvat. The session explored how Tu Bishvat’s meaning has evolved over time. We discussed the gifts of Tu Bishvat for this unique moment. And we’ll see Tu Bishvat not just as a single day, but as the beginning of a springtime season that leads to Purim, Pesach and Shavuot.
The session features Nigel Savage, founding CEO of the Jewish Climate Trust, in conversation with Rabbi Ayelet Cohen, Dean of the Rabbinical School at JTS. Jewish Climate Trust is a co-sponsor of this event.
Organized by the JTS Division of Lifelong and Professional Studies and Milstein Center for Interreligious Dialogue
About the Speakers
Nigel Savage is the founding CEO of Jewish Climate Trust, based in Jerusalem. Before JCT he worked in finance, and then founded and led Hazon (today Adamah) for twenty years. He studied at Georgetown, Hebrew U, Pardes and Yakar – and is proud to have received an honorary doctorate from JTS.
As Pearl Resnick Dean of The Rabbinical School and Dean of the Division of Religious Leadership at JTS, Rabbi Ayelet Cohen leads The Rabbinical School and H. L. Miller Cantorial School. In this role, she works to shape the next generation of Jewish clergy, cultivating students’ spiritual and intellectual lives so they can meet the challenges of Jewish life with wisdom, creativity, and resilience. Rabbi Cohen assumed this position in 2022, becoming the first woman to hold this role.
About the Series
Across Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Hindu traditions, spring is a season of reflection, renewal, and ethical commitment. Grounded in holidays from Tu Bishvat and Lent to Ramadan, Holi, and Passover, this interreligious series explores responsibility, repair, and leadership in the face of urgent ecological challenges. Together, participants consider how religious wisdom can inspire ethical action and collective hope.
