This year, only one week separates Israel Independence Day and Earth Day, which comes April 22. For those of us in the Jewish community who have particular concerns about the threats posed by the oil-rich regimes in the Middle East, this coincidence reminds us that moving toward a future that is less reliant on fossil fuels is good for geopolitics...

Even just a year ago, I would have considered traveling to Israel with 40 other Jews a long shot.