Ketura ( he, קְטוּרָה) is a kibbutz in southern

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. Located north of Eilat in the Aravah Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Hevel Eilot Regional Council Hevel Eilot Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית חבל אילות, ''Mo'atza Azorit Hevel Eilot'') is a regional council in the Southern District of Israel, near the city of Eilat. It is the southernmost regional council in Israel. ...

. In it had a population of .

Name

The name Ketura was taken from a nearby hill and wadi, and is also the name of the second wife of

Abraham Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Je ...

().

History

Ketura was founded in November 1973 by a group of young

American Jewish American Jews or Jewish Americans are Americans, American citizens who are Jewish, whether by Judaism, religion, ethnicity, culture, or nationality. Today the Jewish community in the United States consists primarily of Ashkenazi Jews, who desce ...

immigrants, most of them members of the Zionist youth movement

Young Judaea Young Judaea is a peer-led Zionist youth movement that runs programs throughout the United States for Jewish youth in grades 2–12. In Hebrew, Young Judaea is called ''Yehuda Hatzair'' (יהודה הצעיר) or is sometimes referred to as ''Hasha ...

. Difficulties in the early years frustrated many of the inhabitants of the kibbutz, which caused many of the founders to leave. At the same time, more Young Judaeans joined the community, along with a variety of other immigrants as well as

Israel Boy and Girl Scouts Federation The Israel Boy and Girl Scouts Federation ( he, התאחדות הצופים והצופות בישראל, ''Hit'ahdut HaTzofim VeHaTzofot BeYisrael'') is Israel's federation of the five Scouting organizations in Israel, sorted by religious affili ...

graduates. Ketura is in the Southern Arava - Hevel Eilot Regional Council. Today Ketura has about 165 members and several young families who are candidates to become members. During the year there are about 500 people living on Ketura, members and their families, students in the

Arava Institute for Environmental Studies The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies (AIES) is an academic studies and research institute located at Kibbutz Ketura on the Israeli side of the Arava Valley. Under the motto that "nature knows no borders", AIES seeks to train future l ...

, volunteers from around the world, Arava International Center for Agriculture Training (AICAT) students from around the world, NOAM youth movement members in various programs such as

gap year A gap year, also known as a sabbatical year, is typically a year-long break before or after college/university during which students engage in various educational and developmental activities, such as travel or some type of regular work. Gap yea ...

or service year (''shnat sherut''), Israeli post-army 'avoda muedefet' participants, and researchers who come to work in regional institutes.

Religious culture

Ketura is unique among kibbutzim for its religious pluralism. Although the kibbutz is not considered a religious kibbutz,

Jewish dietary laws (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...

(''kashrut'') and Sabbath rules are observed in the dining room, public areas, and at social and cultural events, and there is a functioning congregation-led egalitarian synagogue. The population of the kibbutz is composed of observant, masorati (moderately observant), and secular members, an unusual situation for a kibbutz. Ketura received the Speaker of the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

Prize for religious tolerance as a result of its religious progressiveness.

Economy

PikiWiki Israel 29319 Algae factory in Kibbutz Ketura

The kibbutz is best known for its involvement in ecological activities, mainly its partnership in the local algae factory, Algatech, and its guest house and educational seminar center, Keren Kolot. The solar power industry (see below) has been gaining importance locally. Economic cooperation with other kibbutzim in the area includes a regional date-packing plant, Ardom Computing Services, and Ardag, a large fish hatchery near Eilat. Many members work outside the kibbutz in professional positions such as teachers, physical and occupational therapists, researchers, social workers, and more. Ketura also offers accounting and bookkeeping services, with many members working in these positions. A number of members work in the local NGO—The

(AIES).

PikiWiki Israel 29353 Guest houses in Kibbutz Ketura

Agriculture

Agricultural enterprises of the kibbutz include date orchards.

Guest house and seminar center

The kibbutz is well known for its guest house and educational seminar center — Keren Kolot Keren Kolot homepage
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Algae production and processing

The red rainwater microalgae (''

Haematococcus pluvialis ''Haematococcus pluvialis'' is a freshwater species of Chlorophyta from the family Haematococcaceae. This species is well known for its high content of the strong antioxidant astaxanthin, which is important in aquaculture, and cosmetics. The hig ...

'') are single-cell organisms, part of the oldest group of living organisms. Their long evolution led them to adapt to extreme conditions and to develop survival mechanisms against

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometr ...

and

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

. Haematococcus pluvialis has been cultivated and processed at Ketura since 1998, when the AlgaTechnologies, Ltd. company was established, for their content of

astaxanthin Astaxanthin is a keto- carotenoid within a group of chemical compounds known as terpenes. Astaxanthin is a metabolite of zeaxanthin and canthaxanthin, containing both hydroxyl and ketone functional groups. It is a lipid-soluble pigment with r ...

, one of the strongest known natural antioxidant substances, considered to benefic to the

immune In biology, immunity is the capability of multicellular organisms to resist harmful microorganisms. Immunity involves both specific and nonspecific components. The nonspecific components act as barriers or eliminators of a wide range of pathogens ...

cardiovascular The blood circulatory system is a system of organs that includes the heart, blood vessels, and blood which is circulated throughout the entire body of a human or other vertebrate. It includes the cardiovascular system, or vascular system, tha ...

and

nervous system In biology, the nervous system is the highly complex part of an animal that coordinates its actions and sensory information by transmitting signals to and from different parts of its body. The nervous system detects environmental changes ...

s, to joints and muscles. The main Algatech product, AstaPure, is natural astaxanthin extracted from the algae. It is mainly sold the United States, Japan and Europe—in total, to more than 30 countries, where it is used as a natural ingredient and pigment for use in cosmetics; Algatech homepage
/ref> and as a nutraceutical, including as an ingredient for dietary supplements. Research has proven astaxanthin to have positive health effects on a multitude of organs and body functions, such as: eyesight, skin, physical effort during sport activities, cognitive abilities, anti-inflammatory effects and so forth. Algatech, to which Kibbutz Ketura is a partner, is considered a leading company in microalgae agriculture and one of the most forward-looking innovators in the field, worldwide.

Environmentalism

Ketura is part of the Green Kibbutz movement. In addition to promoting awareness, recycling and opening a

second-hand store __NOTOC__ A second-hand shop is a shop which sells used goods. Temporary venues People will sell used goods right in front of their home in what is called a "garage sale". The products would be set up in front of the garage. In the UK, peo ...

, Ketura planted a

community garden A community garden is a piece of land gardened or cultivated by a group of people individually or collectively. Normally in community gardens, the land is divided into individual plots. Each individual gardener is responsible for their own plo ...

and operates a high-tech algae farm. Methuselah-Ketura-2018-10

Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

Members of Ketura founded the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies (AIES), which is located at Ketura. The institute promotes regional environmental cooperation between Israelis, Palestinians and residents of neighbouring Arab countries in environmental matters, with a focus on desert ecosystems.

Solar power

Ketura is a partner in the Arava Power Company (APC), producing electricity from solar panels. There is one 4.95MW field on the kibbutz, Ketura Sun, with a second 40MW field opened in 2015, then the largest in Israel.Sharon Udasin
Israel's largest solar field begins flowing to the national grid
The Jerusalem Post, 29 July 2015. Accessed 24 September 2018.

Date palm grown from germinated ancient seed

The first surviving example of the

Judean date palm The Judean date palm is a date palm (''Phoenix dactylifera'') grown in Judea. It is not clear whether there was ever a single distinct Judean cultivar, but dates grown in the region have had distinctive reputations for thousands of years, and the ...

, artificially germinated from a 2,000-year-old seed discovered during archaeological excavations in

Masada Masada ( he, מְצָדָה ', "fortress") is an ancient fortification in the Southern District of Israel situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa. It is located on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert, overlooking the D ...

, was planted in Ketura and continues to survive there. It was nicknamed 'Methuselah'. Several others have since been grown from seeds found in the Dead Sea region, including some female specimens, which are likely to one day be pollinated by material from Methuselah.

References

External links

Official website

"Middle Eastern Medical Plant Project,"
Hadassah Medical Center
Arava Institute for Environmental Studies Algatech homepage (only contains contact details; September 2018)
{{Authority control 1973 establishments in Israel Algaculture American-Jewish culture in Israel Kibbutz Movement Kibbutzim Solar power in Israel