Jerusalem, 5 June, 2025 (TPS-IL) — A short-lived tax on single-use plastics originally introduced as an environmental measure caused deep and enduring damage to climate attitudes in Israel’s Haredi Orthodox sector because of perceived political targeting, a study released on Thursday has found.
Support for environmental action in Haredi communities plummeted almost immediately after a 2021 tax was implemented — and stayed low, even after it was repealed in January 2023.
“These findings are both fascinating and concerning,” said Leah Bloy, a Ph.D candidate at Hebrew University of Jerusalem who led the research. “Our data shows that when environmental policies are perceived as punitive or politically charged, they can provoke a backlash that undermines long-term climate goals—even after the policy itself is revoked.”
Published in the peer-reviewed Policy Sciences journal, Bloy worked in collaboration with Dr. Nechumi Malovicki-Yaffe, Dr. Boaz Hameiri, and Dr. Ram Fishman from Tel Aviv University.
Through six rounds of surveys between 2021 and 2024, the team documented a striking pattern.
The tax, introduced by Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry in 2021, aimed to curb the country’s high use of disposable plasticware, particularly in the Haredi sector, which has among the highest per capita consumption of such items. While it did lead to an immediate reduction in plastic use, the researchers found that it also ignited a powerful sense of political victimhood. Many Haredi respondents believed the measure was not about the environment but rather a veiled attempt to impose secular norms or punish their way of life.
“This wasn’t about money,” said Dr. Malovicki-Yaffe. “It was about identity. People felt singled out and unfairly blamed. That perception colored their entire view of environmentalism going forward.”
The backlash proved resilient. Even two years after the tax was canceled, the surveys showed that negative attitudes toward climate initiatives remained significantly higher in the Haredi population compared to before the tax’s introduction. The study’s authors argue that this persistence underscores the importance of culturally sensitive policymaking, particularly in societies with sharp internal divisions.
Rather than top-down enforcement, the researchers recommend what they call “moral reframing”—crafting environmental messaging in ways that resonate with the values of the target community. “In the case of the Haredi community,” said Bloy, “connecting environmental protection to the Torah principle of bal tashchit — ‘Thou shalt not destroy’ – could have fostered a more constructive dialogue.” Bal tashchit is a concept rooted in Biblical and rabbinic teachings prohibiting unnecessary destruction or waste.
The implications of the study go far beyond Israel. As governments worldwide seek to implement ambitious climate policies, the authors caution that a one-size-fits-all approach may backfire in polarized or marginalized communities. By integrating cultural and psychological insight into policy design, they argue, governments can avoid alienating the very groups whose cooperation is essential for meaningful environmental change.
