A tour of the city's residents among the green paths of the Technion and a new initiative for the independent walker in the spaces of the old institution that will be launched soon.
In the heart of the neighborhood and no one knows
The tour leaders of the 'For Haifa' group have been volunteering in the urban natural space for almost four years and are joined by many Haifaites who are rediscovering the city. The travelers who join the tours admit more than once that they live in the neighborhood but have never been familiar with the path that runs through it, have never entered the wadi next to the house, and thus have never thought of going for a walk in the Technion.
The last tour of the Technion trails, section No. 7 of the Haifa Urban Trail, took place on Tuesday 17/9/24 from afternoon until sunset. It was led by Vera Tsubari, the campus architect who managed to excite the flock of travelers who joined her with her love for the place and the professionally preserved nature that is present and exists between the study buildings and the student dormitories:
Vera Tsubari:
After so many years, the Technion for me is home and I accompany it in its growth with pride. Buildings planted in the forest. It's literally a city in the forest. This is a place of study where 5000 students live in dormitories and 400 children and the nature of the place balances the built and the vacant. The tour itself started at the gate at the meeting point between the city and the academy. The gate structure is impressive and invites you to walk along the historical route: first dormitories, first public buildings, public squares and a promenade. Continue through parks and forest and also in the village of the payers that creates a community like a kibbutz with a kindergarten topped by a green roof and a bridge floating between treetops. We started in the sunlight and continued walking in the full moon light. The trip ended with the colors of the sunset at the bridge whose links are lit from below and with a desire to come again.
A sensual and accessible experience
I met Aryeh Brander on a tour with the help of his devoted guide dog, Pepsi, and his personal companion. Aryeh's experience from the tour is completely sensory and even though he is blind he enjoys an accessible tour along with the rest of us.
Arya Brander:
Section 7 in the spaces of the Technion - it was a march full of accessible experiences in a verbal and sensory way. I experienced landscapes, statues and smells and opportunities to meet new and interesting people, and to enjoy the beauty of the most beautiful trail in my opinion. The tour was carefully planned, which contributed to a pleasant and enjoyable experience. I thank you on behalf of myself and my personal companion and guide dog Pepsi, for the opportunity to take part in such an invested and special event. I got to enjoy the fresh air, the beautiful track and the pleasant company that was an integral part of the experience.
Thank you very much for all the effort and investment. I'm already looking forward to the next trip!
Even students don't know each other
Many of the students we meet on our tours are not at all familiar with the many hiking options near the academic institution where they study, not to mention the trails on campus itself. The University of Haifa is located at the highest point in the city, it has a peripheral walking track that allows an open and impressive view of all four winds of the sky, high viewpoints, grassy areas and a unique sculpture garden that was recently imported from the open air museum in Tefen.
Like it, the Technion maintains an old and unique ecological garden with an impressive succulent greenhouse, architectural buildings that combine with ornamental ponds and green vegetation, a vast faculty forest, sculptures and centuries-old pine and carob trees. Despite these impressive figures, few Haifa residents are familiar with the nature around the academy.
Orli Mola, head of the Sustainability Center at the Technion:
The Technion Sustainability Center is happy to connect the Haifa and Nesher community and invite you to come and enjoy the variety of beautiful natural corners located on campus. We are working hard to produce more and more connection interfaces. Soon a project will be launched which will lead you through the campus's paths between the historical sites and monuments, the buildings of modern architecture, the hidden cozy corners and the magical nature.
A city in nature or a city without nature
The Technion's move to launch an interface for the public that will be able to walk independently on the paths of the campus is right and required. Since the days of the Corona virus and the social quarantine, people all over the world have flocked to places to walk within the city and Haifa enjoys such spaces in the open areas, gardens, or in private complexes that can allow walking in their area. (The military boarding school, Beit Rotenberg and more). The great need of the crowd to travel has given rise to many projects of community paths in Israel, and in Haifa the group 'For Haifa' on Facebook helps to raise awareness of the issue thanks to tours that are voluntarily led by the city's residents from all the neighborhoods of the Carmel Ridge.
Thank you, Tzipi, for your response. We will make sure to pass on your important comment to the Technion Sustainability Unit, which led the signage and trail system at the Technion. Regarding the ecological garden – I agree with you. It should have been an attractive site to gather Technion employees and students and visitors from outside. We cannot speak on behalf of the Technion institution, but it would certainly be desirable for them to give their opinion on the issue and budget for this special place.
We got off at the Technion station and were greeted courteously by the cable car crew, but they had no idea what it was. It would have been appropriate to at least inform them, or better yet, take them on a tour, so that they could make it easier for the travelers who were tempted.
And also: the signage is not friendly enough and the ecological garden is quite disappointing…
It's because we are busy with studies and not with trips..
Interested in joining a walking club in Haifa Shumeim
A good initiative, which has great potential for strengthening the walkability and movement of the residents, awareness of the living environment in the city, respecting the values of a green environment, increasing the personal well-being to breathe, to experience the space with a sensory mix (eye-ear-smell).
But the challenge is to open the complex to all residents while ensuring personal security.
The present war in Israel and the city are the context that calls for strengthening this promenade and at the same time for precise inspection and enforcement procedures, which will ensure safe enjoyment for the well-being of the residents.
And in general, it is right and desirable to create more available, accessible spaces in nature-city for the benefit of the residents (at the sea, at the real campus in Beit Biram, at the university, - you can check paved walking paths like at Sportek in Herzliya, for example. Dr. Sigal Guter (born in the city and highly related long live it).
Hey
Do you also admire the wonderful architecture at the Technion? The Saint, Tsercil, the Synagogue, the Siparia
The wonderful chemistry building!
The blue wall, the concrete techniques... and more...
No
I would love a map for the independent traveler, does it exist?
How can I participate in the tours?
At the entrance to the Technion from its southern side, many years ago, the "Hashomer HaTsair" nest was responsible for many hundreds of its trainees, for hundreds of achievers of Zionism, when they settled in the border kibbutzim, along the borders, many of them also in the Gaza Envelope. Some of them continued in the area and studied at the Technion, which is located in the "government forest", as it was called in the past years. Does the nest still exist and function?
The 'For Haifa' group on Facebook is an old group that has been working voluntarily for about four years and connects nature and community. The group's activists are residents of all the Carmel neighborhoods and lead tours in the wadis, in the branches and in the segments of the urban path (among them the Technion paths). For more details, you are invited to join the thousands who already know: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2787205004828441
Are there protected areas where you can stay during an alarm?
I graduated from the Faculty of Architecture in the seventies. I had the pleasure of studying in the magnificent Brewald building. Also sees the Technion as a warm home and feels belonging and affection for the institution even after so many years. Viva Technion!
Hi Gil, glad you found interest in the article. The Technion Trails project is designed for the independent walker. The Technion is about to control the points of interest mentioned in the proposed walking routes and launch the application after the holidays, in my humble opinion some of the routes are suitable for scooters. The article allowed a glimpse of the institution's initiative born out of recognition of the importance of connecting nature and the community.
initial
Sounds very interesting! Is the track accessible to scooters? And is there escort and guidance?
Thanks, Gil
Interested in participating in tours