In 2016, photojournalist Noam Bedein pushed off the crystallized shores of the Dead Sea in a kayak, hoping to document some of the dramatic scenery. Bedein’s camera captured small fish in sinkholes deep in the northern part of the sea.
“I didn’t realize at the time the significance of this,” Bedein said. “Everyone went wild. The secular, scientific world was fascinated by this phenomenon, and the religious world was also very excited.”
For the religious community, fish in the Dead Sea was a sign of End Times, a fulfillment of a biblical prophecy in which the salty waters will become fresh. Bedein explained that indeed, freshwater from Jerusalem filled the sinkholes with micro-organisms, just one of the reasons “Dead Sea” is a misnomer.
Since that day, the Sefad native frequently has returned to the Dead Sea — often three to four times a month — to document the radical transformations in the salt formations, using time-lapse photography. The images simultaneously are stunning and terrifying. They trace seismic changes taking place over very short spans of time. Bedein said he sometimes would return to the same spot only a few months apart and not recognize a thing. His photography also bears witness to the demise of the Dead Sea. Experts predict it will evaporate within two to three decades.
On April 22, Earth Day, Bedein received special permission from the government to venture out again to the region. Bedein had spent the past six weeks in quarantine — the longest period he had gone without documenting the body of water since he launched the Dead Sea Revival Project four years ago.
Prior to that, Bedein had been in Washington, D.C., for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference, promoting his nonprofit and making the rounds on college campuses. As the founder of the Sderot Media Center, Bedein is used to the college circuit, having defended Israel to students on more than 200 campuses.
“I went from documenting human drama on the Gaza border to documenting environmental drama,” he said.
The Dead Sea project is a far more liberal cause, he said, and enables him to reach huge audiences who are interested in environmental issues. “It’s a strategy that inspires people not only [to talk] about the Dead Sea but also about Israel.”
Together with Ari Fruchter, a former fashion designer turned entrepreneur, Bedein chose Earth Day to launch an international photography contest. Using visual arts, Bedein hopes to raise awareness of the environmental problems and solutions surrounding the Dead Sea.
The Dead Sea is not just a “water treasure [but also a] model case for water preservation and water tech,” Bedein said, pointing to the $10 billion Red Sea-Dead Sea project, which would see potable water provided to Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian territories.
“The global coronavirus [pandemic] is preparing the next global crisis, which is a water-stressed world,” Bedein said. According to the United Nations, two-thirds of the world will experience major water challenges in the next five years. Bedein hopes the lessons gleaned from the current pandemic will prepare the world to navigate the murky waters of the next crisis.
