An Israeli organization is using the tricks and tools that have led to success for Israeli start-ups, to narrow the gap between the country's haves and have-nots.
(By David Halevi)
There's a distressingly widening gap in Israel - between the haves and have-nots, between the folks at the top of the economic ladder and those further down. It's an unhealthy situation, asserts Daphna Murvitz, director of Israel Ventures Network (IVN) - a unique organization that aims to bridge the gap between the "two Israels" by employing strategies that have transformed the country into a high-tech tiger in the social action sphere.
Building strength by investing in entrepreneurship through hands-on venture philanthropy is what the IVN is all about. Entrepreneurs from some of Israel's most successful companies - including Benny Levin, founder of NICE Systems, Ofer Shainberg of Concord Ventures, Ofer Timor of Delta Ventures, and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat - are now, or have been, mentors for companies that received assistance from IVN.
"IVN was started by some of the most important entrepreneurs in Israel in order to bring management knowhow to organizations that seek to have an impact on society," Murvitz explains.
And many of these organizations were started by and for groups and populations that are definitely not in the upper echelons of society, relates Murvitz, clarifying that "this is not about the successful entrepreneurs 'going down to the people' to share their wisdom… - no one is on a pedestal. They take as much from the communities as they give." In that way, says Murvitz, minds meet, making Israeli society stronger.
Teaching sustainability
"We work in several ways to assist social service organizations to bring their visions from concept to reality," explains Murvitz. "Volunteers from the high-tech and business world bring their business and entrepreneurial skills to organizations, teaching them how to build self-sustaining organizations that can survive in the long-term - especially important now, with donations harder to come by as a result of the recession."
This current model is a change from the way IVN operated just a few years ago, when it was more involved in raising money for organizations and helping them to get off the ground. Instead, IVN now teaches their clients how to finance themselves, using innovative methods to raise money that can be self-sustaining, as opposed to giving them a one-time donation.
Regardless of the funding model, IVN has very specific criteria for the kinds of organizations it works with. Murvitz says: "We want ideas and projects that can eventually be adapted to work on a larger scale or that can be duplicated by others." For example, a jobs program that was started in the north after the 2006 Lebanon war by a private group, organized with help from IVN, developed a model that was so successful it was eventually taken over by regional government - and a similar program was instituted later in the Negev in the south.
"Programs like that, which can be replicated and expanded on a large scale - often by government - are the kind of programs IVN is looking for," Murvitz declares. In all cases, IVN seeks organizations that will have an impact on the community - creating jobs, and otherwise helping to foster an atmosphere of economic growth.
From high-tech to prayer shawls
Indeed, IVN has helped organizations that have taken on some of the most hard-to-crack problems in Israeli society. For example, it was instrumental in building a group that trains Ethiopian immigrants for tech jobs. In six years of operation, Tech-Career has placed graduates in jobs throughout Israel's high-tech 'Silicon Wadi' companies. According to Tech-Career director Asher Elias, himself the son of Ethiopian immigrants, "all those who have gone through the course are working at well-paying jobs, mostly in programming. Some are making as much as NIS 20,000 a month."
That's remarkable for members of an immigrant community coming from a lifestyle and background so different from those of a modern, high-tech society. Now, as a mature 'start-up' training program, with the tools it needs to manage itself and raise funds for its training and job placement efforts, Tech-Career is considered a successful 'graduate' of IVN.
IVN currently works with organizations from a diverse spectrum of Israeli society. For example, there's Mishkan Hatchelet, which specializes in manufacturing prayer shawls (tallitot) and related items. The company is located in Beersheba, one of the fastest-growing cities in Israel as well as one of the poorest, with much of the population comprised of new immigrants, including many Ethiopian and Soviet Jews who have arrived in recent years.
While jobs tend to be few and far between for many of these immigrants, Mishkan Hatchelet is providing employment for more than 70 people in the area. Like other IVN clients, Mishkan Hatchelet is being mentored by a top executive (in this case, Ron Moritz, a 25-year veteran of companies like Symantec and Microsoft, who guides the organization in setting business policy, marketing its products, manufacturing efficiency - in short, everything the company will need to stand on its own two feet, expand its operations and provide more work in a job-starved region.
Entrepreneurial innovation for social impact
The strategy is successful with non-profits as well, Murvitz recounts. "One of our clients, Click-Savi, finds work for elderly people, including some who are housebound, making crafts, greeting cards, magnets, mobiles, and many other items. The workers enjoy having a sense of accomplishment, as well as the companionship of their fellow workers."
The organization sells the products in a retail store and on the Internet, and the money earned goes toward the running of other programs for the elderly, including social clubs, a day care center for disabled seniors, an occupational therapy program, and much more. A film made about a women's theater group at one of the senior's clubs can be viewed at the Culture Unplugged website.
Once again, IVN's impact is felt on the bottom line. "With the recession, the pie of donations to groups like this is smaller, so we see entrepreneurial innovation - using the tools of the marketplace to make a social impact - as the way to not only support groups like Click-Savi, but to ensure that they prosper," Murvitz relates.
"Instead of shrinking their services in response to smaller contributions, Click-Savi and many other groups have, thanks to the mentoring and guidance of IVN, been able to expand their services, learning how to manage themselves and develop markets for their products and services, with the income and profits plowed back into the organization to create even greater social impact," she adds.
Other clients include a group helping Bedouin women to commercialize their traditional weaving skills, a website that helps to match employers with job seekers, and a group that transforms organic garbage into high-quality compost.
Murvitz says that the beauty of IVN is that as each of these groups works with populations in need of help, IVN provides them with the tools they need to keep themselves in business, doing what they do best - which is helping their clients.
In a world where the 'cycle' is usually a vicious one, IVN's methods and strategies are helping to develop a much more positive social cycle - where the tricks and tools that have made so many Israeli businesses successful are now bringing that same success to Israel's less-fortunate, via the social service organizations dedicated to their welfare.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Third International Conference on Desertification to be held in Israel
For decades, Israel has been perfecting desertification solutions. With increasing soil erosion, salinization and groundwater mismanagement, it's time to share them with the world.
The conference, to be held from November 8-11, will be hosted at BGU's Sde Boker campus in cooperation with the UNESCO.
(By Avigayil Kadesh)
In a country where 97 percent of the land is arid, the problem of desertification looms large. Over the past several decades, Israel has not only "made the desert bloom," as the saying goes, but has also invested major resources in learning how to keep dry lands from overtaking fertile soil.Many other countries were slow to understand the significance of this global crisis. Now that problems such as soil erosion, salinization, climate change and groundwater mismanagement have heightened awareness of the devastating effects of desertification, Israel is honing its expertise and offering it far beyond its own borders.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's (BGU) Prof. Alon Tal describes desertification as "the orphan of global environmental problems on our planet" because it was not high on most nations' list of priorities. But today it is acknowledged as one of the main reasons why more than 200 million people around the globe are threatened with poverty and hunger.
A catalyst for cooperation and collaborationTal, a desert ecologist at BGU's Jacob Blaustein Institutes of Desert Research at Ben-Gurion University (BGU) and founder of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, organized the November 8-11 third annual International Conference on Drylands, Deserts and Desertification: The Route to Restoration.
The conference will be hosted at BGU's Sde Boker campus in cooperation with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It is the second conference in Israel on the subject. More than 500 government officials and academics from 50 countries, including Palestinian and Jordanian delegates, will participate.
"We believe that by bringing a diverse group of academics, professionals and policy-makers together to confront the myriad critical issues of desertification, the BGU conference can serve as a meaningful catalyst for cooperative and collaborative projects in the future at the global level," says Tal.
Attendees will discuss the public health aspects of desertification; sustainable building in desert environments; remote sensing to assess how flora are responding to anti-desertification attempts; grazing and the Bedouin community; the future of the Dead Sea; environmental education and dry-land agriculture; and soil and water restoration.
The Israel triangleTwo years ago, forestry experts from several African countries participated in a three-day seminar on desertification. The event was initiated by MASHAV, Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation, together with Keren Kayemet L'Yisrael - Jewish National Fund, and CINADCO, the Center for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Israel's aridity index, showing the most arid areas of the country in the south
Participants gained pointers on establishing forests, collecting and germinating seeds, managing nurseries, and fostering forest-related industries such as honey production and ecological tourism, according to David Brand, head forester for KKL-JNF.
Israel also excels at wastewater management, a crucial aspect in fighting desertification. About half the water used for agriculture cycles through 240 KKL-JNF-built reservoirs. Israel reuses about 74 percent of its wastewater; in comparison, Spain, the second-most efficient country in this area, reuses only 20%.
Government agriculture officials from nations including Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, China, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso learned how Israel structures its efforts in a 'triangle' of research, advising, and fieldwork, Brand relates.
Tal strongly endorses this sort of information sharing. "If you do nothing about desertification, people will starve and die," he states. The UN, as well, encourages developed nations such as Israel to provide assistance to developing countries in fighting desertification.
Israel's moral obligation to provide expertiseWhat Israel has to offer is its proficiency in restoring marginal lands, and protecting its dry lands from further deterioration. Parts of the Negev desert have been transformed into a productive breadbasket, actually reducing the desert's size significantly since 1948. KKL-JNF planted forests are thriving and salt- and drought-resistant crops are flourishing thanks to advanced agricultural methods. The desert is dotted with commercial fishponds and with healthful algae used for manufacturing pharmaceuticals and health foods.
In fact, says Tal, algae grow better in dry areas. This is one example of how the desert setting offers advantages. Arid spaces are also perfect settings for solar and wind power, as well as trails for hiking.
Tal, a North Carolina native, works closely with Israel's neighbors. He co-authored a model for an agreement on environmental cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and represents Israel at UN conferences on desertification alongside Dr. Uriel Safriel, professor of ecology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) and - according to Tal - a "true hero" who is the world's leading authority on desertification.
"Desertification is not, as it's often perceived, about vast sand dunes expanding and overwhelming villages," he says. "Although this happens in some places, it is simply a loss of soil fertility due to many factors whose long-term impacts are far greater in dry lands. This manifests itself in the scenes you see on television of millions of hungry people without food. Israel is recognized as a country which for some time has taken on the challenge of reversing these trends. Now, we have a moral obligation to be a light unto the nations and offer our capabilities."
Courtesy: MFA Newsletter, Israel.
The conference, to be held from November 8-11, will be hosted at BGU's Sde Boker campus in cooperation with the UNESCO.
(By Avigayil Kadesh)
Prof. Alon Tal. (Photo: Dani Machlis)
In a country where 97 percent of the land is arid, the problem of desertification looms large. Over the past several decades, Israel has not only "made the desert bloom," as the saying goes, but has also invested major resources in learning how to keep dry lands from overtaking fertile soil.Many other countries were slow to understand the significance of this global crisis. Now that problems such as soil erosion, salinization, climate change and groundwater mismanagement have heightened awareness of the devastating effects of desertification, Israel is honing its expertise and offering it far beyond its own borders.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's (BGU) Prof. Alon Tal describes desertification as "the orphan of global environmental problems on our planet" because it was not high on most nations' list of priorities. But today it is acknowledged as one of the main reasons why more than 200 million people around the globe are threatened with poverty and hunger.
A catalyst for cooperation and collaborationTal, a desert ecologist at BGU's Jacob Blaustein Institutes of Desert Research at Ben-Gurion University (BGU) and founder of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, organized the November 8-11 third annual International Conference on Drylands, Deserts and Desertification: The Route to Restoration.
The conference will be hosted at BGU's Sde Boker campus in cooperation with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It is the second conference in Israel on the subject. More than 500 government officials and academics from 50 countries, including Palestinian and Jordanian delegates, will participate.
"We believe that by bringing a diverse group of academics, professionals and policy-makers together to confront the myriad critical issues of desertification, the BGU conference can serve as a meaningful catalyst for cooperative and collaborative projects in the future at the global level," says Tal.
Attendees will discuss the public health aspects of desertification; sustainable building in desert environments; remote sensing to assess how flora are responding to anti-desertification attempts; grazing and the Bedouin community; the future of the Dead Sea; environmental education and dry-land agriculture; and soil and water restoration.
The Israel triangleTwo years ago, forestry experts from several African countries participated in a three-day seminar on desertification. The event was initiated by MASHAV, Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation, together with Keren Kayemet L'Yisrael - Jewish National Fund, and CINADCO, the Center for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Israel's aridity index, showing the most arid areas of the country in the south
Participants gained pointers on establishing forests, collecting and germinating seeds, managing nurseries, and fostering forest-related industries such as honey production and ecological tourism, according to David Brand, head forester for KKL-JNF.
Israel also excels at wastewater management, a crucial aspect in fighting desertification. About half the water used for agriculture cycles through 240 KKL-JNF-built reservoirs. Israel reuses about 74 percent of its wastewater; in comparison, Spain, the second-most efficient country in this area, reuses only 20%.
Government agriculture officials from nations including Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, China, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso learned how Israel structures its efforts in a 'triangle' of research, advising, and fieldwork, Brand relates.
Tal strongly endorses this sort of information sharing. "If you do nothing about desertification, people will starve and die," he states. The UN, as well, encourages developed nations such as Israel to provide assistance to developing countries in fighting desertification.
Israel's moral obligation to provide expertiseWhat Israel has to offer is its proficiency in restoring marginal lands, and protecting its dry lands from further deterioration. Parts of the Negev desert have been transformed into a productive breadbasket, actually reducing the desert's size significantly since 1948. KKL-JNF planted forests are thriving and salt- and drought-resistant crops are flourishing thanks to advanced agricultural methods. The desert is dotted with commercial fishponds and with healthful algae used for manufacturing pharmaceuticals and health foods.
In fact, says Tal, algae grow better in dry areas. This is one example of how the desert setting offers advantages. Arid spaces are also perfect settings for solar and wind power, as well as trails for hiking.
Tal, a North Carolina native, works closely with Israel's neighbors. He co-authored a model for an agreement on environmental cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and represents Israel at UN conferences on desertification alongside Dr. Uriel Safriel, professor of ecology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) and - according to Tal - a "true hero" who is the world's leading authority on desertification.
"Desertification is not, as it's often perceived, about vast sand dunes expanding and overwhelming villages," he says. "Although this happens in some places, it is simply a loss of soil fertility due to many factors whose long-term impacts are far greater in dry lands. This manifests itself in the scenes you see on television of millions of hungry people without food. Israel is recognized as a country which for some time has taken on the challenge of reversing these trends. Now, we have a moral obligation to be a light unto the nations and offer our capabilities."
Courtesy: MFA Newsletter, Israel.
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