Fighting Racism against and Promoting Opportunities for the Ethiopian Israeli Community

The Association for Ethiopian Jews (AEJ) is the leading Ethiopian Israeli organization that combats racism against the community. AEJ has been able to leverage the stormy protests against over-policing to register real achievements with regard to police and government actions in general. It fosters trust and mutual aid with the leaders of the community and plays a crucial role in communicating the needs and difficulties of Ethiopian-Israelis to decision-makers. 

This project focusd on two priority areas. First, it addressed the use of police brutality against and profiling of Ethiopian Israelis by training police to address bias and build better relations. AEJ also worked to close inactive criminal cases that prevent Ethiopian Israelis from advancing. The second focus was to promote employment diversity by raising the number of Ethiopian-Israelis in management positions in the public and high-tech sectors.  

Assistance to Bedouin Villages in the Negev

Bimkom – Planners for Planning Rights is an Israeli non-profit organization founded in 1999 by planners and architects in order to strengthen democracy and human rights in the field of urban planning. Particularly in Israel’s Negev region, only 13 of the 45 Bedouin villages have received government recognition. Bimkom employs municipal planners, architects, engineers, and legal advisors to secure public services like water, electricity, public transportation, medical access, and more.

This project empowered and worked toward government recognition of communities in the Beer Sheva Valley, including Khirbet al-Wattan, Bir al-Hammam, Ha-Roess and others – numbering over half of the 30,000 Bedouins who live in this area.

Educating Young People About the Occupation

Breaking the Silence is a nonprofit organization made up of veteran combatants who have served in the Israeli military since the start of the second intifada. They work to stimulate public debate about the price paid for a reality in which young soldiers rule over a civilian population and control Palestinians’ everyday lives.

The Occupation is absent from Israel’s education system. This project included work with students and educators in formal and informal educational settings, such as youth group chapters and high schools. For many of these young people, it was their first encounter with the reality of the Occupation and seeing Israel-Palestine from a human rights perspective.

Educating about Cultural Heritage Rights in the context of the Occupation

Emek Shaveh is an Israeli NGO working to defend cultural heritage rights and to protect ancient sites as public assets that belong to members of all communities, faiths, and peoples. They work against the use of ruins of the past as political tools in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and they challenge those who use archaeological sites to dispossess disenfranchised communities.

This project allowed Emek Shaveh to expand its existing tours in Jerusalem for tour guides working in Jerusalem, schools, and the general Israeli public; created a network of tour guides that can educate the public about multi-ethnic history in the city; and made information regarding Jerusalem’s multicultural heritage more accessible.

Sustainability Partnerships Program

The Heschel Center for Sustainability promotes sustainable values, planning and living. The Center develops and implements the vision of sustainability: a just and cohesive society, a robust and democratic economy, and a healthy and productive environment for all residents.

This project was a collaboration between the Heschel Center, A Place for Change, and the Arava Institute. Its goal was to foster strategic collaborations between several organizations that work in different fields. The program included 20+ individuals representing eight organizations and groups, included weekly meetings over nine months, and included the study of case studies of attempts to create change in Israel and around the world on issues like the climate crisis, the crisis of democracy, and more. The goal of this project was the creation of a shared multi-issue outlook and long-term collaborations between progressive organizations that work in different content fields.

Center for Training and New Initiatives

Israel Hofsheet is the leading grassroots and advocacy organization working on issues of religious freedom including freedom of marriage, segregation of women, LGBT rights, and other local struggles against religious coercion and towards pluralism

This project trained and mobilized members and alumni of the Israel Hofsheet community, as well as municipal leaders and aspiring parliamentary advisors. This  included advanced trainings, webinars, and engagement in issues concerning religious freedom.

Mobilizing the Medical Community in Israel to Promote Greater Access to Health Services for Marginalized Populations

Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHRI) is the only Israeli organization active in both Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories that combines the provision of medical services to those without coverage or sufficient coverage, as well as efforts to raise awareness to the basic human right to accessible healthcare. One of their goals includes promoting greater access to health services for asylum seekers and undocumented migrants living in Israel.

This project funded a position of the Head of Community Building, who managed and recruited new volunteer professionals for PHRI’s two volunteer-run clinics in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. This project supported the humanitarian assistance that PHRI’s volunteers provide to underserved communities.

Directors of Shared Society Forum

Shatil is the operating department of NIF in Israel. One of NIF’s priorities is to advance equality and build partnerships and mutual understanding between Jews, Arabs, and other minority groups, forging a shared society in Israel.

This project convened the directors of Israel’s leading shared society organizations and influential activists for cross-sector coordination. Member organizations included Shatil, Abraham Initiatives, aChord Center, AJEEC-NISPED, Alliance for the Future of Israel, Alliance for Middle East Peace, Arab Center for Alternative Planning, Citizens’ HQ, Givat Haviva, Hand in Hand, Israel Democracy Institute, Itach Ma’aki, Mahapach-Taghir, Wahat al-Salam / Neve Shalom, Nisan, Rabbis for Human Rights, Sikkuy, and Omdim Beyachad. The directors worked together to promote issues of common concern and ensure sector-wide coordination of diverse activities.

Promoting Social and Economic Equity in Israel’s Northern Periphery

Shatil is the operating department of NIF in Israel. The Shatil-coordinated Citizens’ Forum for the Promotion of Health in the Galilee (Northern Health Forum), established in 2014, works to improve healthcare outcomes in the north. It is comprised of 290 Jewish and Arab residents of the region who are medical professionals, businesspeople, government officials, media experts, lawyers, and grassroots activists.

This project aimed to improve health outcomes by mobilizing Jewish and Arab health activists and monitored implementation of recent government decisions to improve health in the Arab community.

Strengthening Palestinian-Israeli Women’s Leadership in Civil Society

Shatil is the operating department of NIF in Israel. Shatil seeks to empower Arab-Israeli NGOs to increase their effectiveness and visibility. This project will address the acute need among Palestinian women’s organizations and women NGO directors for guidance and support, in order to maximize their impact and success.

This project provided consultation and training for 3 organizations and a coalition focused on decreasing crime and violence, and provided consulting packages for four women directors.

Women’s Exclusion Forum: Fighting Gender Segregation

Shatil is the operating department of NIF in Israel. Shatil has been promoting women’s rights since its inception 40 years ago. In 2018, Shatil created the Forum against the Exclusion of Women, a coalition of 14 organizations from across the religious spectrum. The Forum coordinates the efforts of these leading Israeli organizations to combat the exclusion of women at public events, in the school system, within the army, in media, academia, and elsewhere in Israeli society.

This project expanded the Forum’s educational work into schools, as well as launched a database of gender inequality speakers, produce reports, and advance campaigns.

Solidarity Visits to Victims and Survivors of Racial Violence Incidents

Since 2011, Tag Meir has become renowned for its immediate response to “Price Tag” attacks and other incidents of hate crimes by sending a delegation of mixed Jewish-Arab members to visit victims and survivors. These solidarity visits are Tag Meir’s flagship activity, through which supporters can take a moral stand and say “not in our name.” Tag Meir often provides further support by fixing vandalized property, removing hateful graffiti, or connecting them with legal services. Tag Meir also developed new tools for supporting these victims online during COVID-19.

This project continued its urgent response solidarity visits as well as community solidarity events, combining online activity with in-person visits and events.

Reducing Gender-Based Violence in Arab Society

Established in the 1990s, Women Against Violence (WAV) was the first organization in Israel (and the Middle East) to address the issue of violence against Arab women. WAV established the first shelter for Palestinian-Israeli victims of domestic violence, a 24-hour Arab-Israeli crisis center/hotline, as well as other services targeted specifically to young women and girls at risk. WAV still facilitates these programs in Nazareth and throughout northern Israel. WAV also fosters cooperation between local government and civil society in their efforts to raise gender-equality awareness and develop services to protect women from violence.

This project included WAV’s community programs and youth leadership programs to educate youth, women, and the Arab sector about the problem of domestic violence.