Israel Active

Abu Dhabi-based International Houbara Conservation fund is working with Israel’s Nature & Parks Authority and the Nature & Heritage Foundation to save the endangered Houbara species from extinction. There are some 400 Houbaras in Israel’s Arava Desert.

Bahrain’s Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Zayed bin Rashid Al-Zayani made a 2-day visit to Jerusalem.  Three deals were signed to boost trade and tourism. The Minister said the agreements would lead to economic prosperity for both countries and more stability in the region.

Israeli, UAE and Bahraini female diplomats held a "Women in Diplomacy Network" panel event to examine the role of women in diplomacy. It marked 20 years since UN Resolution 1325, which calls for the active inclusion and participation of women in promoting peace and security.

Israel is the best country for women entrepreneurs worldwide, according to the Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE) for 2020. Israel tops the charts for the first time, advancing from fourth place in 2019. Israel plans to double the number of female entrepreneurs by 2022.

Israel’s Ben Gurion University, together with Indian firm Aban Offshore, is establishing an agricultural research institute in Chennai, India. It will allow Indian students to earn degrees in agriculture from BGU including hydrology and water quality, desert studies, and ecology and conservation.

Israel is home to the largest collection of animals in the Middle East. At Ramat Gan Safari, 1,600 animals no longer have any visitors; some enjoy the peace and quiet, but others really appreciate the extra attention from their keepers and conservationists.

The first Jewish-Arab-Jerusalem Hackathon took place in Margalit Startup City (reported previously), home to dozens of high-tech companies. 20 young entrepreneurs took part in a new initiative by Jewish and Arab entrepreneurs to build new projects for the benefit of Jerusalem.

I had not realized previously that Mansour Abbas, head of the Arab-Israeli Ra’am party, is deputy speaker of Israel’s Parliament – the Knesset.  And he seems much more moderate than the other parties in the Joint Arab List, as this latest news article shows.

On Dec 3, the city of Jerusalem and other Israeli cities will illuminate iconic buildings in purple in honor of the International Day of Disabled Persons. The Jerusalem buildings include the Chords Bridge, City Hall and Teddy Stadium.

When Yakov Pizenberg was 17 he began delivering left-over pastries from an Ashkelon bakery to elderly people and Holocaust survivors in the city. Now 21, he has founded “Youth for an Equal Society” which, mostly via the telephone and zoom, aids some 400 lonely, elderly people in Ashkelon.