“For me, receiving the 2011 award for Contribution to the Community at the Sderot Conference for Community service was completing the circle.”

By Pamela Deutsch

Born in 1975, Daniel lived in Jerusalem through 8^th grade, and then moved with his family to Shdemot Meholah in the Jordan Valley.  Daniel attended high school at Hispin on the Golan Heights.

Following graduation, Daniel participated in the inaugural class of the Integrated Army Program sponsored by the Kibbutz Hadatai Movement.  Daniel spent 8 months at Yeshivat Ma’ale Hagilboa followed by a year in half  in army intelligence, a second 8 months at the Yeshiva and then served as a tutor at the Or Etzion Military Academy located at Mercaz Shapira for another year and a half.

Having completed his army service, Daniel spent a year traveling in the Far East, Europe, and Egypt.

In 2000, Daniel began studying film at Sapir College in Sderot.  He completed his BA with high grades and even gave the student address at graduation.   During his college years, Daniel won a competition in still photography,  and volunteered for Ma’apach – a Jewish Arab student organization  which works towards reducing the economic, educational and social gaps of underprivileged populations.

Daniel lived in Sderot itself, and made many friends in the community.  During his last year of studies, Daniel began working in the Sderot community computer center, with at risk youth.  The program he developed and initiated built upon skills that the youth already had and involved the youth teaching computers to a range of population groups; children who needed help with their homework, adults who needed to be able to use computers for their work, and even the elderly.  The highlight of this project was that the youth taught computer skills to their teachers, to Alon Schuster who was then head of the Sha’ar Hangeev Regional Council and to the local director of Project Renewal – who quickly realized that the youth were excellent at building him the PowerPoint presentations he needed for his work.

In 2003, Daniel began to study for a Masters Degree in Culture at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and began working as a research assistant for Dan Porat, an education professor, on the topic of creating national memory.  It was during this time that Daniel met Astorre Modena, a Jewish Italian venture capitalist, who lives in Israel.

Astorre was very interested in finding a way to contribute to the community.  Astorre who was living in the Arnona neighborhood, was very well aware that those living across from him in Talpiot, were far less well off.  Upon hearing about the work Daniel had been doing in Sderot, Astorre was immediately enthusiastic about founding a similar program in Jerusalem.

Machsava Tova was founded in 2004 in the Talpiot neighborhood in Jerusalem.  It began as one center, and ran mostly programs for youth at risk.  The demand for activities by children of other ages grew quickly; they were literally banging on the door.  Beginning with small groups of children Machshav Tova  worked to find appropriate content for younger children and the youth who were already involved became tutors for these children.  The demand continued to grow with parents also wanting to learn more about computer use, in order to improve their ability to find work or advance in their current positions.

Today Machshava Tova has five centers in west Jerusalem, three centers in East Jerusalem, one in Lod, and are in the process of developing two new centers one in the north in Afula and one in the south, most likely in Beersheva.

Click here to view the embedded video.

In 2007, Machshava Tova initiated the first MCU – a mobile computer unit, which brings equipment and teachers to kindergartens, community centers, schools and other facilities and provides computer training to populations that would otherwise not have this opportunity.    For example, the three MCUs work in Charedi communities, reach out to the disabled and provide opportunities for job seekers at job fairs to prepare and submit resumes on the spot.

In addition, Machshava Tova runs an exciting recycling project.  Initiated by Daniel and Astorre, the program takes used computers and computing components and recycles them, and then donates them to underprivileged populations; individuals, organizations or students.  All of the work on the computers is performed by youth at risk and IT volunteers, who rebuild the computers and load them with software.  Machshava Tova is the only Microsoft Authorized Refurbisher in the country.

Daniel has grown the organization for one person to 60 and now has both managerial and administrative assistance.  Furthermore, he has put together a range of partners who include municipalities, government agencies, businesses, foundation, private donors and fee for service clients.

Daniel is a permanent member of the Knesset Committee for Science and participated in the Ministry of Finance Committee for Reducing the Digital Divide.

Daniel loves to hike, is still a photographer, and spends much of his free time with his family and in his carpentry workshop.  He built a deck and pergola for his new home, a composter, and is now in the middle of planning bookshelves and media center for his living room.  His newest interest is in being a mentor for new social entrepreneurs; already he has worked on a project for social entrepreneurs at the Ein Gedi Pre-Army Mechina, and participated in ROI.

Machashava Tova was recently awarded the 2011 award for Contribution to the Community at the Sderot Conference for Community Service.  For Daniel, accepting the award in Sderot was the completion of a circle started 9 years ago.

Daniel is married and the father of two children and lives in the Dead Sea area.

An Enchanted City

This pilot program was created with the support of the Jerusalem Foundation. With help from supporters of the Museum, we hope to expand the program to include children throughout the city.  The program is also being tailored for religious and secular kindergartens to foster tolerance among them.

These three organizations are working together for the sake of the encouraging business and community female leadership.

In the last two years, due to the global economic recession, many non-profit organizations have added profit making and business achievements to their agenda and have created collaborations with business organizations. Alongside those collaborations, we have also seen business organizations adding social, political and ecological issues to their agenda.

Together, businesses and non-profit organizations are opening “coffee shops” with the goal of coexistence and mutual learning which comes from an equal place. These “coffee shops” provide • income to families • allow business organizations to incorporate workers with disabilities • empower womens’ micro-businesses coming from different ethnicities and colors and creates cooperation which indicates a financial need and provides solutions to multicultural communities.

These instances demonstrate that economics motivates social change and connects between men and women coming from diverse background.

Speakers at the conference include:

Safa Younes, Founder and CEO of Arus al-Bahar

sviva_invitationProf. Benny Gidron, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Alisa Gutsman, Social investments Advisor

Panel participants include:

Esti Doron, National Supervisor of Community Work Service, Ministry of Social Affairs

Efrat Bekler-Kahana, CEO of Yoseftan Institute

Hagit Rubinstein, Manager of Micro-Businesses Area, Koret Foundation

Lena Gurary, Founder and CEO of Supportive Community

For more information regarding the conference contact:

office@svivatomehet.org.il

The idea for the conference came after many complaints were made to AlManarah by people with disabilities who have experienced discrimination and negative attitudes from stakeholders such as the National Insurance Institute and the Welfare & Social Affairs Ministry who are supposed to be supporting them and meeting their needs. The conference, held in AlManarah’s Multi-Services Centre, brought stakeholders to the ‘home ground’ of the Blind and persons with disabilities, allowing those attending the conference to feel “at home” during the sessions.

One of the sessions of the conference included a panel of persons with disabilities, facilitated by Adv. Abbass, and hosted by Mr. Nidal Essawi and Ms. Fatima Zoabi, both discussing the relationship between the stakeholders and persons with disabilities. They talked about the gap in expectations from both sides and they blamed both sides: on the one hand, the stakeholders should learn more about the needs and the importance of human dignity; and on the other, persons with disabilities should understand the limitations and the work pressures that these stakeholders are under while trying to meet their needs.

A number of sessions were presented by staff members of various institutions and highlighted the difficulties of both clients and stakeholders. At the conclusion of the conference a list of conclusion and recommendations were presented. Participants shared their impressions and opinions. Mr. Ronnie Shechter, Chairman of the Israeli Human Rights Organization of People with Disabilities, thanked AlManarah for organizing this special conference and he sent a clear message to persons with disabilities to cooperate together as Arabs and Jews working together in Israel in order to achieve their rights. He criticized stakeholders, claiming that there is a need to invest greater efforts and be more committed towards facilitating the needs of persons with disabilities. Abbass recommended that a steering committee be established that will include stakeholders and persons with disabilities in order to develop the constructive ideas presented within the conference into an action plan to be implemented.

The conference ended on an optimistic note: all the participants thanked Al-Manarah for addressing some very important issues. Adv. Abbass Abbass said that the success of the conference and Al-Manarah’s great achievements of 2009, illustrates AlManarah as a leading organization not only in the Arab society, but in Israel as a whole.

In the present situation of increasing economic crisis, as the social and economic divide widens between center and periphery regions, Festival BeShekel is working to decrease this divide through cultural production and strengthening community in the geographic, cultural and economic periphery. The Festival is not just a musical event; it is an entire social process that extends over the year leading up to the summer Festival. Throughout the year, the NGO works to strengthen trh local youth, which is involved with planning and producing all the events during the year, leading up to the finale—the national summer festivals. The local production group, Cultural Leaders, made up of 30 youth in each location, representing the wide range of communities and towns they come from—religious and secular, immigrants and old-timers, Jews and Arabs.

In 2008, Festival BeShekel came to Kiryat Malachi, where its impact was very real. One of the local peer mentors there said, after a successful event: “The kids [who participate in the planning process] said to me, “Who will even want to donate to our cause? Who will even attend the event? You don’t know Kiryat Malachi. People won’t even pay one shekel!” The event turned out amazing–something changed in the group and in me. We were very excited. I felt that the shared experience changed something in them, in the way they looked at their lives. What seemed impossible to them became reality. Suddenly, there was motivation that wasn’t there previously, that they could produce the whole festival on their own.” The local Cultural group continues planning cultural events in Kiryat Malachi throughout 2009, in partnership with the local municipality, and with continued guidance from Festival BeShekel staff.

Gilboa’s festival will feature: Zehava Ben, Sharif, Muki, Beit ha’Bubot, Eifoh ha’Yeled, and Peshutei ha’Am.

Jerusalem’s festival will host: Mercedez Band, Alma Zahar, Asaf Avidan, Ashkara Metim, Harel Moyal, and Idan Yaniv. And in Lod, the following groups will perform: Hadag Nahash, D.A.M, Achinoam Nini, Mira Awad, Michael Graylsamer, and Haim Ooliel.