Dimona mayor to 'Post': KKL-JNF will bring hi-tech to the South – opinion
Atar and KKL-JNF call this shift “Israeli Relocation.” I call it “Contemporary Zionism.”
By BENNY BITONKKL-JNF GLOBAL Chairman Daniel Atar speaks a gala dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Jerusalem, last year.(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
The year is 1901. The hall in Basel, Switzerland, is bustling and noisy. Dr. Binyamin Ze’ev (Theodor) Herzl and his loyal assistant, David Wolffsohn, succeeded in passing a decisive vote on the decision to establish Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF), which would mobilize resources to buy and develop lands in the Land of Israel.One hundred and twenty years have passed since the oldest Jewish organization in the world began painting the arid rocky Land of Israel in the colors of hope and green wonder. KKL-JNF persists in the preservation of its historic role as the guardian of Israel’s national forests, the green lung of Israel. Alongside this important historical role, however, we must plan for the future, including examining which tasks remain relevant at the current time, what the role KKL-JNF is, and what the important tasks are that need implementing at present time.We, the residents of southern and northern Israel, know what will make Israel strong and which steps can help promote development in Israel’s outlying areas: a significant reduction in the amount of resources expended in Israel’s densely populated and highly developed center, and instead channeling these funds to Israel’s periphery, where they are needed to help promote growth. We must realize the enormous personal and geographical potential that exists in the Negev and Galilee, and enable people living in these areas to become active participants in Israel’s national technological output.Over the last few years, there has been a tremendous amount of hope that these aspirations would come true, and a number of programs aimed at promoting growth in these areas were established. KKL-JNF, under the leadership of Danny Atar, has spearheaded revolutionary change, which has placed the Negev and the Galilee at the center of the veteran organization’s activities.Atar conceived of the program “Israel 2040,” the goal of which is to arrange for 1.5 million Israelis to relocate to the Negev and Galilee by the year 2040 by creating sophisticated hi-tech centers in these regions. This is being accomplished through close cooperation between KKL-JNF and the Israeli government, as well as with the creation of partnerships with academic institutions in Israel and abroad.ATAR HARNESSED all of the efforts of the organization he heads to implement this plan. Together with all the mayors and regional council heads in the Negev and Galilee, he spearheaded a program that requires the KKL-JNF to engage in activity with a Zionist vision – a vision that would expand the Israeli hi-tech scene beyond the borders of Tel Aviv and central Israel; a vision that would motivate 1.5 million Israelis to pick up and move to the Negev or the Galilee; a dream to generate quality employment, build excellent schools, create informal education centers and colleges, as well as provide suitable housing solutions for all the families moving to these communities.In short, adapting Zionism to the modern era. Atar and KKL-JNF call this shift “Israeli Relocation.” I call it “Contemporary Zionism.”Unlike many other programs, the changes led by Atar have been operating already for a number of years. KKL-JNF has been busy crafting an environment that will be suitable for Israelis who work in hi-tech and other promising fields, creating jobs in the Negev and Galilee, as well as providing quality education for their children.A great example of the programs created by Atar is the KKL-JNF House for Excellence program that’s currently being implemented in the Negev and the Galilee. These schools assist local students studying STEM subjects so that they can thrive later in IDF technology units and at university.In the field of employment, in addition to the Digital Innovation Center in Beersheba, we are also currently witnessing the establishment of the East Negev Innovation Center (ENIC) in Dimona, which focuses on Industry 4.0 technologies. By doing this, KKL-JNF is marking Dimona and Yeruham as essential centers in the South for future professional and technological growth, which will be a strong attraction for people living in successful communities in central Israel and new immigrants, and encourage them to integrate into the region over the next 20 years.
As the mayor of Dimona, and the chairman of the Development Cities Forum, I sincerely hope that KKL-JNF will continue to follow this path and implement the new Zionism led by Danny Atar. We, the mayors and residents of the Negev and the Galilee, will be here to continue implementing these plans together with Danny and KKL-JNF, and to turning this vision into reality.The writer is the mayor of Dimona and the deputy chairman of the local government center, chairman of the Development Cities Forum, chairman of the Negev Development Authority and the chairman of the East Negev Organization.Translated by Hannah Hochner.
