5 Israeli NGOs Making The World A Better Place
Israel is known as a start-up nation and its active non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are making a huge impact around the world. In this article, we’ll look at five leading Israeli NGOs that work to improve life in different parts of the globe.
IsraAid – The Israel Forum for International Humanitarian Aid
Formally established in 2001, IsraAid is an organization that provides humanitarian aid in countries affected by disaster, violence, and poverty. IsraAid’s mission is to ensure better lives for those affected by both natural disasters and complex emergencies. As of 2020, IsraAid has conducted relief activities in more than 50 countries across Africa, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and North America.
One of IsraAid’s most influential programs is its water purification program which has provided access to clean drinking water to thousands of people in areas hard hit by natural disasters such as hurricanes or earthquakes. Additionally, within Israel’s borders, IsraAid works with minorities like African refugees and marginalized communities like Bedouins to support their development through projects related to education, health care, psychological support, and more.
Ziv Medical Center – Safed
The Ziv Medical Center (ZMC) was founded in 1938 as a small hospital located in Safed before moving to its current location in 1952. Today it serves as one of the largest hospitals serving northern Israel with over 500 beds available for patient care. Since 2005 it has been operating under new management thanks to a partnership between the Israeli government and Clalit Health Services – one of the four state-mandated health insurance providers which comprise Israel’s national insurance program (Klalit means universal healthcare).
ZMC offers modern medical services from general medicine to cutting-edge research together with innovative treatments such as cellular therapy for cancer patients – all at no cost for standard services. The hospital also cares for special populations such as soldiers who were injured during combat alongside providing medical assistance to local Palestinians in need via outreach programs.
Save a Child’s Heart
Save A Child’s Heart (SACH), founded in 1996 by Professor Amiram Katz who served at the time as head of pediatric cardiology at Wolfson Medical Center, provides emergency care for children suffering from cardiac diseases who come mostly from developing nations.
SACH provides lifesaving corrective heart surgery alongside preoperative assessment and postoperative follow-up exams completely free of charge regardless of race or religion while providing humanitarian support and educational workshops on prevention strategies related to heart problems throughout these nations too. The organization has treated over 4500 children from 54 different countries while training local doctors on how they can provide similar treatments within their own nations thus creating long term positive change within these regions.
Roots – Community Empowerment Program
Founded in 2010 Roots is an NGO located near Jerusalem that works with youth living below the poverty line who have experienced traumatic events throughout their lives via educational workshops aiming toward building strong relationships through communal trust and shared understanding between families living side by side in disadvantaged communities.
This helps them become agents of positive change within their neighborhoods by facilitating reduced crime rates, improved school results, and increased economic growth amongst other things. Furthermore, Roots actively strives towards improving cross-cultural relations across several Middle Eastern nations while working with volunteers from different cultures as part of their day-to-day activities.
Latet – Giving Help & Hope
Latet means ‘to give’ which is precisely what this NGO does since its establishment roughly 20 years ago. Within Israel, Latet collects donated food items from farmers and distributes them quickly directly into life-saving packages. Meanwhile, abroad, Latet assists refugees living near conflict zones by developing medical facilities alongside stocking refugee camps.
So far, this NGO has supplied over 200 million meals mostly consisting of fresh fruits, veggies, grains, legumes, bread, and more. Latet also runs various campaigns such as a blood drive campaign where blood donations are collected all across Israel twice a year and sent off towards helping cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy amongst others.