jerusalem post - january 31 2011

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World Council of Israelis Abroad gets down tobusiness

By RHONDA SPIVAK01/31/2011 04:59

Building bridges to world Jewry and State of Israel theme of inaugural Toronto conference.

TORONTO The World Council of Israelis Abroad held its first-everconference inToronto this month, under the theme Building Bridges to World Jewry and the State of

Israel.

The three-day meeting was sponsored by the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, theJewish Agency for Israel, Israels Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and the MishelanuOrganization for Israelis Abroad.

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Amir Gissin, the consul-general in Toronto, said at the opening on January 18 that thereis a consensus at Israeli missions about the importance of maintaining Israel as anoption for the second generation of Israelis [abroad]. They didnt choose to leave. Theirparents did.

Research shows that the most successful olim are second generation Israelis thosewho were born in Israel and left at a young age or who were born abroad but grew up ina Hebrew-speaking household, he said.


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Those who decide to return have a successful absorption and become again a part of[Israeli] society.

Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein spoke of Israels need to present itselfeffectively to the world, and how Israelis abroad can be partners in this.

Gissin said Edelsteins message was honest and relevant but that unfortunately in hisexperience, it is not necessarily the case that Israelis abroad will be involved as activeand effective supporters forhasbara [Israel advocacy].

He added that it is a personal choice, and that although he has tried for years to recruitand engage Israelis proactively for this purpose, the results were less effective than Ithought.

Natan Sharansky, chairman of the Jewish Agency, also spoke at the event.

Ted Sokolsky, president and CEO of the UJA Federation of Toronto, said theconference was a historical marker and a metaphor for the change in attitude inregard to understanding the unique role of Israelis abroad both to Diaspora Jewishcommunities and to the State of Israel.

The conference was organized around three main pillars: building an Israeli communityabroad, the relationship between the local Israeli and Jewish communities, and therelationship between the State of Israel and Israelis abroad.

Five years ago in Toronto we [the federation] realized that wed failed miserably inrelating to Israelis who come to Toronto...

Our approach was paternalistic... We began reaching out and created an Israeli forumto find internal leadership in the Israeli community, Sokolsky told this reporter.

One very successful outcome of this new approach, according to Sokolsky, wasKacholvLavan, a supplementary after-school program which was started in Hebrew forthe children of Israelis and now includes Canadian Jews looking for quality Hebrewtraining. Another success is the building of a new Jewish community center in Toronto,in an area where there are a lot of Israelis among the 75,000 Jews.

Israelis have been part of the creation of this facility, scheduled to open in 2012 andhave a strong sense of ownership, he said.

We have all realized that expatriates can be an asset to a country, Sokolsky said,describing the Israelis who have moved to Toronto since 2000 as more confident, withfar less of a sense of isolation than in previous years.

They dont see themselves as yordim, but as Israelis working and living abroad... Theyare also very conscious that they have to make a strong effort if they want their kids to


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be Jewish, he said.

Prof. Renat Cohen from York University said, Rather than requiring completeincorporation by either Israel or the local community, Israelis in Canada, or at least inToronto, are establishing and strengthening their own distinct community.

If this stream of migration slows down, the Israeli community is likely, in a generation ortwo, to completely integrate in the general Jewish community. Either way the Myth ofReturn [to Israel] is still alive, she said.

Jennie Starr, the founder and director of the Tarbuton nonprofit institution in San Diego,said the conference was an exceptional opportunity for all organizations to focus onfirst, second generation Israelis and third generation Israelis abroad.

Tarbuton provides Israeli-themed programs and classes for the local Israeli and Jewishcommunity... offering opportunities to learn and maintain their Hebrew language skills,

share their traditions and build a deeper connection to Israel.

Starr grew up in a home where her Israeli father and American mother did not speakHebrew with their children, though they provided a rich Israeli environment filled withIsraeli food, music and holiday celebrations.

We did not join synagogues and I had only two years in a day school. It wasnt matim[suitable] really for us. We visited Israel every four-five years, the most we could affordat the time, said.

She did not begin to learn to speak Hebrew until she married an American who lived inIsrael for seven years and could speak Hebrew fluently.

When they had a child Starr wanted to provide linguistic continuity and connection toIsrael. She started Kishkushim, a Tarbuton program, as a mommy and baby playgroup for Hebrew-speakers, as a way of building an enclave for the continuation of theHebrew language, and later added a formal after-school program with classes forreading and writing skills.

Tarbuton participants learn Hebrew, their roots, the history of Israel, and Yahadut[Judaism] in a way that that is consistent with Israeli traditions around the hagim[festivals] which are in many cases celebrated differently than in Jewish Americanorganizational settings.

Starr said the conference focused on ways to build business relationships, andcollaborative projects between Israeli businesses and expatriates, as well as looking athow we can maintain linguistic continuity of the Hebrew language and maintain andbuild both Jewish and Israeli identity.

Uzi Rebhun, from the Harman Institute of Contemporary Judaism at the Hebrew


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University of Jerusalem, presented data regarding Israeli Identification and Attachmentto Homeland Among Israelis Abroad.

There are believed to be about 1 million Israelis in the Diaspora, mostly in NorthAmerica, with significant numbers in Europe and Australia.

According to Rebhun, about 22 percent of Israelis living overseas stay abroad for 11 ormore years, 27% stay abroad for six- 10 years, 22% stay three-five years, and 17% stayabroad for less than two years.

Over 56% of Israelis who emigrate are between the ages of 18 and 29, more than 29%are between the ages of 30 and 39, and only about 2% move overseas when they arebetween the ages of 50 and 59.

A very important way they stay connected to Israel is through newspapers, Rebhunreported. Only 3.7% of Israelis abroad said that they never read an Israeli newspaper,

while 76.3% said they very much read Israeli newspapers. Bycompa

rison

, only 48%said they very much listened to Israeli music, and 16.4% very much read Israeliliterature and poetry. About 35% of Israelis abroad said that they never listened toIsraeli radio or watched Israeli television.

Sixty-five percent of Israelis living abroad visit Israel once a year, 13.9% visit every twoyears, 8.4% visit every three years, and 12.5% once every four years or less.

jerusalem post - january 31 2011

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