Yom HaAtzmaut: Moments of Pride Through Israeli Innovation

On the eve of Israel’s 73rd independence celebration, our program will open with a virtual tour of the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation and an interview with Chemi Peres, the chairman of the Center’s board and the co-founder and managing general partner of Pitango venture capital fund, which invests widely in the technology field, from IT to medicine.

We’ll also spotlight the country’s undeniable culture of innovation and its ability to overcome obstacles, by visiting three Israeli enterprises and hearing from their founders about how each built the business and what North American Jews can learn from their experiences. Moderated by Avi Jorisch, author of “Thou Shall Innovate,” the program will feature these three innovators: Gil Shwed, considered to be the founder of the computer firewall, is the founder and CEO of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd; Naty Barak, chief sustainability officer of Netafim, the pioneer and global leader in drip irrigation solutions; and Dovie Maisel, vice president of operations of United Hatzalah of Israel, the country’s largest independent, non-profit, fully volunteer EMS organization, providing the fastest, no-cost emergency medical first response to all.

This programming series is proudly supported by the Israel Engagement Fund: A JCC Association of North America Program Accelerator, made possible by the generosity of several committed donors.