Heinrich Böll Stiftung

Heinrich Böll Stiftung Israel

The coastline of Tel Aviv. Photo: Maud Meinel

The Heinrich Boell Stiftung (HBS) is the German green foundation affiliated with the German Green Party. We are a non-profit organization striving to promote environmental justice and sustainable development, civil society, equality, women's rights and gender democracy internationally. With headquarters in Berlin, Germany, the HBS has 28 offices worldwide and cooperates with over 200 partners in more than 60 countries.

The website of the Israel office is divided into our four program areas as well as publications, information on our project partners and our grant application guidelines along with a spotlight on our news and events. You are invited to visit often for further updates and please feel free to contact us should you have any questions or comments.

German-Israeli and EU-Israeli Relations

Conference Report

Transnational Migration and Multiculturalism. The Case of Israel, Germany and Europe.

January 17, 2012 - The Conference on Transnational Migration and Multiculturalism (The Case of Israel, Germany and Europe) Transnational Migration and Multiculturalism, which took place on the 28th and 29th of November 2011, was conducted in cooperation with the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem and the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Israel and dealt with the interrelations between nation state, immigration and the perception of multiculturalism in both countries. Marianne Zepp more»

Executive Summary

Solidarity and strength: The Future of the European Union

- December 13, 2011 - Economic and environmental challenges that threaten to overwhelm the European project. The Heinrich Böll Foundation has set up a commission to examine the future of the EU. This publication puts forward a series of proposals in areas such as foreign and security; agricultural; energy; economics and monetary and enlargement policy. more»

Hans Fallada in Israel: The Convoluted Politics of Reconciliation

- July 3, 2011 -

The post-war novel by Hans Fallada Alone in Berlin (Jeder stirbt fuer sich allein, published in 1947 in East Berlin) became a major success in Israel during the past year. Yossi Yonah, professor of philosophy at the Jerusalem-based Van Leer Institute, is looking into the Israeli perception of the novel. He comes up with two surprising aspects: that the Israelis are geared to have a more nuanced picture of Nazi Germany and that they are drawing conclusions for the democratic future of their own country.
Originally written for the Heinrich Boell Foundation in Israel, the article was published in the German weekly “Der Freitag” with the assistance of the Tel Aviv Office.

Read the text by Yossi Yonah»

Opinion

In case of doubt, freedom shall prevail

- March 2, 2011 - The dictator may have been overthrown, but we are still far from putting paid to the military regime. At the moment it appears quite likely that the Egyptian generals will keep their promise and pave the way to free and fair elections. The Arab world is enthusiastic about this prospect, as is the West. Only in Israel has scepticism prevailed so far. Dr. Franziska Brantner more»

Editors' comments

Hanan Elstein and Adina Stern on the publication of the book "The Clearance of Pain: Selected Writings by Heinrich Böll, 1940-1985"

- January 8, 2011 - The editors of the recently published anthology of non-fiction writings by the post-war German writer Heinrich Böll, in Hebrew, share thoughts and comments about the celebrated author and Nobel Prize laureate. Adina Stern and Hanan Elstein also reflect on the process of their work, and explain why they believe that Böll’s work is highly relevant to contemporary Israeli society. The book, The Clearance of Pain: Selected Writings by Heinrich Böll, 1940-1985 is a result of a cooperation between the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Israel office, and the “Kav Adom” series of HaKibutz Hameuchad publishing house. more»

Women's Rights and Gender Democracy

Case Study

Gender Mainstreaming Calls for Gender Breakdowns

January 11, 2012 - Gender mainstreaming is a new approach to designing and assessing government and municipal activities. This approach increases transparency and ensures that public activities are designed to address the differential needs of women and men. Case Study: The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor more»

Publication

Women and Power

- January 10, 2012 - On the 11th anniversary of the Security Council’s Resolution 1325, Heinrich Boell Foundation Israel supported the issue of Palestine-Israel Journal of Politics, Economics and Culture: Women and Power. This issue presents an in-depth analysis of gender perspectives, particularly the impact of the conflict on women and women’s role in peacebuilding. more»

Position Paper

Gender Change in Organizational Arenas: Gender Mainstreaming as a Process of Translation

- December 22, 2011 - The question of women's position, power and status in organizations is essential to promoting gender equality, since organizations and social institutions provide the central arenas and settings in which gender hierarchies, inequalities and disadvantages are created and reproduced. HBF supported a research on gender translation undertaken by Gender and Women Studies Program at Tel Aviv University and WIPS Center at the Van Leer Institute in order to learn about gender mainstreaming in organizations through experience and situation in the field. Dr. Zeev Lerer and Hadass Ben-Eliyahu more»

Announcement

No Women - No Security!

- December 22, 2011 - Process of creating of National Action Plan for implementing the UN Security Council Resolution on Women, Peace and Security, Resolution 1325. more»

Report

Gender Equality Initiatives in Transportation Policy

- December 8, 2011 - Adva Center, policy analysis institute examining Israeli society from the perspective of equality and social justice, carried out a project supported by the Heinrich Boell Stiftung Israel in 2011 on Gender Mainstreaming Programming & Budgeting in Israeli Ministries (The Women’s Budget Forum at the Adva Center). The paper reviews current Gender Equality Initiatives in Transportations Policy. more»

The Story of the Implementation of 1325 UN Security Council Resolution in Israel

- October 31, 2011 -

Exactly 11 years ago, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1325 (October 31, 2000). This groundbreaking resolution sent a significant message to many countries,including Israel. The principles of the decision, which emphasize representation of women in peace negotiations and increased protection of women and children against violence in conflict situations, were found to be very relevant to the Israeli society that has been dealing with a long-term conflict situation over the years. Adv. Anat Thon Ashkenazi of the NGO Itach-Maaki Women Lawyers for Social Justice - a partner of the Israel office of the Heinrich Boell Foundation, describes the efforts of the implementation of UNSCR 1325 in Israel to date.

Religion, Politics and Gender Equality

- September 10, 2011 - Religion has an important function in the public and political life of many societies that also affects the relations between men and women as well as the right to gender equality. Still, how do religion and politics mingle precisely and what are the concrete social and political consequences of this mixture from a gender perspective? To address these questions, we conducted an extensive research project in collaboration with the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) which focused on 11 countries: Chile, India, Iran, Israel, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Serbia, Turkey, USA. more»

Study and Campaign

Working Group's 'No Justification for Polygamy' Campaign Sparks Discourse Nationally

- March 7, 2011 - The Working Group for Equality in Personal Status Issues, a coalition of women's and human rights groups that works to promote the status of Palestinian women citizens of Israel, has just concluded the first round of its campaign against polygamy ─ a project supported by the Heinrich Boell Stiftung Israel office since 2008. Launched through media across the Palestinian minority throughout December 2010, the campaign was geared to publically, and for the first time, broach a critical discussion across the Palestinian minority around the legitimacy of polygamy. Beyond being endemic throughout the Palestinian minority (particularly within the Bedouin population, where polygamous households constitute an estimated 33% of all households), polygamy still enjoys widespread social legitimacy and justification among an even wider section of the Palestinian population.

Yotam Keduri Read more about the campaign and download the English summary of the Polygamy study»

Environmental Justice and Sustainable Development

The climate is changing – so should our economy

December 7, 2011 - As the UN climate conference convenes in Durban, South Africa, Maya Givon, Coordiantor of the Paths to Sustainability NGO Coalition, says that our ability to deal successfully with the unprecedented challenge of climate change is connected to our ability to transition to a greener, more sustainable economy that will significantly augment mitigation efforts. The summit in Durban is an opportunity for leaders worldwide to answer this call, by removing political barriers and allowing a continuation of joint global effort to halt climate change. Maya M. Givon more»

Article

How Germany Became Europe’s Green Leader

- November 15, 2011 -

This article examines how German environmental policymaking over the last 40 years transformed Europe’s economic engine into the international driver of green growth.

Ralph Buehler, Arne Jungjohann, Melissa Keeley, Michael Mehling more»

Article

Growth of Limits

- May 11, 2011 - On the road to ecological modernity, prosperity is possible without having to destroy the basis of our livelihood.
Ralf Fücks more»

Global Environmental Governance and Rio +20: Thinking Big – Doing Little?

- May 1, 2011 - There is little faith in the reform of the UN system; nonetheless, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, to be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2012 – also known as Rio +20 – is not only to set the stage for a green economy, but also to provide an impetus for the institutional reform of the UN environmental sector. The ministerial-level advisory group brought together by the UN Environmental Program (UNEP) is preparing the reforms. The state of the discussion is analyzed here by Barbara Unmüßig, board member of the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Publication

Myths About Nuclear Energy - Hebrew Edition

- April 21, 2011 - The Israel office of the Heinrich Boell Stiftung published a Hebrew translation of the book, Myths About Nuclear Energy: How the Energy Lobby is Pulling the Wool Over Our Eyes originally published in German as part of a HBS series on ecology. In addition to the translation, HBS Israel commissioned Dr. Shahar Dolev from the Israel Energy Forum to write a preface and summary in order to provide background and context to the Hebrew speaking audience on nuclear energy and the current discourse in Israel. The book debunks seven commonly held myths on nuclear energy including issues of safety, atomic waste disposal, climate protection among others. Marc Berthold Click here to read the foreword and to download the publication»

Civil Society and Democratic Participation

Letter

German political foundations write joint letter to Members of Knesset on NGO funding bills

November 20, 2011 - The political foundations from the Federal Republic of Germany in Israel express concern about a series of legislative initiatives that would fundamentally change civil society involvement overall. more»

opinion

Male Warfare, Female Welfare

- August 31, 2011 - When Daphni Leef says that we are talking about homes and Bibi Netanyahu is talking about real estate, when teachers who oppose the latest reform say that education is not a business, when physicians are calling out to save the future of public health care, they are all calling to remove public services from the jurisdictional realm of business logic. Guy Shani more»

perspective

A summer of Protests for Social Justice in Israel Seeks a Green New Deal

- August 17, 2011 -

With Israel asking itself some deep questions about the directions it should go in embodied in the recent protest movement, the Green Movement just released the first draft of a new economic plan for Israel. Based on the Green New Deals that emerged from green think tanks and political parties from around the world, the Economics of Tomorrow suggests a new model for government intervention that promotes economic development while preserving ecological resources and social democratic values. Alon Tal And Racheli Tedhar Kener, chairpersons of the Green Movement, offer a unique perspective, linking the economic plan with the currrent surge of protests for social justice in Israel.

The Israeli Summer

- August 3, 2011 - After Daphne Leef, a twenty-five-year-old video editor, got word from her landlord that her lease wouldn't be renewed, she discovered she'd been priced out of Tel Aviv. Housing prices in the city have increased by 65% in the past five years, with rents rising in tow. A thousand-foot apartment in the city rents these days for two to three thousand dollars a month, which is more than most Israelis make altogether. Financial planners advise to keep rent costs to 30% of income, but to stay in Tel Aviv, young professionals need to sign over their salary checks in full, taking second jobs, loading up on roommates or counting on monthly supplements from parents. For Leef, who since finishing film school has made clips for some of Israel's biggest pop stars, none of these options made sense. When she considered her situation, something snapped. So she posted on Facebook that when her lease was up, she would pitch a tent in the city center, inviting to join her all those fed up at finding their salaries fall short of their rent.

Noah Efron more»

Contact
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Conference Report

Executive Summary

Solidarity and strength: The Future of the European Union

Hans Fallada in Israel: The Convoluted Politics of Reconciliation

Opinion

In case of doubt, freedom shall prevail

Editors' comments

Hanan Elstein and Adina Stern on the publication of the book "The Clearance of Pain: Selected Writings by Heinrich Böll, 1940-1985"

Case Study

Publication

Women and Power

Position Paper

Gender Change in Organizational Arenas: Gender Mainstreaming as a Process of Translation

Announcement

No Women - No Security!

Report

Gender Equality Initiatives in Transportation Policy

The Story of the Implementation of 1325 UN Security Council Resolution in Israel

Research Project and Policy Brief

Religion, Politics and Gender Equality

Study and Campaign

Working Group's 'No Justification for Polygamy' Campaign Sparks Discourse Nationally

Article

How Germany Became Europe’s Green Leader

Article

Growth of Limits

Global Environmental Governance and Rio +20: Thinking Big – Doing Little?

Publication

Myths About Nuclear Energy - Hebrew Edition

Letter

opinion

Male Warfare, Female Welfare

perspective

A summer of Protests for Social Justice in Israel Seeks a Green New Deal

The Israeli Summer