Can Israel Help California Solve Its Drought Problem?

(Image: California Department of Water Resources)

By Madison Margolin - August 10, 2015

Originally appeared here in Forward

Today, Lake Oroville, California’s second largest reservoir, looks like an almost barren valley. The piers of Enterprise Bridge, once steeped in fresh water, stand tall and dry, supporting the deck over a stream that trickles down the valley’s center.

At the 2015 Summit on Water Technology and the California Drought, held on July 10 in Sacramento, a photo of Lake Oroville flashed before the audience during a presentation by assembly member Marc Levine. “California will never see normal rainfall amounts again,” said Levine, who added that in Israel, too, “the reality is that there is simply not enough water, even in years that there is above-average rainfall.”

But Levine pointed out that while California enters its fourth year of severe drought, Israel maintains a sustainable supply of water. That is thanks to tight water management, efficient technologies and a culture of conservation that has allowed Israel to produce a surplus of 20% more water than it consumes.

It was precisely because of this Israeli innovation that the governor, Jerry Brown, welcomed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to California in March 2014. During a ceremony in Silicon Valley, the two leaders signed a memorandum of understanding to foster cooperation and develop research with an emphasis on water conservation and management. Read More

Christians Joining Israel Defense Forces At Record Rates

(photo: Getty Images)

By Sarah Berger - August 7, 2015 

Originally appeared here in International Business Times 

The number of young Israeli Christians enlisted in the Israel Defense Forces is expected to set a new record next year, jns.org, a nonprofit wire service that covers Jewish and Israel news, reported Thursday. Last year, Christian enlistment in the Israel Defense Forces rose to more than 100 soldiers due to recruitment efforts by Christian leaders and Christian youths seeking greater integration into Israeli society; that number is expected to increase to 200 by 2016.

The Israeli military has also been increasing its efforts to recruit more Israeli Christians. A seminar opened on Tuesday for 48 Christian youths, including two women, said Col. Pini Gonen, who runs the Gadna youth battalion project for the Israel Defense Forces. The four-week seminar plans to include military preparation and a leadership course, and it will include visits to Jerusalem, churches, north Israel and more. Read More

Israelis perform lifesaving heart surgery on 10 Tanzanian children

(Photo: SACH)

By Viva Sarah Press - July 22, 2015 

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Ten children in Tanzania have been given a new lease on life thanks to an Israeli medical delegation that flew out to the eastern African country to perform the lifesaving heart surgeries. The 20 Israeli doctors, nurses and medical technicians volunteer their time and expertise for Wolfson Medical Center’s Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) organization.

The medical delegation also examined hundreds of other children with congenital heart defects. The Jerusalem Post reports that during the Israeli team’s visit, the president of the Republic of Tanzania, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, stopped by the Muhimbili Hospital in Dar al Salam to thank its members. Read More

Knesset Renews Ties to Worldwide Christian Lawmakers

(photo: wikipedia.org) 

By Israel Today Staff - July 29, 2015

Originally appeared here in Israel Today

Israel’s Knesset last week renewed its Christian Allies Caucus, something that must be done after each election. The fact that the Knesset continues this trend is evidence that it views relations between Israel and the Christian world with increasing importance.

The event, chaired by Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, was attended by no fewer than 25 Knesset members from eight different factions, including three government ministers.

New caucus chairman MK Robert Ilatov (Israel Beiteinu) said he would work to further strengthen ties to the 32 sister caucuses in parliaments around the world in a broader effort to combat global boycotts of the Jewish state.

“There are many challenges that lie ahead, but I have no doubt that together, we will succeed in defending and blessing the State of Israel and the well-being of its people,” Ilatov told his fellow Israeli lawmakers and the numerous Christian leaders at the gathering. Read More

12 impossible ideas that Israelis turned into reality

By Abigail Klein Leichman - July 27, 2015 

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Tell an Israeli his or her invention idea is preposterous, and you’ve just given that inventor a reason to see it through.

Whether it was planting crops in the desert or building a crowdsourced navigation app, most groundbreaking Israeli innovations were initially dismissed as impossible – until bold action turned them into reality.

“When you try to break new frontiers, sometimes what you do doesn’t seem to make sense,” says Avi Hasson, chief scientist of the Israeli Ministry of Economy. “The issue is not about the idea but the action. You need to go out there and figure it out.”

Israelis love solving problems, Hasson tells ISRAEL21c.

An educational culture that encourages questioning and independent thinking, and innovating on the fly in the military, leads Israelis to read the word “impossible” as “I’m possible.”

“Commanders in the field are not supposed to rely on the generals to solve their problems; they’re expected to take responsibility to solve things by themselves, understanding that failure is an option,” Hasson explains.

“And in the technological units, on a daily basis you’re expected to do the impossible with few resources in a short time,” adds the chief scientist, whose office supports and encourages industrial research and development while sharing the risk inherent in such projects.

“In our office, we see thousands of risky endeavors each year, scientifically or on the business side,” says Hasson. “We get excited about such projects because we want to be an active partner in helping people take technological, financial and business development risks.”

Ultimately, he adds, Israelis are brilliant at outside-the-box thinking “because we have no choice. We’re a small country, far away from the market. We have to do things that are too tough and too scary for others.”

Here, ISRAEL21c takes a look at just a few of the amazing inventions once thought impossible. Read More

Omri Casspi takes group of NBA players to Israel

(photo: Ed Szczepanski / USA TODAY Sports)

By FOX Sports - July 24, 2015

Originally appeared here on FOX Sports

Omri Casspi is the first Israeli-born NBA player, and he clearly takes pride in his roots. Now, Casspi is leading a group of players through Israel, a contingent which includes a bunch of Kings.

From James Ham of Cowbell Kingdom:

Casspi, along with DeMarcus Cousins, Rudy Gay and Caron Butler are on their way to Israel with a delegation of NBA players. Joining the group of Kings are NBAers Tyreke Evans, Chandler Parsons, Alan Anderson and Iman Shumpert. Read More

Scientists Were ‘Astonished’ to Find Bible Quotes on ‘Most Ancient Hebrew Scroll Since the Dead Sea Scrolls’

(Photo: Israel Antiquities Authority/Shai Halevi)

By Sharona Schwartz - July 21, 2015 

Originally appeared here on TheBlaze

A burned parchment believed to be 1,500-years-old was unearthed near the Dead Sea in 1970, but researchers have just now succeeded in deciphering the contents of the find they have called “the most ancient Hebrew scroll since the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

Though the scroll was charred and tightly rolled, scientists used CT scan technology to create cross sectional images, thus revealing the text without having to unwind the document – which would likely have further damaged or even destroyed it.

The Israel Antiquities Authority on Monday announced that the scorched scroll found at Ein Gedi near the Dead Sea 45 years ago was actually a copy of the opening verses of the Book of Leviticus which – perhaps ironically given the state of the scroll – describes laws for burnt offerings.

“To date, this is the most ancient scroll from the five books of the Hebrew Bible to be found since the Dead Sea Scrolls, most of which are ascribed to the end of the Second Temple period (first century B.C-first century C.E.),” the Israel Antiquities Authority said in a statement. Read More

Israeli dentist fixes peacekeeping K-9′s canine

(photo: US Army Capt. Jennifer Dyrcz, Task Force Sinai Public Affairs)

By Abigail Klein Leichman - July 19, 2015

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Thanks to Israel’s only board-certified veterinary dentist and oral surgeon, an injured canine peacekeeper was healed and returned to full duty sniffing out explosives in the Sinai desert just south of Israel’s border.

Dano, a highly trained seven-year-old Malinois (short-haired Belgian shepherd dog), served tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan with the US army. While in Afghanistan, Dano was wounded in action and suffered a fractured left upper canine tooth (fang).

He was treated with a root canal and filling, and re-assigned to the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in the Sinai, an independent international organization assigned to peacekeeping responsibilities associated with Israel and Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty.
In April, the tooth was again broken and Dano needed immediate medical attention because of the exposed nerve.

Luckily for Dano, the MFO recently established a collaboration with the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) in Rishon Lezion, where students of the Hebrew University’s Koret School of Veterinary Medicine receive their clinical training. Dano traveled there on a Black Hawk helicopter accompanied by a doctor, veterinarian and his military dog handler, Staff Sgt. John Breyer. Read More

Israeli Christian Group Publishes Anti-BDS Guide

(Photo: Christian Empowerment Council)

By JNS News Service - July 17, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Jewish Press

The Christian Empowerment Council, an Israeli Christian group headed by Father Gabriel Naddaf, has released a new guide to help Christians better understand the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

The 12-page guide titled “Test the Spirits: A Christian Guide to the Anti-Israel Boycott Movement” seeks to challenge Christian anti-Zionism “on an ideological level” following the “recent discussions concerning BDS in global churches,” including in the Mennonite and Episcopalian churches and the United Church of Christ.

The Christian Empowerment Council is focused on working to integrate Israel’s Christian community into the wider Israeli society and to support young Christians looking to serve in the Israel Defense Forces. Read More

Israeli StoreDot, Which Charges Smartphone Battery In 30 Seconds, Will Soon Charge Cars In 5 Minutes!

(Doron Myersdorf, CEO of StoreDot)

By Jonathan Neff - July 9, 2015

Originally appeared here in NoCamels 

One of last year’s viral tech videos was of StoreDot’s phenomenal technology, which charged a Samsung smartphone in just 30 seconds. Now the very same Israeli startup is racing to develop a brand new, ultra-fast charger for electric cars.

StoreDot made international headlines when it initially announced its smartphone battery solution in 2012. The company developed its patented organic battery compound that charges five times more efficiently than regular electrolyte-powered battery. StoreDot’s solution is based on nano-technology, or “nano-tubes,” which can store and emit a large amount of energy in one go.

While StoreDot is on track to implement its smartphone technology in several models by the end of 2016, its development team is also racing to present a technology that can recharge electric cars (such as Tesla vehicles) in a mere five minutes. In that supersonic time frame, StoreDot says cars will be ready for a 300-mile drive.

NoCamels sat down with CEO Doron Myersdorf to hear about the company’s latest achievements. Read More

Gal Gadot: IDF service prepared me for Wonder Woman

By Ynet - July 8, 2015

Originally appeared here on Ynetnews.com 

The movie "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" will only come out in eight and a half months (on March 25, 2016), but its PR campaign is already in full swing, led by Gal Gadot - the Israeli actress and model who is about to debut as Wonder Woman alongside Henry Cavill (Superman) and Ben Affleck (Batman).

The 30-year-old Israeli will be at Comic Con in San Diego next week alongside her two co-stars and director Zack Snyder, but she's already been taking to the press about the upcoming movie. Among other things, she discussed how her IDF service helped prepare her for the role of Wonder Woman.
 
"The army wasn’t that difficult for me. The military gave me good training for Hollywood," she told Fashion magazine.

The magazine drew a parallel between Gadot, who served as a fitness trainer in the IDF, and Israeli top model Bar Refaeli, who dodged army service, and was quoted as saying "I don't regret not enlisting, because it paid off big time. That's just the way it is: celebrities have other needs. I hope my case has influenced the army." Read More 

Costa Rica becomes 33rd country to launch pro-Israel caucus

(photo: ISRAEL ALLIES FOUNDATION)

By Gil Hoffman - July 5, 2015 

Originally appeared here in The Jerusalem Post

Costa Rica launched an official Israel Allies Caucus in their parliament last week, becoming the 33rd country in the world to do so, officials present at the event said Sunday.

The caucus was facilitated by The Israel Allies Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting communication between parliamentarians and legislators around the world over who share a belief that the State of Israel has the right to exist in peace within secure borders.

“The establishment of the caucus demonstrates Costa Rica’s profound support for Israel and the importance it places in its bilateral relationship with the Jewish state,” said the foundation's Latin American coordinator, Leopoldo Martinez. Read More

At Magdala, discoveries that resonate with Jews and Christians

(photo: Shmuel Bar-Am)

By Aviva and Shmuel Bar-am - June 27, 2015 

Originally appeared here on The Times of Israel 

Who can ever tell what the future holds? Or where our lives will lead us?

Father Juan Solana has been running the Notre Dame Center in Jerusalem for the Legionaries of Christ religious order for the past ten years. But back in 2004, when informed by the Vatican that he was being sent to Israel, the young, Mexican-born Catholic priest found the prospect daunting, and even a bit frightening. For not only was Israel in the middle of a violent intifada, but Father Juan didn’t know the language. Besides, there were problems at Notre Dame that he felt he didn’t have the experience to solve. Simply put – he was afraid that he wasn’t quite up to the task.

Before setting out for the Middle East, Father Juan flew to Rome for a bit of extra spiritual strengthening. Entering a small chapel in the Vatican, he found himself in front of an unfamiliar altar. As he prayed, he raised his eyes and looked up at the mosaic on the wall, a scene on the Sea of Galilee in which Jesus rebukes his disciple Peter. Above it, there was a quote from the Gospels: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

From that moment on, Father Juan knew that he was on the right path. Even so, in his wildest dreams he couldn’t have imagined just how right it would be. For once in the Holy Land, chance led him to a unique and marvelous discovery. Read More

Israel Saved Me

(photo: Uri Lenz)

By Amit Lewinthal 

Originally appeared here on Israel Hayom 

These two men should never have met, but today they are close friends. They were born in two different countries at different ends of the world, but their life stories are very similar, and today, they both advocate a love for Israel.

On December 24, 2011, Christmas Eve, Rev. Omar Mulinda addressed a congregation of 300 Christians at one of Uganda's biggest churches. Mulinda is highly regarded as an impressive orator, and thousands come to hear his sermons.

Preparations were well underway to celebrate Christmas the following day, but the anticipation and joy were soon replaced with sadness when, as Mulinda recounts: "I left the church early. I was about to enter my vehicle and drive home when someone pretending to be a member of the congregation approached me and said: 'Reverend, can you help me?' I turned around, and I saw another person standing next to him, and there was a third man who closed in on me from behind whom I could not see. I realized that this was an ambush so I turned back to get into my car, but then they poured a bucket full of acid on my head. It was terrible."

Unfortunately for the 41-year-old Mulinda, this attack was not the end of the persecution against him, which ultimately made him a famous reverend in Uganda.

Mulinda was the 52nd of 54 children (!) in a highly respected Muslim family. His mother was the daughter of the great imam. He was brought up Muslim and was slated to become a clergyman. "We were taught not to associate with or become friendly with Christians or Jews," he says. But in 1990, when he was 18 years old, Mulinda met a man who preached about reading the Bible and a love for Israel. This man introduced him to the New Testament.

"I decided that this was the truth, but I could not convert to Christianity then. I would not have survived. I would have had to part ways with my, rich, respected extended family, which viewed Islam as its very foundation. But in my heart, I knew the truth," he says.

In 1993, Mulinda mustered up the courage and secretly converted to Christianity. But his secret was not kept for long -- on his very first day at church, as he was exiting the building after prayer, some of his Muslim friends spotted him and reported him to the Muslim community. At that moment, Mulinda's personal version of hell began. At first it was just his family, which renounced him. Then it was violent persecution, which peaked with the acid attack on that fateful Christmas Eve. Read More

NFL Hall of Famers in Israel for all-star tech tour

(Photo: Herschel Gutman)

By Viva Sarah Press - June 23, 2015

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Owner of the reigning Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, along with 19 NFL Hall of Famers, is in Israel for a special tour of the country’s tech scene, landmarks and local football action.

The goodwill week-long trip to Israel, called, “Touchdown in Israel: Mission of Excellence,” was organized by Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft, in coordination with Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer.

“I don’t think there’s a better place that you can bring people no matter what their faith might be. They come here and their lives are changed,” Kraft said.

The gridiron greats got an up-close look at 10 Israeli startups at a technology expo in Jerusalem’s Old City.

“Jerusalem was recently voted by Time Magazine as one of the world’s five emerging tech hubs and that can truly be seen today,” said Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. “I think it’s a combination of really understanding our past and the beauty and the power of Jerusalem and its history. I believe in a very strong connection between our past and our future. More and more high tech entrepreneurs see their future here.”

The NFL legends saw a demo of ReWalk, a wearable exoskeleton that allows individuals with spinal cord injuries to walk again. They also got an introduction to Elminda, the world’s first FDA-approved neural functional assessment tool to visualize serious brain trauma and illness. Read More

Israeli Home Device Turns Trash Into Biogas Fuel

By Maya Yarowsky - June 15, 2015

Originally appeared here on NoCamels

The Western world may have grown accustomed to microwave ovens and electric burners, but the majority of developing populations still cook their food and heat their homes over an open fire. While that may seem like a more “pastoral” and healthy way to live, the World Health Organization reports that up to four million people die from the direct and indirect effects of cooking with solid fuels, like wood, charcoal and coal.

This staggering statistic hadn’t come to the attention of the Israeli inventors of the HomeBioGas system, until the information was pointed out to them by none other than United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. During a visit with Israeli President Reuben Rivlin last year, Ban expressed the global need for a sustainable and safe solution to this dire issue, naming Israel’s HomeBioGas’s bio-digester as a very viable answer.

HomeBioGas’s TevaGas (TG) device is the first family-sized bio-digester made available on the market, which, according to Marketing Director Ami Amir, “is as easy to use as a dish-washer.” For those who don’t know what a bio-digester is, it takes organic material (like left-over food) and converts it into a fuel, known as biogas, through an anaerobic process carried out in a warm atmosphere. This fuel can then be used by a household for other purposes, like heating. According to Amir, this system does not even generate any foul odors. Read More

The dangerous good deeds of Gal Lusky

By Abigail Klein Leichman - June 16, 2015

Originally appeared here on Israel21c

Gal Lusky chose Frank Sinatra’s classic “Fly Me to the Moon” as her mobile phone’s ringtone.

“The moon is just about the only place I know that’s peaceful right now,” quips the founder and CEO of Israeli Flying Aid, a nonprofit volunteer organization that provides lifesaving aid in areas of natural disaster or conflict.

Lusky was one of seven female and seven male Israelis chosen to light torches at the 67th Independence Day ceremony on Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl.

Her inclusion in this illustrious group is all the more remarkable considering that many of her missions are to nations normally off limits to Israelis, such as Pakistan, Sudan, Indonesia, Iraq and other places she is not at liberty to identify.

That the Ministry of Culture and Sport approved her nomination for the honor is a testament to Israel’s democratic principles, says Lusky. “The government knows how strongly I love my country.”

Lusky tells ISRAEL21c she established Israeli Flying Aid because no other Israeli NGO was dealing with disasters in hostile territories. “I believe Israel does amazing work where it’s invited to do so, but I wanted to compensate the other parts of the world.” Read More

High-tech Israeli helmet aims to prevent flight crashes

 (photo: screen capture: Channel 2)

By Daniel Bernstein - June 14, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

An Israeli-developed smart flight helmet will detect emergency situations in which pilots are about to lose consciousness, and take control of the plane in order to prevent disasters.

The state known as G-LOC, which occurs from excessive and sustained g-forces draining blood away from the brain, can cause pilots to momentarily faint as the flight takes off, and recoup as they regain a horizontal state.

Those short lapses have long been the cause of flight crashes around the world, as planes plummeted to the ground before pilots had a chance to regain control.

That is, until LifeBeam, a small Tel Aviv-based start-up, in cooperation with the defense ministry, finally came up with a solution, Channel 2 reported Sunday. Read More

Stephen Curry’s mother gushes about Israel

(photo: YouTube screenshot)

By JTA - June 16, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

The mother of Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry said in an interview with an Israeli sports channel that a trip to Israel five years ago transformed her and sparked her interest in learning Hebrew.

Sonya Curry told Israel’s Sport 5 channel in an interview after Game 5 in Oakland on Sunday night that her son’s basketball success is a result of “grace and favor.” She added that he was “made for this moment.”

Curry showed the interviewer the Hebrew tattoo on the nape of her neck which reads chen, meaning grace.

She said that following a visit to Israel about five years ago she “was just transformed spiritually.”

She said she wanted to learn Hebrew because that is the language Jesus spoke and because she wanted to read the Torah in Hebrew. Read More

Israel sends veterinarians to aid flood-hit Tbilisi zoo

(photo: Tinatin Kiguradze / AP)

By i24news - June 15, 2015

Originally appeared here on i24news

Israel is sending two senior veterinarians to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi to assist local zookeepers to cope with the aftermath of devastating floods that damaged the animals' enclosures and sent lions, tigers, bears, and, most notably, a hippopotamus to roam the urban jungle.

Dr. Nili Avni Magen and Dr. Yigal Horowitz, both of whom work at Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo, will spend a week in the flood-hit locale.

Georgian authorities expressed their gratitude to Israel for the aid.

Some of the escaped zoo animals are still on the loose as of Monday. Read More