Israel-Diaspora relations

[This is the first of fifteen posts on Jewish philanthropy in Israel titled "Overhaul or Be Marginalized".]

This series of blog posts deals with non-Israeli Jewish philanthropy in Israel with the objective of making a contribution to its effectiveness and relevance.

When I started working on this project, my wife, friends and colleagues asked me why I care enough to spend so many hours on a topic that is out of the focus of my professional work. My answer was that I feel a debt to the community that has made my dream possible and that, en route, this may turn out to be a contribution, however small, to Israel's prosperity, to Israel-Diaspora relations and to world Jewry.

The essence of leadership

Leadership is a process whereby a group is brought to reassess its values and priorities. This post adds a few more thoughts on the essence of leadership.

In a previous post I challenged the notion that Israel is subject to a crisis of leadership. I argued that we are experiencing a crisis of trust with people in positions of authority. In this post I would like to add a few more thoughts on the essence of leadership.

The distinction between leadership and authority is based on the work of Ron Heifetz of the Center of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government captured in his book Leadership without Easy Answers. Ron is my teacher. His theory underlies the work of the Reut Institute. First, according to Heifetz, leadership is an activity and a process whereby a group is brought to reassess its values and therefore also its priorities.

Crisis of leadership or trust?

Is Israel suffering a crisis of leadership? For many, the long list of politicians and public servants under investigation gives a clear positive answer. I argue that our current crisis is not a crisis of leadership; it's a crisis of trust between the general public and the elected officials chosen to exercise authority. The distinction is essential for designing the remedy.

Ronald Heifetz of Harvard University defines authority as conferred power to perform a service. Authority rests on the contract between the authority figure and his or her constituents. It is given and can be taken away.

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Israel's next strategic decision

Annapolis initiated two parallel processes: comprehensive and detailed negotiations in working groups over a Permanent Status Agreement (PSA) and implementation of the Roadmap. It seems that this approach is based on a logic that attempts to bypass the disagreements between the sides over the principles of Permanent Status.

However, a big crisis with the Palestinians is inevitable and will occur no later than the beginning of next summer. By then, most of the working groups will be deadlocked and will turn to the political echelon to make decisions.

The expected deadlock is due to several structural reasons.

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Israel's economic problem is politics

Last week, the Jerusalem Post reported on Yechezkel Dror's comments about the problems of the parliamentary system. And while I don't necessarily agree with the solution he suggests, his prognosis is spot on. Without strengthening the capacity to govern, Israel will not be able to carry out an economic leapfrog, something essential to achieve Reut's Top 15 Vision.

Israel's macroeconomic policy has received many compliments from the International Monetary Fund and foreign governments. In recent years, Israel has experienced low deficit and inflation as well as decreased unemployment and national debt. Yet despite this, Israel's problem remains in the weakness of its government system.

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Leapfrogging into the Top 15 Countries

Israel's national goal should be to become one of the leading 15 countries in the world within the next 15 years. Its essence needs to be closing the gaps in the quality of life between Israel and the leading ten countries. The promise is there and we have to fulfill it. Although in terms of global standard of living, Israel only ranks in the high 20s, its level of education, access to technology and sophistication of the business sector are among the highest in the world.

The current national goal of 'continued economic growth' misses the point. Although achieving it may increase Israel's average wage, it will not necessarily reduce the gaps with the top tenth percentile of countries. The impressive economic achievements in recent years - high economic growth, low unemployment, the start of foreign investment, lowering the national debt, and low inflation - are not enough in order to instigate a 'leapfrog' while the way in which it is being carried out does not guarantee that it will be sustainable.

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The Reut Policy Network

Jewish communities around the world represent a massive untapped intellectual potential for Israel. This potential is compounded by many Israelis who wish to make a substantive contribution to our wellbeing and security. The goal of the Reut Policy Network - RPN - is to provide an outlet for all of this energy and to allow the Government of Israel (GOI) to tap into this resource.

The Web 2.0 technologies have opened up new possibilities of connections and interaction. They allow for content and substance to be created through the inputs of many contributors who form virtual communities. Of the prominent examples for web 2.0 platforms are youtube, Myspace, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

The Jewish world has been impacted by these trends as well. A while back Amiram Barkat of Ha'aretz reported on the emergence of a new virtual culture centered around the internet. One such example, JewTube, is trying to create an online Jewish community based around videos of Jewish interest.

The current negotiation agenda

In the aftermath of the Annapolis Summit, negotiations over a Permanent Status Agreement (PSA) are expected to continue apace. The current negotiations agenda over a PSA are comprised of several issues: borders and territorial arrangements, Jerusalem, refugees, security and the establishment of a Palestinian state. This agenda is unsuitable for the future challenges facing the two sides and doesn?t serve Israel's interests.

The current negotiations agenda is based on the agenda of the Lausanne Conciliation Commission (5/49) which convened after Israel's War of Independence. The Commission established that the issues of territories, refugees and the status of Jerusalem, were the key issues for the resolution of the Israeli-Arab conflict. This typology was endorsed and expanded by United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 (11/67, 10/73 respectively), the 1978 Camp David Accords (9/78), the Madrid Peace Conference (10/91), the Oslo Process leading up to the Taba Talks (9/93, 1/01), as well as by non-governmental efforts such as the Geneva Initiative (10/03). The different drafts dealing with permanent status (Beilin Abu Mazen agreement, Ayalon-Nusseibeh, etc) were also based on this typology, as were the negotiation working groups for permanent status between 1999-2001.

The current negotiation agenda

The current agenda creates an 'all or nothing' dynamic that is bad for Israel. Israel has an essential interest in ending its control over the Palestinian population. For this reason, there is a need for the establishment of a Palestinian entity.

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