Atid Bamidbar
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Mission Statement
Atid Bamidbar (est. 1990) works to promote Israeli society that is more inclusive, has more solidarity, gives legitimacy to the multiple identities of its members, and maintains mutual responsibility between them. Atid Bamidbar views human and communal diversity as a source of strength for Israeli society, and promotes that diversity by giving center stage to populations whose story is not well known in the Israeli mainstream. We use community-based tourism, communal documentation, and the preservation and nurturing of cultural traditions, as tools for developing a wider Jewish and Israeli story and empowering peripheral communities.
About This Cause
Atid Bamidbar registered non-profit association (est. 1990) works to promote Israeli society that is more inclusive, has more solidarity, gives legitimacy to the multiple identities of its members, and maintains mutual responsibility between them. Atid Bamidbar views human and communal diversity as a source of strength for Israeli society, and promotes that diversity by giving center stage to populations whose story is under-represented in the Israeli mainstream (pioneers in development towns of the 1950s and 1960s, "Mizrahi" Jews from Asian and North African countries, Ethiopian immigrants, Russian-speaking Israelis, Bedouin, and others). We use Community-Based Tourism (CBT), communal documentation, the preservation and nurturing of cultural traditions, and collaborative social action, as tools for developing a wider Jewish and Israeli story in the Negev and beyond, and for empowering marginal communities. Atid Bamidbar works in four different areas of activity, which share the above common thread: Community-Identity-Culture, Work with Russian-Speakers, Incubator for Bedouin-Jewish Initiatives, Community-Based Tourism. Shared Society Good Neighbors Network in the Negev Based on the successful model built in Yeroham and Rahma, and the partner organizations' experience and good relations throughout the Negev, the "Good Neighbors Network" in the Negev provides a platform for promoting acquaintance, collaboration and joint action between adjacent Bedouin and Jewish localities. We have seen how grassroots activism and a cohesive group of Jewish and Bedouin citizens working together can positively affect decision-makers, influence policies, and change reality for Bedouin and Jews alike. We reach out to and work with local coordinators in each pair of localities (Yeroham/Rahma, Mitzpe Ramon/Wadi Aricha-Abdeh, Arad/Tel Arad-El-Fura, Dimona/Ras Jarba), identify and mentor social activists and "ordinary" residents from both the Bedouin and Jewish communities, and help them build and implement programs responding to local needs and ideas as defined by the residents. We have already implemented several joint projects in each pair of localities, with seed money from the Network. In addition, we organize 4 quarterly coordinators' meetings for peer learning, and 2-4 regional conferences per year that bring together individuals, third sector, and local and national government bodies, as well as disseminate the model and Network activities via diverse media. These efforts help build the foundation for long-term good neighborly relations, mutual trust, social solidarity, and peace in the Negev. Examples of some of the projects: Hebrew literacy and employment training programs for Bedouin women, a musical written and performed together by pupils in Arad and Elfura schools, mutual visits, a joint youth leadership group, tourism initiatives, matriculation tutorials, robotics, and more. We seek support for seed money for the joint projects and promoting media exposure of the good neighborly relations being developed. The White Hill Farm Located on the outskirts of Yeroham, the White Hill Farm is an urban agricultural center that promotes positive coexistence, healthy life-styles, and heightened environmental awareness among the Bedouin of Rahma as well as their Jewish neighbors in Yeroham, beneficially impacting the wellbeing of both populations. The Farm gives Bedouin and Jewish neighbors of all ages the opportunity to learn how to grow their own fresh produce, connect with nature, and become acquainted with each other, overcoming the barriers of fear and alienation and building trust between the two populations. The Farm serves as a venue for encounters, workshops, Jewish holiday events, courses, and other activities, designed to raise awareness of and appreciation for the environment, sustainable agriculture, and the basics of good health (in collaboration with the Ministry of Health). Jewish and Bedouin kindergartens spend a day outdoors at the Farm every week during the school year. Programs at the Farm provide tourists with hands-on learning about Negev Bedouin traditional crafts and lore as well as examples of Jewish and Bedouin collaboration. The Yeroham Municipality, the Ministry of Agriculture, and Healing Across the Divides Foundation are our partners in different aspects of this project. We now seek support to subsidize courses on sustainable desert agriculture integrating traditional Bedouin knowledge, and inter-communal events. Springboard to Hi-Tech for Bedouin Young Women The opportunities and aspirations of Bedouin women in Israel are all too often curbed by the traditional norms of a patriarchal society, as well as by trying physical conditions. Only the most determined are able to overcome hardships such as lack of accessible transportation, poor overcrowded homes with little or no electricity or running water, parental opposition to higher education, and extremely limited acquaintance with concepts of technology and entrepreneurship, if any. Moreover, Bedouin women have no access to the status, image and tangible benefits (such as gainful employment options) that are open to Israelis who have completed a full term of service in the IDF, acceptably replaced by a period of civic or national service. Bedouin women, as a highly marginalized group, have yet to be integrated into the booming Israeli hi-tech sector. Our project, in partnership with MindCET (an incubator for educational technology innovation established in Yeroham by the Center for Educational Technology), will significantly strengthen the status and economic condition of this quintessentially underprivileged group in Israeli society, using hands-on training and mentoring in the hi-tech sector to achieve these objectives. "Springboard to Hi-Tech" for Young Bedouin Women will emulate and culturally adapt a successful tech-training program originally designed for Orthodox Jewish girls (Carmel 6000). The intensive 18-month full-time and closely mentored program will provide young Bedouin women with an unprecedented opportunity to expand their capabilities, get hands-on project development experience, and "graduate" as Full Stack Programmers, also offering them access to academic credit. Ultimately, these Bedouin young women will have the confidence, skills and connections to join the hi-tech industry, immensely improving their social status and prospects in life, and serving as role models for others. This project has the potential to be a game-changer for this paramount marginal group. Ajram – Bedouin Women's Initiative Bedouin women in the unrecognized villages in the Negev are the quintessential marginalized population, grappling not only with the lack of infrastructures (electricity, water, sewage, garbage disposal, paved roads, leisure and cultural services), but with a lack of culturally-suited employment opportunities for those with only an elementary school education. The sewing/embroidery/crafts center we opened last year in Yeroham with Bedouin women graduates of training courses we had provided at their request, promises to be a source of much-needed income for their large and poor families. It offers an avenue of steady employment that preserves Bedouin traditions, expresses the women's creativity, and gives them marketable skills, while taking into account their cultural, social and logistic constraints. With branding, a sizeable collection of products, a newly-opened website (https://www.ajram.co/) and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ajramwomen ), and booths booked in regional fairs, Ajram* was on its way to becoming a Negev platform for sales of Bedouin women's handiwork. Covid-19 brought everything to a standstill: the coordinator and professional mentor went on leave without pay, the women were stuck at home, but desperately seeking income; some, who had been involved in our tourism programming, lost that source when tourism vanished, and all of their husbands became unemployed. We renewed activity with some of the women who were allowed by their husbands to come, and they have created a stock of original sewn and embroidered bags, pillow cases, and more. We want to ensure at least 2000 NIS/month each for at least 6 Bedouin women, impacting 45 people in their own families, and another 100 more in wider circles, by eventually incorporating additional Bedouin women and products and demonstrating a model to be replicated or joined. We seek a grant to enable us to pay the women for 6 months, launch internet-based sales, and stabilize the Ajram Center. *Ajram is the Arabic name for a beautiful and delicate but hardy Negev desert flower, like the Bedouin women who chose the name for their initiative. Community-Identity-Culture Yeroham Pioneers Heritage House The Yeroham Pioneers Heritage House is the place to reexamine the definition of pioneering – halutziut – in Israel, and give those who settled in the development towns the recognition they deserve for their significant role in the establishment and development of the State of Israel, especially in the Negev. The project combines formal and informal education with culture and economic/tourism development. The Atid Bamidbar Center will be transformed and two Ma'abara (transit camp for new immigrants) shacks will be reconstructed with permanent and changing exhibitions reflecting the stories of Yeroham's residents in interactive and creative ways, providing programming for local pupils and residents as well as visitors from Israel and abroad. The Ministry of Culture allocated 4 million NIS towards the construction of Yeroham Pioneers Heritage House, to be implemented by the Israel Council for Preservation of Heritage Sites and inaugurated in 2021, Yeroham's 70th anniversary. Atid Bamidbar's successful tourism activities (17,000+ visitors/year) ensure that the Heritage House will be visited and used intensively. The communal archive that Atid Bamidbar initiated 30 years ago is now being digitized in collaboration with Ben-Gurion University Archives, to make the materials accessible online to visitors as well as for the preparation of exhibits.