Vision to Reality: The Reut Blog

Speaking at the Sderot Conference, Avinoam Armoni suggested that in addition to the State’s efforts to turn the local authorities into the “building blocks” of the home front, it is also necessary to mobilize the resources and capacities of civilians – such as community center workers – that have a first-hand contact with the local population, as a result of their daily work.

Speaking in his role as Chairman of the Israel Association of Community Centers (IACC), Armoni represented the civilian-communitarian organizations’ view, at a panel on the Home Front Challenge which also included: MK Zeev Boim, Commander of the Home Front Command Yair Golan, Amos Gilad, Head of Ashdod Municipality Dr. Yehiel Lasri, Head of Beit She’an Regional Council Bian Kablan, and Team Leader at the Reut Institute Dana Preisler-Swery. The panel was headed by Zeev Tzuk-Ram, Head of the National Emergency Authority.

Armoni referred to the unique contribution of the civilian sector (such as volunteer organizations) to Israel’s resilience at the local and national level. According to Armoni, in addition to the clear responsibility of the state’s home front agencies to continue to provide vital services to the population during crises, non-profits, volunteers and businesses also play an important role: providing necessary assistance to the population and back-up to local authorities.

The 700 (approx.) community centers should be identified as key “hubs” of the “Civil Resilience Network”, thanks to their nation-wide deployment and their workforce, which is firmly rooted in the local population and can have an important contribution during crises.

Related Links

Policy Paper: Civil Resilience Network

Reut Presentation on Civil Resilience Network