Harvest for the World

The Jewish festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles) that has just concluded is also the harvest festival – celebrating the ingathering of crops. It is an ideal opportunity to highlight how Israel is helping combat world hunger and feed an ever-increasing global population. These examples of relevant news article are just from the last three months.

Israel has revolutionized agriculture globally with its scientific innovations. Israel’s Phytech, for example, has developed innovative crop sensors that boost agricultural productivity and are now being adopted worldwide.  Israel’s Kaiima Bio-Agritech is producing high-yielding varieties of essential food and feed crops using its proprietary (non-GMO) seed-enhancing platform.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNeA9N1DijY

Crop yields can also be increased by combatting pests. Israel’s EdenShield has developed a non-toxic pesticide with an aroma that repels pests. It is already used in Israel, Spain, Italy, Turkey and Greece and is soon to be launched in the USA, Mexico and the EU. Meanwhile, Israeli biotech Evogene has recently manufactured the first toxin against Western corn rootworm and bred bananas that are resistant to the hugely damaging Black Sigatoka fungus. Another Israeli biotech, BioFeed, has developed a “no-spray” solution to kill the fruit flies that have been devastating mango plantations in India.

Other ways to prevent food wastage is to pick crops at the optimum time.  Israeli start-up AclarTech has developed the AclaroMeter app that works with a smartphone’s camera and the Israeli SCIO molecular scanner, to monitor the ripeness, freshness and quality of fruit and vegetables. The SCIO scanner itself has been sent to US dairy farmers to help them check the nutrition of dry forage and deliver a more consistent diet to their animals.

You cannot grow crops without an adequate water supply and Israeli innovation in water conservation is benefiting water-stressed regions of the world, from Kenya to India to California. Thanks to Israeli drip irrigation, 15,000 farmers in Karnataka, southwestern India, are currently harvesting their first monsoon season crop in years. In another Israeli approach, Ben Gurion University’s desert research farm demonstrates how to grow crops in the drought conditions of a minimal rainfall climate.

Water is of course the basis for fish farming. Israeli aquaculture startup Latimeria breeds fish in desalinated water with salt added to save energy, minimize leakage and prevent harmful bacteria. Additional technology developed at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem promotes fish growth and is providing a vital food resource in Uganda. The solution is being further developed by Israeli startup Aquinovo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0x3O2C7ghY

Israel is devoting much effort to preventing hunger in Africa. Tahal Group – a subsidiary of Israel’s Kardan – is constructing three agricultural centers in Angola and a huge agricultural and water project in Zambia. Meanwhile,  Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame praised Israel’s agricultural technology, saying “Israel has continued to follow through on its commitments and objective of scaling up engagement across Africa.”

And President Faustin-Archange Touadéra made the first-ever visit to Israel by the head of state of the Central African Republic (CAR).  He said to Israeli President Rivlin “we have come to Israel in order to learn – your country is a school for us.”

Two of the most effective organizations working on the African continent are MASHAV and Innovation: Africa.  MASHAV (Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation) is continually busy from Burkina Faso to Zambia. Innovation: Africa’s latest successes in Uganda were ably documented in a video featuring the 8-year-old daughter of the Israeli NGO’s founder. Finally, while the international media has been bemoaning inter-tribal disputes in South Sudan, Israel has been distributing food aid to drought-stricken villagers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZq9D3shuxY

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JZq9D3shuxY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Israel brings overseas farmers to the Jewish State to pass on the knowledge to feed their own populations.  Israel’s Arava International Center for Agriculture Training (AICAT) has changed the lives of  many of its 16,000 foreign students. And 1,200 students from across Africa and Asia have just completed the 13th running of Israel’s unique post-graduate AgroStudies agriculture apprentice training program.  Meanwhile 10,000 high-tech professionals descended upon Tel Aviv for its 5th annual DLD (Digital Life Design) Conference. This year’s focus was on food tech in which Israel has over 500 startups.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqkpt6qzjbU

Finally, whilst the United Nations Secretary General was being shown Israeli technological innovation to benefit the planet, the recently launched Israeli-developed VENµS satellite continues to orbit the Earth monitoring global agriculture issues and the health of the environment of our planet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECqCDrBxwwk

With Israeli innovation,

You shall eat, and be satisfied. 

Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel.

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com and a searchable archive www.IsraelActive.com

For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com

Building a New World

In synagogues this week, Jews read about Noah and the Biblical flood, which tells of the destruction of the ancient world.  Today, there are many evils that again threaten to flood the planet, but at least now we have a nation - Israel - busy re-constructing the world to prevent disease, thirst, hunger, pollution and terrorism from submerging mankind.  Here are some of Israel’s most recent activities.

In the new world no one will have Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s or Type 2 diabetes.  Ben Gurion University researchers have just discovered that these diseases have a common link in the build-up of a peptide, for which treatments now can be developed.  Another Israeli innovation facilitates damaged hearts to be repaired by building replacement tissue impregnated with gold atoms.  The electrical conductivity property of gold carries signals to and from the heart until the new tissue grows sufficient amounts of protein to do the same job. 

Complex fractures are often repaired by regenerating the bone using grafts taken from somewhere else in the body.  But now the damaged bone can be rebuilt from coral grown in the laboratory by Israel’s OkCoral.  And during breast cancer awareness month we are building our hopes up for a world without this deadly disease.  Among many Israeli discoveries and treatments is the vital Octava early diagnosis cancer test from Israel’s Eventus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV2-IM4Vo_w

The excitement has been building for three international conferences showcasing world-changing Israeli technology.  The International Polymer Processing Society (PPS) is holding its annual conference in Israel for the first time in its 30-year history.  Top experts will discuss 3D printing, nano-technology, biodegradable polymers, super-hygrophobicity, medical polymers, smart materials and much more.  At the International Astronautical Congress in Toronto, over 200 leaders in the “space business” gathered at the Israel exhibit.  Israel is one of only seven countries to launch and maintain its own satellites and works closely with both NASA and the European Space Agency.  And the Israel Conference in Los Angeles at the end of October will feature 75 stellar speakers from Israel-facing hi-tech companies building the technologies and products of tomorrow.

Most computers are now built with Israeli technology inside.  Intel’s latest Core M chip was designed in Israel, as is its successor - the SkyLake due to be released in 2015.  Meanwhile, Israel’s Stratasys has built a factory described as the most advanced in the world for the production of 3D printers.  And Israel’s Nano Dimension is building a desktop-sized 3D printer that prints electrical circuit boards so that one day you may be able to print your own computer or mobile phone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4m5skH0sGw

Israel is helping to build a world free from polluting chemicals.  The Jewish State has joined a group of 41 countries that have agreed to drop all customs duties on goods that contribute to a cleaner environment.  The global deal will also make Israel’s vast range of clean technology products cheaper abroad.  Israel is also building a new clean technology hub at Kibbutz Ketura near Eilat. The hub will allow companies to build and test products that provide energy and water to poor populations that are not connected to their national grids.  The waste digesters from Israel’s HomeBioGas already do this for Bedouin residents of the Arab town of Umm Batin near Beersheva. Israel’s environment ministry even subsidizes the 8,000-shekels cost per unit.  Additional units are heading overseas as part of a pilot project in the Dominican Republic.

In the new world, discrimination would be non-existent.  The Jewish State leads the way, for the head of Ziv Medical Center is Dr. Salmaan Zarka - a Druze Arab, and women are in charge of Hadassah, HaEmeq and Carmel hospitals.  Arab states would have good relations with Israel.  Already, hundreds of individual Syrians happily trust Israeli doctors with their lives; the Arab media praises Israel’s treatment of its Palestinian Arab workers; and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority and even Turkey are negotiating to buy Israeli natural gas.

Away from the Middle East, there is even more cause to be optimistic about relations with countries that have large Muslim populations.  According to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, “the sky’s the limit” to Israel-India ties as evidenced by the warm meeting in New York between the leaders of the two states.  Turning next to Azerbaijan - the biggest supplier of oil to Israel and its closest Muslim ally.  Moshe Ya’alon was the first Israeli Defense Minister to visit the majority Shiite nation since diplomatic relations were established 22 years ago. And finally, Israeli eye doctors performed 55 operations and examined over 250 patients at the Eye Microsurgery Department of Osh Interregional Hospital in Kyrgyzstan. 

There are no doubts amongst many of Israel’s supporters that Israel is key to a better world.  Every year thousands of Zionist Christians express their belief in the Biblical prophet Zechariah’s vision that “all nations of the world will come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles”.

Finally, even Noah might have been impressed by the efforts of six Israelis to reach Israel in time for Tabernacles.  They swam the 236 miles (380km) from Cyprus to Tel Aviv to make a new world record and build awareness for protecting the environment of the Mediterranean. 

Israel – making a world of difference.

Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel.

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com

For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com

A Good State for the Whole Body

A key feature of the upcoming festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles) is the Arba Minim (four species).  When put together they symbolize the human body – the focus of Israel’s medical, scientific and humanitarian work.

One of the four species is the Lulav (palm branch), which symbolizes the human spine.  For those with inoperable spine injuries, the phenomenal success of the NASDAQ launch of Israel’s ReWalk and its amazing exoskeleton, brings closer the day when they may be able to walk again.  However, where spine surgery is still an option, this new video from Israel’s Mazor Renaissance emphasizes the main advantage of Mazor’s unique robot system - 100% accuracy every time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3pY9q3yMTI

Israeli medical research and innovative therapies treat all areas of the body.  As antibiotics rapidly become ineffective, Israel’s Atox Bio has been awarded $24 million by the US Biomedical R&D Authority to help develop its AB103 treatment for severe infection. AB103 uniquely modulates the patient’s immune response, against which viruses and bacteria cannot develop any resistance. Next, approximately 12% of US citizens and many in Europe suffer from the liver disease Non-Alcoholic Steato-Hepatitis, or NASH, for which there is currently no treatment on the market. So the decision of the US Food and Drug Administration to award Fast Track Designation to Israeli biotech Galmed for its Aramchol treatment of NASH is extremely good news for everybody concerned.  Finally, scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have discovered how circular RNA is produced.  The mysterious molecule is associated with degenerative muscle and brain diseases. The finding can help lead to new treatments.

Israel strives hard to help those with a less than perfect body.  The charity Beit Issie Shapira won Microsoft Israel’s “Innovate for Good” competition for its “IssiePlay” imaginative computer game for children with disabilities.  Beit Issie benefits 30,000 Israeli disabled children and adults.  Time Magazine named Israel’s Adi Altschuler as one of its six “Next Generation Leaders.”  27-year-old Adi created “communities of kindness” by establishing Krembo Wings - a nationwide youth movement that runs after-school activities for children with disabilities. But I was particularly moved watching this beautiful video of Erez, one of 150 Israelis with severe “Williams syndrome” disorder, who is introduced to a horse on a farm in Israel. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjKaJOREiBw

Parents of young, growing bodies will appreciate three Israeli developments.  Israeli scientists have discovered a link in the brain between remembering what you ate and where you ate it.  Children who say they “don’t like” a particular food could be persuaded to eat it if they re-tasted the food in a different place.  Meanwhile, two Israeli baby-food executives have developed a new vegetable-based product called INDI (Innovative Non Dairy Infant formula).  It provides a solution for babies who cannot tolerate cows milk.  It also doesn’t contain soy, which can affect a baby’s hormones. But for the millions in Vietnam who rely on milk products, this video by Israel’s afimilk, highlights its implementation of the largest dairy farm project in the world.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3k2ktEouqHo

In the four species, the myrtle leaf symbolizes the eye.  Professor Richard Horton, editor of UK medical magazine “The Lancet” certainly had his eyes opened when he saw at first hand Jews and Arabs treating and being treated at Haifa’s Rambam hospital. What Prof Horton said with his mouth (symbolized by the willow leaf) was encouraging. We wait to see if it has changed his heart (symbolized by the citron).  He will no doubt be aware that Israeli doctors have saved at least 1200 Syrian lives (six more in the past week).

An old Jewish blessing states, “You should live for 120 years” and Israel does so much to ensure that our bodies last for as long as possible. So it is quite remarkable that Israel’s oldest hospital, Jerusalem’s Herzog Hospital, is celebrating its 120th birthday and is still expanding. After all, Herzog is Israel’s foremost center for geriatric health care, treatment and research.  In parallel, Israel’s Science Ministry is to give grants totaling up to 15 million shekels ($4.5 million) in 2015 for scientists working on practical solutions for the elderly. The above articles, plus many more, suggest why Israel’s life expectancy is the 4th highest in the world.  The following video gives some other reasons.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GerkHEiHQbM

I conclude by wishing 90-year-old Aviel Hangshing a healthy future as he brings both body and soul to Israel, fulfilling a dream he has held for so many years. Aviel is the most senior of the lost tribe of Bnei Menashe to arrive from India so far.  He can take comfort from the continuing story of Yisrael Krysztal who arrived in Israel in 1950 at the age of 47 having survived Auschwitz.  Yisrael has just celebrated his 111th birthday, in which two Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer players presented him with a team shirt with the number 111 on it.  He might not be in the starting line-up for Maccabi’s next match, however!

Wishing every body a happy and healthy festival.

Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel.

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com

For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com

One in a Million

http://blogs.jpost.com/content/one-million

http://blogs.jpost.com/print/4886

Israel is a tiny country - a beacon of light in a vast region of darkness.  Inside the country, every Israeli seems to radiate an opinion on every subject, and it sometimes feels like we have eight million prime ministers.  In reality, however, Israel is a nation of individuals, where everyone has the potential to make a difference. 

Each week, an Israeli makes a discovery or launches an innovation that may benefit millions.  Dr. Tal Dvir and his team at Tel Aviv University have manufactured cardiac tissue from spring-shaped fibers.  The elastic tissue mimics expanding and contracting heart muscle and could be the basis of transplant material for millions of heart operations.  The world’s major pharmaceutical companies certainly value Israeli ingenuity.  AstraZeneca has formed a partnership with scientists at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Center to develop new medicines to treat the millions suffering from cancer, respiratory diseases, and diabetes.  Meanwhile Israel’s very own Teva Pharmaceuticals has launched generic alternatives to Adenoscan and Niaspan, which will collectively save millions of dollars for millions of patients.

I have to inform the millions following the standard rules of the majority of diet plans that they have got it wrong.  Scientists at Israel’s Weizmann Institute have proved that each individual has a different response to the same foods.  In Weizmann’s Personalized Nutrition Project, local volunteers have their glucose intake and absorption monitored and leave with an individually tailored balanced diet.  Millions of stomachs may also contain undetected infections of the H. pylori bacterium, causing peptic ulcers, gastric inflammation, and occasionally stomach cancer.  Thankfully, the BreathID testing device from Israel’s Exalenz is now in use at 220 US centers, providing results in 10 minutes instead of a three-day wait for blood tests.  Staying with infections, a rap music video produced by Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem has gone “viral”. It features the hospital’s doctors and nurses dancing and singing the virtues of anti-bacterial hand gel.  The Hebrew video, uploaded on September 21, has already been seen over 165,000 times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPVXpchkS04

Millions of Syrians are suffering in their civil war and Israel certainly never hesitates to give medical assistance to the hundreds brought to its hospitals for treatment.  In just one case, orthopedists, anesthesiologists, plastic surgeons, physiotherapists and operating theater staffers pulled out all the stops to save and restore the shattered leg of an 8-year-old Syrian girl.  Meanwhile, an Arab from East Jerusalem - Haitham Azloni - regarded Haim Attias from Judea’s Mitzpe Yericho as “one in a million” when Haim resuscitated him at the Arab bazaar in the Old City.  Haitham said, “No one came to help me, none of the brothers, no Arabs. Only one Orthodox Jewish man.” 

I doubt if many of the 19 million passengers that use Miami International Airport will be aware that Israel’s NICE Systems is now responsible for managing runway security. In contrast, anti-terrorist forces would certainly appreciate the Miniature Reactive Jammer (MRJ) from Israel’s Elbit Systems.  The device is able to analyze millions of radio frequency messages and disrupt any trigger signal designed to detonate an IED (Improvised Explosive Device). And when Israel’s Ceragon has finished upgrading Idea’s wireless network, 125 million of Idea’s Indian cell-phone customers will appreciate the difference.

For two millennia, many millions of Jews have longed to be able to celebrate this time of year in the Promised Land.  This may explain the emotional scenes at Jerusalem’s Sukkot (Tabernacles) parade and Simchat Torah (Rejoicing of the Law) parties.  To reinforce the celebrations, archaeologists such as Dr Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have unearthed many links between today’s religious events and Biblical history.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VH9ZDHUyu7A

After the celebrations, we have to clean up.  Israeli children are educated that our land must be maintained for the benefit of the millions who will inherit it from us.  So it was gratifying to see that over a quarter of a million volunteers from 250 localities removed litter across the country on International Cleanup Day.  The Ministry of Environmental Protection also announced plans to end the use of the millions of disposable plastic bags at supermarkets and other shops. 

Finally, the Jewish focus on the individual is emphasized in the following item.  Rabbi Shaul Inbari was born with severe cerebral palsy and like millions of disabled individuals he dreaded life in an empty house.  Rabbi Inbari believed that everyone deserves happiness and took action by founding Israel’s Inbar organization. Inbar holds events for singles with varying disabilities that are seeking a soul mate.  Last year, Rabbi Inbari married Neta, whom he had met at Inbar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU5EK-yEwAs

Definitely one in a million!

Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing Good News stories about Israel.

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com

For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com

The Future is in Israeli Hands

http://blogs.jpost.com/content/future-israeli-hands

http://blogs.jpost.com/print/4872

The rituals that accompany the Jewish festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles) almost require us to have an extra pair of hands.  Holding 4 species of plants together, assembling a booth, carrying food up and down stairs etc.  So it is appropriate that many of the recent positive news items from the Jewish State can be connected to our hands.

We begin in Haifa, where medical experts at the University of Haifa and Rambam Medical Center have developed a non-invasive handwriting analysis technique to detect the onset of Parkinson’s disease.  Changes in handwriting occur years before a clinical diagnosis can be made, providing early treatment options.  In a similar vein, a finger is all that diabetics need in order to receive an accurate, painless reading of their blood-sugar levels using the TensorTip Combo Glucometer from Israel’s Cnoga.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxXnjY7jy9g

One day, stem cell technology will be able to regenerate damaged limbs and organs.  Thanks to the handiwork of Israeli scientists at the Weizmann Institute, that day is now much closer. They discovered that removing the protein MBD3 from adult cells re-programs them into stem cells in just 8 days instead of the current 4 weeks.  Israel’s depth of expertise in this technology can be seen in the speaker list for Jerusalem’s 5th International Stem Cell conference in October. It includes 22 Israeli professors and six specialist Israeli doctors.

The technology development arm of Cancer Research UK has received a hand from Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals with the signing of a multi-project alliance agreement to research and develop first-in-class cancer drugs. Whilst this was happening, the US Food and Drug Administration handed out approval for two of Teva’s cancer medications - for the treatment of secondary cancers and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Patients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Parkinson’s disease often cannot control their hands. The Deep Brain TMS treatment from Israel’s Brainsway is having much success in this area.  Trials at Sheba Medical Center have shown a 27 percent improvement in OCD patients that had previously failed to respond to both pharmacological and psychological therapy.  Meanwhile, more wounded Syrians have been waking up in Israeli hospitals to find themselves in safe hands. 

Israeli technology is transforming farmers in the developing world from their previous “hand to mouth” existence.  Israeli brothers Gilad and Yonatan Shilo founded Israel for Africa (IFA) to promote better sustainable agriculture in Kenya.  And in Brazil, Israel’s Evogene has successfully completed three years of field trials to transform castor beans into bio-fuel.  The crop is sown after the soybean harvest, when rainfall is insufficient for other crops, providing farmers with “handy” extra revenue.  However, farmers everywhere would like to get their hands on Tal-Ya trays, now that the Israeli innovation has gone into production.  The agricultural trays achieve a dramatic increase in crop yield and prevent weed-growth, whilst saving farmers over 50 percent in water and 30 percent in fertilizer resources.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v58Pcg-LTmU

Research institutions and science museums across the country handed the Israeli public hundreds of opportunities to participate in this year’s “Night of the Scientists”.  Space exploration was the theme, as 2013 is the tenth anniversary of the flight of the first Israeli astronaut - Ilan Ramon.  The event was entitled “Israelis touch the stars” and included “hands-on” activities for all the family.

The marketing message for the new plug-in from Israeli start-up Curiyo is that it “puts the data you want at your fingertips”.  Curiyo will display a subtle link to instantly available details about interesting subjects in any web page you visit.  And Israel’s “invisible touchscreen” maker SnapKeys has updated its SI Revolution keyboard app to fit your fingers.  Say goodbye to the QWERTY keyboard.  One-finger typing just got even easier.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqo6cuthFIk
 

We should use our hands to applaud two exceptional individuals.  In Acre, Uri Jeremias’s single-handed determination has been responsible for the reconstruction of two abandoned Ottoman palaces and their transformation into a handsome boutique hotel.  On the other hand, Maestro conductor Zubin Mehta is used to waving his hands around more than most of us.  But he put his fingertips together Indian style in gratitude for being bestowed with an honorary Technion doctorate.  Professor Lavie, President of Israel’s world-class innovation university, described Dr Mehta as an exceptional man who has made a unique contribution to the betterment of Israel and the entire world with the magic of music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-mTBJuWO6Q&feature=youtu.be

Returning to the festive season, and although they missed out on a world record, many hands made light work of Haifa youth’s Sukkot project to make Israel’s longest paper chain. Decorated paper chains are a popular feature of the booths built for the festival of Tabernacles / Sukkot. 

Finally, prominent Israelis shook hands with some of the thousands of Christian supporters of Israel from over 100 countries who made sure they were on hand in Jerusalem this week to celebrate the most inclusive of Jewish festivals.  It is a handy reminder that the last time Israel’s capital city saw more representations from nations of the world was in King Solomon’s time.

More people need to know what is truly happening in the Jewish State.

Please give a helping hand!

Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing Good News stories about Israel.

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com

For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com