2019 Annual Report
Building a community of supporters of Israel dedicated to a vision of Israel as both the Jewish homeland and a democracy for all its citizens.
Building a community of supporters of Israel dedicated to a vision of Israel as both the Jewish homeland and a democracy for all its citizens.
The core of NIF’s work – partnering with Israelis and other Diaspora Jews to promote equality and democracy – has never been more crucial.
The core of NIF’s work – partnering with Israelis and other Diaspora Jews to promote equality and democracy – has never been more crucial. Israelis experienced two elections during 2019, both of which produced political stalemate. When the nation’s politicians can’t take action it’s up to civil society – and that’s where NIF comes in.
Over the last three years, the NIF Australia community – the thousands of people who come to events, make donations, sign petitions and share stories about Israel with their friends and family – have invested $1.8 million in Israeli non-profits whose work defends democratic institutions and builds equality and a shared society.
Our impact has never been more significant. We’ve achieved legal status for people seeking asylum; ensured Palestinians in Gaza have access to medical treatment; brought education, healthcare and job training to Bedouin living below the poverty line; provided a new start to Ethiopian Jews who have been victims of racial profiling by Israeli police; supported women who had survived domestic violence, and much more.
If Israel is to be a more inclusive and equal society, it will be because of these projects, and the funding and support provided by you and the NIF community around the world.
Thanks for your support and partnership,
Ilana Snyder
President, NIF Australia
In 2019, we screened an advertisement for NIF Australia at the Jewish International Film Festival which was seen by 55,000 people in seven locations across Australia.
Using the original recording of David Ben-Gurion reading the Declaration of Independence, along with the voices of members of the NIF Australia community also reading its words, we highlighted the centrality of the Declaration to NIF’s mission for a more just, equal and democratic Israeli society.
Watch the videos →Over the last three years, we've invested more than AU$1.8 million in Israeli civil society.
Justice for Ethiopian Jews: Following the police shooting of unarmed teen Solomon Teka z"l in July 2019, we made an emergency grant to AEJ to build its capacity to respond to the institutionalised racism felt by the Ethiopian community in Israel.
Teka’s death was just one example of long-term over-policing against the Ethiopian community. It often results in unjust police cases and permanent marks on their records, which can lead to issues gaining employment. NIF Australia’s grant helps community members work with the President of Israel’s office to gain pardons so they can move on with their lives.
Intervening when a park banned Arab citizens of Israel: Equality and freedom are central to Israel’s founding document, the Declaration of Independence. It’s because of these values that we fund organisations like Adalah, which have the expertise to intervene when Israel’s citizens who are Palestinians experience discrimination and racism.
In this case, the mayor of Afula, who has repeatedly promoted racist policies, closed one of the town’s public parks to non-residents, a move squarely targeting Arab residents in nearby villages. Reassuringly, it didn’t take long for the attorney-general to express support for Adalah’s case and for the courts to order Afula to overturn its racist policy.
Promoting pluralism and inclusion for all Israelis: Our grantee, the Israel Religious Action Centre (IRAC), had a big year in 2019. It pursued greater gender equality by taking up cases against segregated Israeli bus lines and on airplanes, and worked for the inclusion of LGBT couples by ensuring they have the right to adoption and surrogacy.
Its other important work is to combat racism, in particular through the Racism Crisis Centre, where Israelis can report incidents, receive counselling, advice and legal support. IRAC also took an important case to the High Court against anti-Arab candidates for Knesset from the Kahanist “Jewish Power” party. As a result of IRAC’s petition, the Kahanist leader, Michael Ben-Ari, was disqualified from running due to his “severe and extreme” racism.
Ending the occupation: Last year, NIF funded seven projects which support Palestinians living under Israel’s 52-year occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Each of them is targeted in a different way, utilising the organisation’s unique expertise, to create a better future for Palestinians.
Physicians for Human Rights runs weekly multidisciplinary clinics for Palestinians in the West Bank and is the only organisation permitted by the Israeli military to enter Gaza and provide much needed humanitarian aid, medical supplies and treatment; Machsom Watch helps Palestinians navigate Israel’s complex system of permits to allow them to work, study at university and travel abroad; Yesh Din represents Palestinians who are victims of violence at the hands of settlers; and ACRI’s projects enable residents of East Jerusalem to live the same lives as Jews in West Jerusalem.
In addition, we hosted ‘roundtable’ events with Tamar for our New Gen leadership, and she travelled to Canberra for high-level meetings with Labor's foreign affairs spokesperson Senator Penny Wong, Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt, Dave Sharma MP and others.
On ABC's Q&A program, NIF’s visiting Knesset member Tamar Zandberg discussed the Trump administration's relationship with Israel.
There were two elections in Israel in 2019 and we helped explain and process all the news in thirteen videos on our social media pages, which received more than 35,000 views.
In the episode below, released in the middle of April's election, we discuss racism in the campaign, and particularly the successful effort to stop extreme anti-Arab candidates running for Knesset:
We hosted a celebration of the life and achievements of Israel’s most celebrated author, Amos Oz.
A member of NIF’s international council, our event video footage, readings and tributes to explore his literary and political legacy.
More than 300 people attended the event — in person at Bondi Pavilion, at our live site at Temple Beth Israel in Melbourne, and through our live stream — and heard contributions from his daughter, Fania Oz Salzberger, New York Times columnist Roger Cohen, Israeli performer Achinoam Nini, a number of NIF’s Naomi Chazan Fellows and others.
This clip from the event features NIF Australia patron Ronni Kahn AO:
Watch the event in full →For the first time, NIF hosted a New Gen Roundtable, bringing together dozens of emerging leaders to build capacity, grow their networks and gain deeper understandings about human rights and social justice issues in Israel. Visiting Knesset member Tamar Zandberg provided a real buzz, conducting a lively Q&A and leaving everyone optimistic about the future of democracy in Israel.
NIF also sent another cohort on the global Naomi Chazan Fellowship, bringing to 27 the number of Australian alumni. The program continues to evolve, creating a path for the new generation of Jewish leaders to become more deeply involved in Israeli society.
Meet our fellows →
In January 2019, NIF Australia’s vice-president Steven Glass passed away unexpectedly. Steven was instrumental in NIF Australia’s founding and his guidance, advice and support were crucial to our growth and success to date.
In November 2019 we hosted events and fundraisers in his honour, where we awarded visiting Knesset member Tamar Zandberg the ‘Steven Glass Truth to Power Award’. We raised more than $75,000 to support the work of two organisations greatly admired by Steven: the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, and Physicians for Human Rights.
We miss him more and more each day.
NIF Australia distributed $407,250 in grants to registered Israeli not-for-profit organisations, fulfilling our mission to promote freedom, equality and pluralism in Israel.
| Organisation | Amount |
|
Adalah Conducts litigation by and for Arab citizens of Israel to ensure the rights of this community. Read more → |
$20,000 |
|
Al Hukok Provides legal aid for the Bedouins of the Negev around issues of housing, economic rights, healthcare, and education. Read more → |
$7,500 |
|
Association for Civil Rights in Israel – East Jerusalem project Fighting poverty and struggling for equal access to education for Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem. Read more → |
$26,000 |
|
Association for Civil Rights in Israel – public hotline project Israel's largest and oldest civil rights organisation, they safeguarding equality through precedent-setting litigation. Read more → |
$35,635 |
|
Association of Ethiopian Jews Following the police shooting of unarmed teen Solomon Teka z"l in July 2019, we made an emergency grant to AEJ to build their capacity to respond to institutionalised racism felt by the Ethiopian community in Israel. Read more → |
$20,000 |
|
Bimkom Spatial and town planning expertise inside Israel and in Area C of the West Bank to ensure Palestinian villages aren't denied electricity, water and education resources by the Israeli government. Read more → |
$20,000 |
|
Bizchut Combating cases of discrimination felt by people with a disability in Israel. Read more → |
$4,000 |
|
Gisha - Center for the Legal Protection of Freedom of Movement A unique approach helping residents of Gaza travel for crucial medical care, education and professional advancement. Read more → |
$15,000 |
|
HaMoked Providing free legal aid to Palestinians in the occupied territories to access their rights in a wide range of areas, including freedom of movement, residency and social rights, the right to family life and property, and protections for minors in detention. Read more → |
$150 |
|
Hand in Hand A network of schools in Israel building shared society, demonstrating an important model of inclusion and partnership for Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel. Read more → |
$54,340 |
|
Hotline for Refugees and Migrants Protects people seeking asylum, refugees, migrant workers and victims of human trafficking in Israel, ensuring they aren't deported or detained unfairly, and have access to basic government services. Read more → |
$23,000 |
| Organisation | Amount |
|
Israel Religious Action Centre – Racism Crisis Centre project Combating the racism and discrimination felt by Palestinian citizens of Israel, the Ethiopian community, people seeking asylum, Russian immigrants and the LGBT community. Read more → |
$10,050 |
|
Israel Religious Action Centre (IRAC) Defending religious freedom and pluralism, and ensuring equal treatment of all streams of Judaism. Read more → |
$26,175 |
|
Israel Women's Network Promoting gender equality in Israel. Read more → |
$2,265 |
|
Lakia - The Association for the Improvement of Women's Status Advancing the status of women in Bedouin communities in the Negev through empowerment, education and employment training. Read more → |
$10,000 |
|
Machsom Watch Monitors IDF checkpoints and provides assistance to Palestinians to navigate the military's complex visa bureaucracy and gain access to education, employment and healthcare. Read more → |
$16,000 |
|
Orchard of Abraham's Children – Rosh Pina gan (kindergarten) Promoting shared society, inclusion and tolerance by bringing Jewish and Arab-Israelis kids to learn and live together. Read more → |
$25,000 |
|
Physicians for Human Rights Medical care for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza through clinics and visits, bringing expertise otherwise not found in the occupied Palestinian territories, and running an open clinic for migrant workers and refugees inside Israel. Read more → |
$25,000 |
|
Tebeka Advancing the rights of Israel's Ethiopian communities through legal advocacy and training. Read more → |
$20,000 |
|
Tmura Taking action on behalf of victims of racism, ensuring a real penalty is exacted for discriminatory behaviour in the workplace and by government institutions. Read more → |
$25,135 |
|
Women Against Violence (Nazareth) Providing assistance for Palestinian women in Israel's north in the form of rape crisis centres, domestic violence support and more. Read more → |
$10,000 |
|
Yesh Din Seeks to protect human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories by conducting legal advocacy and protecting Palestinians against violence from settlers. Read more → |
$12,000 |
| Revenue | 2019 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Donations | $854,254 | $646,015 |
| Other revenue | $88,473 | $65,791 |
| Interest | $8,434 | $10,767 |
| Total: | $942,727 | $711,806 |
| Expenses | 2019 | 2018 |
| Grants to Israel | $407,250 | $379,416 |
| Education and engagement | $64,456 | $38,945 |
| Naomi Chazan Fellowship | $55,755 | $36,162 |
| Fundraising and administration expenses | $13,656 | $18,495 |
| Communications | $22,435 | $3,405 |
| Administration, audit and legal, and other expenses | $9,515 | $26,629 |
| Employee benefits expense | $188,644 | $157,345 |
| Other expenses | $37,763 | $39,150 |
| Total: | $799,474 | $699,547 |
| Surplus | $151,687 | $23,026 |
We continue to be grateful to the generous donors who cover most of our local and administrative costs.
| Assets | 2019 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Current Assets | $737,092 | $585,475 |
| Total Assets | $737,092 | $585,475 |
| Liabilities | 2019 | 2018 |
| Current liabilities | $54,145 | $54,215 |
| Total liabilities | $54,145 | $54,215 |
| Net assets | $682,947 | $531,260 |
| Equity | 2019 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Retained surplus | $682,947 | $531,260 |
| Total equity | $682,947 | $531,260 |
The New Israel Fund is a partnership of Israelis and supporters of Israel worldwide, dedicated to a vision of Israel as both the Jewish homeland and a democracy for all its citizens.
We promote freedom, equality and social justice in Israel by funding Israeli non-profits and fostering new discussions in the Australian Jewish community.
Our work in Israel is guided by the vision of the country's founders in the Declaration of Independence, that Israel will be “based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel… [and ensures] complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex.”
The NIF Australia community comes make their mark on Israel by funding work that builds a more just, democratic and inclusive society.
