Building Israel’s North Through Education
Israel’s future will not be shaped in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem alone. It will also be built in the Galilee — through education, innovation, opportunity, and empowering people to make the North their home.
From my office in Karmiel, I look over the Galilee. I see much more than a beautiful landscape: I see one of Israel’s greatest opportunities and responsibilities.
Recent years have reminded us that Israel’s strength cannot be measured only by the resilience of its center. Strengthening the North is a national mission that is deeply personal to me and guides my work as President of Braude College of Engineering. When Israel’s periphery is strong, Israel as a whole is stronger.
Higher education plays a critical role. A college in the Galilee is an engine and anchor — attracting young people, supporting industry, encouraging entrepreneurship, and giving talented Israelis a reason to build their futures in the North.
Our graduates become engineers, researchers, entrepreneurs and industry leaders. Most remain in the Galilee, strengthening its economy and communities and creating the human capital Northern Israel depends on.
Our responsibility is not simply to prepare students for today’s jobs. A student beginning an engineering degree now will graduate into a different world, particularly in the age of artificial intelligence.
AI is transforming engineering, science and nearly every sector of the economy. As technology advances, human qualities such as creativity, critical thinking, ethical judgment and empathy become even more important. Tomorrow’s engineers need technical excellence and an understanding of the broader impact of what they create.
This is why engineering education must evolve. At Braude, we are adapting our academic programs, strengthening connections with industry and preparing students for emerging technologies. Students gain practical experience working on real challenges with companies and organizations, and many later begin their careers in those same industries.
Innovation and entrepreneurship must become a larger part of Northern Israel’s future. Israel’s Start-Up Nation innovation must extend to every region. My vision is for Braude to become a hub where students, researchers, entrepreneurs, and industry meet, experiment, and build together.
If we are serious about expanding Israel’s pool of talent, we must address another gap: women remain significantly underrepresented in many engineering disciplines. Bringing more women into engineering is a personal priority. Young women need to know that engineering is open to them and that their ambitions have no ceiling — glass, steel, or otherwise. Scholarships, mentorship and strong role models can help them see what is possible. I know because others once did it for me.
I was born in Be’er Sheva and raised in Dimona. Growing up in the Negev taught me the enormous potential outside Israel’s metropolitan centers and the importance of creating genuine opportunities there.
My academic journey took me from the Technion to the University of Oxford, where I pursued postdoctoral research after specializing in biomedical engineering and regenerative biomaterials. Getting there was not simple. But with my mother’s faith, I did it. Her message was simple: this matters to you. Go. Things will work out.
I was also fortunate to encounter outstanding female mentors who believed in me. They taught me something I carry into my leadership: recognizing potential in another person can change the course of a life, of a nation. Leadership means creating opportunities and empowering others to succeed.
That belief has accompanied me throughout my years at Braude — as a faculty member, department chair, Vice President for Academic Affairs and now President.
Strengthening Northern Israel has become even more urgent. At Braude, we are moving forward with a new campus. Building for the future amid uncertainty is not easy. But perhaps that is precisely when building matters most.
We are here to stay, and we are here to build.
Every new laboratory, academic program, industry partnership, young woman who chooses engineering, and student who chooses to put down roots in the Galilee is part of that same act of building.
Israel’s greatest natural resource is its people. By investing in education, expanding opportunities regardless of geography or gender, and encouraging young Israelis to build their futures in the North, we strengthen the Galilee and Israel as a whole.
The story of the Galilee is ultimately a story of people, potential, and perseverance. We are deeply grateful to the friends and partners around the world who share our vision and help turn it into reality. Together, we can continue building a stronger, more innovative, and more inclusive future for Israel’s north and for generations to come.
