P.O Box 56065
Tel Aviv 6156001
Israel
- Environment/Sustainable development
- Others
Our Mission
To revolutionize the approach to health and lifestyle nationwide, in every city and for every individual. To raise awareness, improve understanding about lifestyle choices, and implement concrete programs in government, municipal leadership, schools, and workplaces. To use “health-supportive environments” for long-term, cross-cultural change.
Our Objectives
Focus on health in personal and group environments (schools, workplaces, community centers etc.)
Adaptability to specific high-risk populations for a new nationwide approach to health.
Guidance for government and lay leadership for far-reaching and long-term change.
Awareness campaigns about the need to fight the obesity and diabetes epidemics in Israel.
City Health Culture. We put “healthy lifestyle” on city agendas for the long term. We partner with cities (Ashdod, Nazareth, Rahat, Tel Aviv, and more) to create and fund a new municipal official: city health director. Together, we identify and meet the practical and cultural health needs of the city (jogging paths, water fountains, socioeconomic and language accessibility. Programs in homes, schools, workplaces, parks, and more make healthy living natural. Our initial input transforms the city’s health culture, it precipitates momentum that will impact Israelis far into the future.
Women’s Health in Arab Communities. 50% of Arab and Bedouin women over 60 have diabetes. In 2016, we piloted an educational and health leadership program for 40 women in Rahat and Nazareth. The women joined workshops about health and health leadership, implementing health-supportive environments in homes, schools, and community centers.
Diabetes Awareness in the Ethiopian Community. Many first-generation Ethiopian immigrants (adults, elderly) struggle with Hebrew. They cannot access our mainstream awareness/prevention campaigns. We aim to produce a 4-part television feature on diabetes in Amaharic (Ethiopian language). The feature will air on Israel’s Ethiopian TV channel, and reach thousands of homes.
Ultra-Orthodox Awareness and Environments. Our culture-specific programs create concrete awareness and lifestyle change in the ultra-Orthodox community. Attention to cultural norms (separate programs for men and women, culture-specific communication) has impacted over 1,000 ultra-Orthodox children, teens, and adults to date. With our guidance, mothers and teens now implement health-supportive environments in homes, schools, and community centers.
Workplaces. Awareness and programs in the workplace create health-supportive daytime environments for adults. Long workdays make office health patterns crucial for individual and family health. To date, together with 15 businesses and municipalities (police forces, fire departments) – and with demand for more – we bring lifestyle awareness and improvement to thousands of Israeli adults.
The prevalence of obesity and diabetes is rising throughout the western world at a rate so high that the World Health Organization officially defines them as epidemics – the only non-viral epidemics. The increase in obesity and diabetes cross socioeconomic, cultural, and age without regard to level of education or financial means. 500,000 Israelis are diagnosed with diabetes. It is estimated that 500,000 more live with the disease, though undiagnosed.
Proper nutrition and an active lifestyle are the healthiest and safest ways to prevent diabetes and obesity, and to reduce redundant, unhealthy weight. Along with attention to risk factors like smoking, people who lead healthy lifestyles benefit from better long-term health, lower stress levels, and a sense of control and fulfillment in daily life, at home, and work.