User:LeonoreH/Sandbox

History
The Tel Aviv Foundation was founded in 1977 and has established more than 300 projects to date, raising over $300 million worldwide. The Foundation works in partnership with the Municipality of Tel Aviv-Jaffa which sets the priority projects through Mayor Ron Huldai and the City Council who provide matching funds (usually dollar-for-dollar) for nearly every project.

The uniqueness of the Foundation is that it has no endowment and operates through direct giving only, meaning all the funding secured is not placed into a "vacuum", but rather is designated to specific projects.

Mission
The Tel Aviv Foundation is an independent foundation which serves as a vehicle for societal change in the city of Tel Aviv-Jaffa. The Foundation aims to strengthen, promote and enhance an open and modern society by responding to the needs of the city and working to improve the lives of its residents, visitors and commuters.

The Foundation establishes projects in the following fields: Education, Welfare and Social Services, Art, Culture and Sport, and Environment.

About Tel Aviv - Jaffa
As the symbolic center of Israeli pluralism and liberalism, Tel Aviv is home to Israeli natives and new immigrants, young couples and senior citizens, business people and artists, religious and secular. Over 1 million people (1/6 of the population of the State of Israel) commute to the city daily for work, for educational and entertainment purposes, as the city is the center of Israeli commerce, the seat of institutions for higher education, and a focal point of Israeli art and culture.

The city of Tel Aviv-Jaffa will celebrate its 100 year anniversary in the spring of 2009. This important milestone represents the fulfillment of Theodore Herzl’s dream of modern Zionism - creating a Jewish utopian homeland that would bring spiritual, economic and cultural growth to its people. Today Tel Aviv stands as a shining example of that dream, encompassing all facets of modern day Israel.

The city of Tel Aviv-Jaffa was established in 1909. Its birth coincided with the birth of modern Zionism. It is the first Hebrew-speaking city in modern times.

Tel Aviv and its outskirts consists of 2 1/2 million people, about one-third of Israel's population. Over one million people visit the city daily. Actual population within city limits is 350,000.

Incorporated into a single municipality with Tel Aviv in 1950, Jaffa is older than the city of Jerusalem, and is the oldest operating port in the world.

Tel Aviv contains the largest collection of Bauhaus Architecture in the world and was named a UNESCO world heritage site.

Tel Aviv-Jaffa is Israel's center of commerce and culture. Most major banks, insurance, and high tech companies, are headquartered in Tel Aviv. Fifty percent of all theater seats filled each day in Israel are in Tel Aviv. It is home to the only Opera House, the Israel Philharmonic, Habima, Cameri and Gesher Theatre companies. Israel's Diaspora Museum, the Museum of Art, Museum Ha'aretz, Nahum Gutman and Rubin Museums are all located in Tel Aviv. It is home to the Bat-Sheva Dance Troupe and the Cinematheque.

While the Tel Aviv municipality ranks first in the country in per-capita spending on education, culture and social welfare, 40% of Tel Aviv-Jaffa residents live at the poverty level or below.

Tel Aviv 100 - The Centennial Celebration
April 2009 will mark the 100th anniversary of the city of Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv is the economic, cultural and academic capital of Israel. The City will celebrate this milestone through the Tel Aviv Foundation with worldwide events reflecting Tel Aviv’s unique place in the history of the Jewish people, as the first Hebrew city established in more than 3,000 years.

The Tel Aviv Centennial is meant both to underscore Tel Aviv’s status as an international city and to highlight it’s vitality and accomplishments.

The Tel Aviv Foundation, a partner of the city of Tel Aviv, has and continues to play a key role in the development and future of the city. For 30 years, the Foundation has addressed the needs of the underprivileged through projects tailored to improve education, social service and the environment. The Foundation will lead the centennial activities in the United States as well as in other countries and is working to create an exciting program of activities that will showcase Tel Aviv to cities around the world.

Education
Renovating pre‐kindergartens, rebuilding libraries and resource centers, supporting talented teens at HEMDA—the center for Science Education, building a new campus for the Academic College of Tel Aviv‐Yafo, building community centers and schools, building schools for children with special needs.

Social Services & Welfare
Feeding and enrichment programs for pre‐kindergarten children, providing programs and services to Holocaust survivors, providing hot nutritious meals and transportation to the elderly, providing services to the handicapped.

Arts, Culture, and Sports
Building a new wing at the Gutman Museum, renovating the Cinematech, building an Amphitheater in the Yarkon Park.

Environment and quality of life
Establishing parks and playgrounds in deprived neighborhoods, renovating boulevards with sitting areas, planting trees and gardens.

The American Committee for the Tel Aviv Foundation
Located in New York City, the American Commitee for the Tel Aviv Foundation started its activities in the 1980's. Successful events all over the country have been carried out since then.