A compelling international vision for Israel

When I was invited to be part of The London Initiative I was deeply impressed by two things: the people involved and the urgency of their mission.

The London Initiative (TLI) is a network of 360 leaders and change-makers from Israel, the Diaspora and international peacemaking and social change endeavours.

They share a vision of what Israel is and what it ought to be, which is a liberal democracy, a country for all its citizens, and a country that needs peace.

It’s a vision for a shared society that’s respectful and honours all its citizens, Jewish and non-Jewish, and works for outcomes that are productive for everybody in the country and in the region.

There are some very serious people involved: I was quite flattered to be asked. In the course of the next 2 weeks we all have the benefit of a visit to Australia by 2 of TLI’s key leaaders.

Sir Mick Davis,  is one of the founders,  a very senior businessman, and a former chief executive of Xstrata mining company. He  comes from the senior leadership echelon in the UK Jewish Leadership Council  and  was a treasurer and CEO of the UK Conservative party.

Accompanying Sir Mick is Mike Prashker,  the CEO of TLI. Mike has a very strong background in the Israeli shared society movement: he founded and directed Merchavim, the Institute for the Advancement of Shared Citizenship in Israel. 

The combination of Sir Mick and Mile reflects the partnership TLI seeks as the driver of the Jewish world’s current imperative – Diaspora and Israelis giving effect to the values and aspiration of Israel’s Declaration of Independence.