30 July - 5 August 2012 - orsam

Israel‘s ability to do more with less and successes in sustainable development have brought
international recognition, causing a number of UN and international figures to describe Israel as a
―sustainability superpower.‖
Dr. Daniel Hillel from Israel was recently awarded the World Food Prize for pioneering an
innovative way of bringing water to crops in arid and dry-land regions. CNN selected Yosef
Abramowitz, founder of the Arava Power Company, as one of six world leading ―green pioneers.‖
In 2008, Time magazine named Shai Agassi, the founder of Better Place, the company responsible
for introducing the electric car, as one of the ―environmental heroes‖ of the year.
In a further sign of international recognition, the head of the Israeli delegation to Rio +20,
Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan, was elected vice chairman of the Conference.
In his meetings with colleagues from around the world, many expressed a desire to increase
partnership with Israel, mainly in water management.
This is hardly surprising: Israel is the world‘s leader in water re-use and recycling. Israel treats and
recycles 80 percent of effluent water for agriculture. There are 35 desalination facilities in Israel. The
Ashkelon desalination plant is the world‘s second largest.
Israel is a world leader in desalination and by 2015, 75% of Israel‘s water supply will come from
water desalination. The UN General Assembly recently adopted an Israeli proposed resolution calling
for international investment in agricultural technology.
Israel is also a world leader in forestry as we implement Ben-Gurion‘s dream of making the desert
bloom – and one of the only countries that had more trees at the end of the 20th century than at the
start.
Thousands of experts flock to Israel every two years to attend WATEC: The Israel Water
Technologies, Renewable Energies and Environmental Control exhibition. This November, Eilat-
Eilot, the largest renewable energy conference of its kind will be held in Eilat.
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