The Beit HaKerem Cluster

Background

Beit HaKerem is a cluster of seven authorities in the Galilee of northern Israel, with a total population of approximately 140,000 residents. The cluster is very diverse, encompassing Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Druze populations and consisting of villages, moshavim, and cities.

The Work Process

City for All in Beit HaKerem is currently in the mapping phase. The program in Beit HaKerem is being run in conjunction with the cluster’s process on advancing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) in the area. 

In the next phase of the process, Ehskol will decide on 4 or 5 major topics in the field of STEM to concentrate on, and establish a committee to work on each of them. One of the topics will most likely be Gender, Diversity and Inclusion, and will be led by Attorney Dana Myrtenbaum. The committee will do a wider community stakeholder consultation on the topic in order to develop an action plan. The process is being led by the Eshkol together with the Ministry of Interior, and is likely to be replicated for other clusters and municipalities.

Impact

City for All Program Director Attorney Dana Myrtenbaum participated in and facilitated 3 public consultation meetings each attended by between 70 -100 representatives from the fields of education, business, academia and civil society. During these consultations, data from the initial mapping work on employment, education and demography was shared. The gender gap between men and women in STEM, along with other issues such as digital literacy, language, and teacher training were all discussed in the most recent plenary.