May 6, 2004

By Ronald S. Lauder - Special to the Advocate

It was with incredible gratification that I read in the letter President Bush wrote to Prime Minster Ariel Sharon on April 14, the U.S. support of Israel's plan to further develop its southern region known as the Negev. The Negev represents 60 percent of Israel's land mass, and less than 8 percent of the population lives in its barren, rocky, austere and beautiful terrain. But I believe it is Israel's final frontier and its future.

The United States had its manifest destiny in the West. Russia looked to its frozen tundra to the East. Many countries have had vast areas of what many considered to be uninhabitable land at one time, which eventually became some of the most important parts of their developed societies. For Israel, that land is the Negev, and it's already happening.

Who would have thought that fish could thrive in the desert? The Jewish National Fund has already created fishponds that are currently producing fresh water fish in salty, brackish water.

Who would have thought that tomatoes could thrive in the Negev? Yet the Desert Sweet Tomato, which consumers brackish water, flourishes and is exported to Europe, bringing needed dollars to a nation.

Who would have thought that flowers could thrive in the Negev? Yet they grow and blossom in JNF-built hothouses created to increase the export of flowers to international markets. The beauty of Israel never stops traveling the world.

And who would have thought that with virtually no economic infrastructure, the Negev could support so many new communities? Yet 10 communities opened recently and more than 20 are planned, in cooperative effort among JNF, and the housing ministry. Recent new communities include Sansanna, Shibolet, Gavut Bar, Michal (an environmental village), Eron, Har'uv, Merchav, Am, Bar Hills, Faran, Be'er Milka, and Ararim.

On my last visit to Israel, I met with families who produce wine and olive oil in the desert. JNF reservoirs boost the productivity of crops and bring blue and green to a brown land. Each time I visit, I see how love of the land is working to improve the lives of its people. We work to create, not destroy.

Three kibbutzim - Lotan, Yael and Keturra - are part of JNF's overall Negev development strategy for the southern Arava. Lotan will feature an Educational Eco-Park, bike-riding trails and be friendly to birdwatchers. The Lotan Center for Creative Ecology-Eco-Fun includes activities on recycling/composting, organic-gardening, and alternative/natural construction. This unique desert ecological education center received the Israel Environment Minister's award in 2000 for its outreach and programming encompassing youth groups, schools and community centers.

JNF has also built an information center to attract new families to the Negev. For example, the agricultural youth project teaches youth how to farm in the desert, using techniques developed by the JNF.

Israel's legendary first prime minister, David Ben Gurion, had a dream that with his people's resilience and passion for life, his country's desert could be made to bloom. Today, his prescience is undeniable. Most of the residents of these nascent Negev communities include both secular and Orthodox Jews who are young, highly-educated professionals with families and young children, determined to provide a future for their family in Israel and therefore make Ben Gurion's vision a reality.

Everyone knows JNF as the 102-year-old organization whose mission is the serve as the caretaker of the land of Israel. Among its many manifestations of this role, it literally has been preparing the soil to develop the Negev into a truly sustainable future for Israel's people. In the coming years, JNF is committing $250 million toward the development of the Negev. JNF is helping realize the dream for Israel. My many thanks to President Bush for undertaking the challenge, and to Prime Minister Sharon for leading the effort.

- Note - Roger Berkowitz, the dynamic leader of today's Legal Sea Foods organization, was recently presented with a plaque from the Jewish National Fund's Zone President Jeffrey Davis. Mr. Berkowitz became a "Herzl" member, supporting JNF's involvement in the infrastructure of Israel. The donation will be allocated to the development of land, agricultural reclamation and research for new communities in the Negev.