Join the Green Funders' Forum for an update on one of the worst ecological disasters in the history of Israel -- the unprecedented oil spill affecting Israel's entire coast line. 

We will receive an up-to-date picture of the scale of the disastrous oil spill and the immediate actions being taken to save the marine environment and to mitigate the health risks to Israeli residents.   Moreover, we will hear what steps the State of Israel needs to take to prevent further ecological disasters now and in the future.   The presenters will be representatives of Israel's environmental NGOs who have mobilized to deal with this catastrophe.  

Background:   An oil transport ship spilled thousands of tons of oil about 50 km off the coast of Israel last week.   Israel's entire shoreline is filled with tar, oil and waste;  thousands of marine animals are dead or in critical condition; dozens of people have been injured and the drinking water from desalination plants is in danger of contamination.   And, the consequences are accumulating. The public has mobilized en masse - thousands of volunteers are cleaning the beaches at the risk of their health;  local municipalities and governmental authorities are overburdened responding to this unprecedented situation.      

At the same time, the Israeli government is about to make fateful decisions that affect our future and further endanger the residents of Israel and the Mediterranean, including: oil and gas drilling in the Mediterranean and the transport of oil from the UAE via a massive oil pipeline from the Gulf of Eilat to Ashkelon and Ashdod.   

We urge you to join us for this emergency meeting to hear from the environmental NGOs on the ground and to understand the actions we can take personally and as a philanthropic community.

Speakers: 
Dr. Ruthy Yahel, Chief Marine Ecologist at the Israel Nature and Parks Authority
Eran Ben-Yemini, Executive Director of Life and Environment - umbrella organization for the environmental movement 
Nir Papai, Deputy CEO of Nature Protection at the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel  
Arik Rosenblum, Executive Director of EcoOcean