NTU’s team has successfully completed the project "Mapping Study of Civil Society Organizations in Israel"

In January 2013 the Delegation of the European Union to Israel commissioned a mapping study which main objective was to gain a comprehensive and detailed overview of the state of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and civil society (CS) networks in Israel. The mapping research, which was undertaken between the months of March and September 2013, aimed specifically at: a. Identifying existing gaps and key needs of CSOs and civil society networks in terms of their capacity to engage in policy dialogue, influence the government’s decision-making process, monitor implementation of government commitments and perform an effective advocacy role at the local and national levels. b. Identifying keys needs and constraints of CSOs and civil society networks working on political, social and economic issues with specific communities in Israel. c. Analysing the financial sustainability of CSOs, and their access to public (governmental and non-governmental) funding, private donations and foreign funding, with special attention to gaps in access to funds, current donor strategies and funding trends. d. Providing recommendations on how to use the existing instruments of the European Commission in order to answer the needs and opportunities identified in the mapping. The study was considered timely in light of the challenges faced by Israeli society in general, and more particularly by Israeli Civil Society organisations. Indeed, Israeli CSOs are coping with rapid changes forced upon them by the government’s economic and social policy, a significant decrease in public resources despite the reinforced privatisation trend and the great demand for non-profit services, as well as evolving and demanding legal requirements, including those of public transparency and accountability. The regulatory framework has also been the object of intense debates, particularly regarding what concerns foreign funding for "politically active" structures, whilst several human rights and progressive organisations have come under attack and report operating in an increasingly hostile environment. In January 2014 the final mapping study was printed and submitted in 100 hard copies to the EUD and other relevant stakeholders in Israel.