“We’re all equal in Nativ HaOr” was the heADIng for the Israel Electric Company’s 14th annual Nativ HaOr Program recognition event, held at ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran on May 15, 2019.
This year’s program placed special emphasis on special education, including about 2,000 students from 250 special education frameworks among the 1560 participating elementary schools. Event participants included village residents, ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran chairman Doron Almog , program students, mayors, local regional council heads and executives from the Israel Electric Company and the Ministry of Education.
The Nativ HaOr program, approved for study in elementary schools and kindergartens by the Ministry of Education in cooperation with the Federation of Local Authorities, is an initiative of the Israel Electric Company. The program trains “young leaders” to be agents of change in the area of energy and environment, teaching about the world of energy, electrical safety, energy conservation and economic electrical consumption in an experiential way.
Children from all over the country, representatives of the 150,000 program participants from 220 cities, took part in the event at ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran, joining village residents in inclusive, full-filled activities that emphasized electrical safety, proper consumption of electricity and energy conservation.
Chairman of ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran Major General (res.) Doron Almog: “Holding the Israel Electric Company event at the village corresponds with the Tikkun Olam policy to which we committed when we founded the village. In the past, and in a certain sense in the present as well, a person with cognitive disabilities was distanced from society and surrounded by walls of shame. We made it our mission to provide love and the best possible quality of life for the friends of our son Eran, of blessed memory, who live in the village, and we work towards shattering the wall of embarrassment. We made it our mission to bestow upon residents of the village the same mutual responsibility that every citizen of Israel deserves. We made it our mission to integrate them into Israeli society. Tikkun Olam cannot happen in Israel without daily visits to the village and without a public appeal to all parts of the population, including large, well-known companies such as the Israel Electric Company, to come to the village and hold events here. This is part of the shattering the walls of embarrassment that I have been speaking about for years. How wonderful if more companies, organizations and individuals would come to the rehabilitation village ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran to visit, to volunteer and to celebrate significant events, integrating village residents into Israeli society. Through events such as this and proper content planning, we are taking step after small step towards repairing the world. We will continue and we will accomplish.”
Chairman of the Israel Electric Company Major General (res.) Yiftah Ron-Tal: “I welcome the success of this program in which volunteers from the Israel Electric Company participate. Even more so, I am proud that the program keeps developing from year to ear and reaches more and more communities, among them, children in special education. I welcome the fact that we chose to have the event here, at ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran, a unique and special place that provides therapeutic and rehabilitative solutions to people with disabilities. During the program’s 17 years, approximately 1.7 million students from all over the country have acquired tools for leadership, empowerment and community responsibility. This is our social responsibility and one more of the Israel Electric Company’s contributions to the community. The knowledge that exists among employees is an asset that should be passed on to all children in Israel.”
Israel Electric Company CEO, Ophir Bloch: “We chose to invest in you, the young generation – citizens who influence the future – as our partners. You have all of the capabilities to internalize the insights of why it is important to act safely, wisely and with understanding with electricity in daily life – I am certain that the program will lead you to a future as active and caring citizens who contribute to society. I am certain that bringing this program to special education schools will make its mark – we see the next generation as partners in the responsibility to change consumption habits, to use electricity within a safe, cost-effective and environmental vision and to be our agents within the community. The Israel Electric Company sees each program participant as a huge light.”
