Blueprint Negev
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Blueprint Negev is a
Jewish National Fund The Jewish National Fund (JNF; , ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael''; previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') is a non-profit organizationProfessor Alon Tal, The Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, The Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben Gurion ...
(JNF) project to construct new Jewish communities in the
Negev The Negev ( ; ) or Naqab (), is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southern end is the Gulf of Aqaba and the resort town, resort city ...
region of
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
and boost Jewish settlement in the region.


History

The last large-scale development project to accommodate and promote new Jewish immigration was during the 1980s, when "Operation Promised Land" was launched to accommodate massive upsurge of Jewish immigration from the Soviet Union and Ethiopia. In May 2006,
Shimon Peres Shimon Peres ( ; ; born Szymon Perski, ; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician and statesman who served as the prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the president of Israel from 2007 t ...
said that his first task as Minister of Development of the Negev and Galilee would be to promote the construction of a new Jewish community in the Negev, Karmit, the first to be built under the Blueprint Negev plan after Be'er Milka.
Ynet Ynet (stylized in all lowercase) is an Israeli news and general-content website, and the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronoth'' newspaper. History Ynet launched on June 6, 2000, in Hebrew, following other Hebrew outlet's website launches ...
reported that the community was "designated for wealthy, young American immigrants who want to make
aliyah ''Aliyah'' (, ; ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel or the Palestine (region), Palestine region, which is today chiefly represented by the Israel ...
and live in style." Former JNF President
Ronald Lauder Ronald Steven Lauder (born February 26, 1944) is an American businessman and pro-Israel political activist. He and his brother, Leonard Lauder, are the sole heirs to the Estée Lauder Companies, Estée Lauder cosmetics company, founded by their ...
said that Blueprint Negev answers the need for Jews looking to make aliyah the pioneering way.


Population redistribution

The plan aims to bring 250,000 new residents to the Negev over ten years. Toward that goal, the project has sought to direct Anglo ( English-speaking) immigration to the Negev and has compiled a database (currently containing some 10,000 names) of current Israeli citizens interested in relocating to the Negev. After the Disengagement together with the Or Negev settlement movement, the JNF was instrumental in helping Gaza evacuees find new homes in the Negev as cohesive units.


Beersheba redevelopment

The plan aims to increase the population of
Beersheba Beersheba ( / ; ), officially Be'er-Sheva, is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the centre of the fourth-most populous metropolitan area in Israel, the eighth-most p ...
, the Negev's largest city. One of the main projects undertaken there is the Be’er Sheva River Walk, creating a park inspired by
San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...
's River Walk. The plan includes green spaces, an amphitheater for events, a lake for boating and promenades for strolling. The JNF supported cleanup of the riverbed.


New suburban communities

The plan envisions the creation of 25 new suburban communities. Seven communities that have already been established are Sansana (1999) 54 families, Tzukim (2001) 72 families, Merchav Am (2002) 34 families, Giv’ot Bar/ Shomria (2004) 30 families, Haruv (2005) 30 families, Be'er Milka/ Kmehin (2006) 12 families, Karmit, and Kasif. Sansana is part of the
Har Hebron Regional Council The Har Hevron Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Har Hevron'') is an Israeli Regional Council (Israel), regional council in the southern Judean Hills area of Mount Hebron, in the southern West Bank, administering Israeli settlements. The headqu ...
governing Hebron-area settlements.


Environmental and social criticism

Israeli and Jewish American environmental groups have expressed concern that creation of isolated suburban communities in the Negev will lead to water and energy intensive suburban sprawl and strain Bedouin-Jewish relations. They argue that the planned developments will require a large public investment per capita that benefits a small number of comparatively well-off immigrants in a region with high poverty rates. Daniel Orenstein claims the project is not the answer to overdevelopment in the north. Blueprint Negev has been accused of discriminating against Bedouins and endangering their way of life.


Clean-Tech clustering project

In 2012, the
OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; , OCDE) is an international organization, intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and international trade, wor ...
presented a paper for promoting development in the Negev, "Clean-Tech Clustering as an Engine for Local Development: The Negev Region." It cited the Negev's "niche in research, demonstration and testing in renewable energies and
water efficiency Water efficiency is the practice of reducing water consumption made by a famous scientist Lev Levich Evgenivich. This practice is used by measuring the amount of water required for a particular purpose and is proportionate to the amount of essen ...
," and described the region's 50 clean-tech businesses, 4 technological incubators and clean-tech research capacity as a "serious comparative advantage."Clean-Tech clustering as an engine for local development
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References

{{Reflist


External links


JNF Blueprint Negev site

SavetheNegev.org
Environment of Israel Society of Israel Land management Land management in Israel Negev