I think it’s fair to say that I have always promoted the notion that a strong Jewish identity is intrinsically tied to a strong connection to the land and people of Israel. One needn’t blindly support every single government action, one needn’t be totally uncritical and you don’t have to move here (though it would be nice if you did), but it’s important that you know us and love us the way we love you. Project 2000 is a program run by the Jewish Agency For Israel in conjunction with various Jewish Federations whereby said Federations twin their cities with a city or town in Israel. Twinning involves a process whereby visits are exchanged and projects are undertaken between the residents of the two cities.

Sounds kind of cool right? Well, now you don’t have to take my word for it. The Jewish Agency has undertaken a project whereby every month they will release a video, narrated by Professor Gil Troy, where they document one of these visits. Now I have been up and down Israel several times but even I discovered interesting sites and stories! Usually I come across visiting Federation members when their entire group descends upon the shuk while I am frantically trying to fight the crowds and do my shopping, but now that I know more about what brings them to Israel, I’m significantly less annoyed! Apparently service is not just for Hillel students or young adults looking for an interesting post-college experience!

This month’s video features the mystical city of Safed and the Jewish community of Palm Beach in a project aimed at enhancing tourism in the region around the study of Kabbalah.

You can see more videos on the Partner Web site or see all the videos updated monthly on JewTube!

David Abitbol is the founder of Jewlicious.