The Negev as a Global Hub for Desert Technologies and Its Impact on Regional Economic Growth

Convener/Moderator: Sivan Cohen Shachari, DeserTech

Desert environments cover approximately 40% of the world’s land area and are already home to over 20% percent of the world’s population. According to the UN, by 2025, 1.8 billion people will experience “absolute water scarcity” with 2/3 of the world living under water scarce conditions. Desertification poses serious implications for biodiversity, eco-safety, poverty eradication, socio-economic stability, and sustainable development.

The DeserTech Community was created drawing on Israel’s experience in coping with resource scarcity in an arid and semi-arid climate. The community brings together entrepreneurs, startups, researchers, industry and policymakers, and is designed to capture the synergies among these actors to spur the development and commercialization of new technologies that enable sustainable living in arid climates. The DeserTech community is a joint initiative of the Merage Foundation Israel, the Israel Innovation Institute, The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Ben Gurion University.

Objectives:

Presenting the DeserTech Community and the Merage Foundation Israel as a facilitator of regional economic growth in the Negev
Presenting the unique value proposition of the Negev with the resources located in it that can support adaptation of technologies to arid areas
Presenting success stories of previous business collaborations between Negev-based resources

Speakers:

Mr. David Merage, Founder, Merage Foundation – Keynote Speaker

Mr. Eran Raveh, CEO, Gilat Research Center, Volcani Institute

Mr. Jan Vader, Managing Director, Desert Control Middle East

Ms. Karina Rubinstein, Director of the Sustainability Forum, InNegev

Mr. Shahaf Maroodi, Project Manager, Western Negev AgriTech