Municipality and Foreign Ministry launch young ambassador project

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen met with Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion and together launched a unique project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for youth (which will operate in the service of the Ministry, and in cooperation with the Municipality of Jerusalem), in the framework of which the young people will learn civil diplomacy and ways to advance the interests of the State of Israel and improve its image in the world. The young ambassadors will acquire knowledge and experience in advocacy, engage in creative projects on social networking and new media platforms, as well as join the fight to improve Israel's image in the world.

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said "I welcome the launch of the program in Jerusalem and thank Mayor Moshe Lion for the cooperation between us. In all my public positions, I led projects to promote and integrate young men and women from the social and geographic periphery to key positions in the world of intelligence and the economy, and now also in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I believe in providing equal opportunity to each and every person, and believe in the power of the youth in Jerusalem to lead a change in consciousness and global discourse and to contribute greatly to Israel's image. The tools they will acquire in the program will help them in the future to integrate into the top of political diplomacy."

The Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, said "The program we are launching today is welcome and important. As part of the complete education that the Municipality provides to the children of Jerusalem, we provide a wide variety of educational programs, including this program. The children and parents will be able to decide where to fit in, each child according to his or her needs and character. I congratulate the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Eli Cohen, for the wonderful idea and promise to continue to invest in the education of the city's children more and more."

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen met on Monday, May 1, with the Mayor of Jerusalem, and the two announced the Foreign Ministry's "Young Ambassadors" program that will be implemented in Jerusalem.

The unique program initiated by Minister Cohen, intended for young men and women, will operate in the service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in cooperation with the Municipality of Jerusalem. Within its framework, the young people will learn civil diplomacy and ways to promote the interests of the State of Israel and its image in the world.

The program is designed to create a task force of Ministry of Foreign Affairs youth that will work in the service of the Ministry in light of the many challenges that the State of Israel faces in the international arena, the lack of awareness and understanding of the state's needs, and the array of lies spread by the Palestinians in the world. The youth who will be involved in the project will lead processes of raising consciousness and image change using social media tools in social networks, will be involved in international digital conferences, in discussion forums, and in any way they initiate for this purpose, in order to promote Israel's status on the one hand, and share with youth and young people in the world stories and personal experiences that will reflect a true picture regarding life in the State of Israel.

In the proposed program, emphasis will be placed on everyday life and participation in discourse regarding issues important to young people all over the world such as the energy crisis, sports and health, leisure culture, the status of women, innovation, entrepreneurship, social involvement, and more. All of these can open a porthole to international youth forums, where Israeli youth promote initiatives and take the lead.

The program is intended for 10th-12th grade students and will be operated as a pilot for two years, with 10th graders in the first year and 11th and 12th graders added the following year. The students who will be integrated into the project will be equipped with knowledge and tools, and will be assigned to work frameworks and will in practice assist the public diplomacy system of the State of Israel with the help of unique initiatives. The program will operate as a response within the framework of the Israel advocacy system.

The Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ronen Levy, said "There is no doubt that teenagers can form a very effective task force that will serve the needs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the state, be productive, and deal with various organizations in the world that operate massively against the State of Israel. It will do all this while thinking outside the box and using social networks in an intelligent way."