BEAUTIFUL ISRAEL

 The Council for a Beautiful Israel was set up by the Knesset (Israel's Parliament) with the object of educating the public to guard and preserve those special values represented by the country's rich heritage and to watch over current construction, settlement and development projects. The Council has three principal aims:

            · To eradicate the spread of ugliness; to combat neglect and dirt; to get the public to care about the appearance of their surroundings.

           ·To create a positive attitude towards the countryside and its preservation; to protect the country's natural beauty and preserve its historical sites.

            ·  To endeavor to direct planning, design, building, and construction along aesthetic paths and to make people beauty-conscious again.

           ·    To achieve these aims the Council undertakes a wide variety of activities ranging from education and propaganda to the preservation of the countryside and environmental planning. In this work it is assisted by a corps of volunteers from such professions as law, architecture, design, botany, industry, and education - all of whom contribute their special knowledge - as well as by hundreds of children and "caring" adults. These volunteers are members of the "Guardians of a Beautiful Israel" and each year the outstanding members are honored by the President of Israel with the title of "Creators of a Beautiful Israel."

The Council organizes a full program of lectures, symposiums, and other activities aimed at achieving public involvement in the environment. Particular attention is paid to the younger generation, beginning with infants in the kindergarten who are encouraged to use a paint brush and children of school age who are encouraged not only to beautify their own immediate surroundings but also to take part in projects aimed at cleaning up their home vicinities. Encouragement is given to all those wishing to beautify their own homes and gardens and the Council provides advice and guidance on such subjects as the cultivation of house-plants, gardens, house painting, etc.

The Council is active in everything affecting the quality of the environment. On the legal side, it initiates laws and acts as a watchdog insofar as seeing that the law is adequately enforced. The Council has an important role to play in town-planning and has been granted the status of an interested party which can enter objections to any building plans that, in its opinion, are contrary to the public interest. On the active side, it encourages local authorities to improve the appearance of their communities through aesthetic planning of their housing projects and roads; the provision of open spaces; attractive signposting; the provision of attractive street furniture, etc.

Special efforts are devoted to improving the beaches, and preserving historic sites and public institutions, while much has been done to clean up filling stations, schools, and community centers.

Through its activities, the Council for a Beautiful Israel aims at making each and every person in Israel aware of the importance of improving the environment and willing to do something about it. In this way, Israel can once again become "a land flowing with milk and honey"...and beauty.