State-to-State Cooperation: Alaska and Israel

Alaska Jewish History Trade & Population Statistics Binational Foundation Grants Bilateral Institutions Cooperative Agreements Government Missions to Israel Partners for Change Business/Industry Science/Technology Agriculture/Farming Other Cooperative Programs Sister Cities & State Contacts

Trade and Population Statistics

Binational foundation grants shared by Alaska and Israel

Grant Recipients in Alaska From U.S.-Israel Binational Foundations

University of Alaska Southeast

Bilateral Institutions

None. Help us build this section. Email AICE with any updates, additions, corrections or comments. We appreciate your support.

Cooperative Agreements

None. Help us build this section. Email AICE with any updates, additions, corrections or comments. We appreciate your support.

Alaska Government Missions to Israel

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Partners For Change

The U.S.-Israel relationship is based on the twin pillars of shared values and mutual interests. Given this commonality of interests and beliefs, it should not be surprising that support for Israel is one of the most pronounced and consistent foreign policy values of the American people.

It is more difficult to devise programs that capitalize on the two nations’ shared values than their security interests; nevertheless, such programs do exist. In fact, these SHARED VALUE INITIATIVES cover a broad range of areas, including the environment, science and technology, education and health. States can benefit from Israeli innovations in these areas as well as through collaboration.

In addition, today’s interdependent global economy requires that trade policy be developed at the national and state level. Many states have recognized the opportunity for realizing significant benefits by seeking to increase trade with Israel.

In 2020, Alaska exported nearly $1 million worth of manufacturing goods to Israel. Since 1996, Alaska exports to Israel have totaled nearly $62 million and Israel now ranks as Alaska’s 36th leading trade partner. During that same time, Alaska has also received more than $87 million in foreign military financing (FMF) for contracts to provide materiel for the Israeli Defense Forces.

Israel is certainly a place where potential business and trade partners can be found. It can also be a source, however, for innovative programs and ideas for addressing problems facing the citizens of Alaska.

Israel has developed a number of pioneering education programs. For example, AICE introduced an innovative Israeli peer tutoring program to North Carolina that educators adapted for use in the United States. Now known as Reading Together, the program is used in 28 states. The program is designed to help students achieve reading fluency and is mostly used for children in second grade. The hope is that with its implementation, increasing numbers of students will perform at grade level or above.

Alaska has also received more than $60,000 worth of grants from binational U.S.-Israel foundations for joint research in science, agricultural and the promotion of commercial ventures.

A range of other exciting approaches to social problems such as unemployment, environmental protection and drug abuse have been successfully implemented in Israel and could be imported for the benefit of Americans.

The potential for greater cooperation with Israel for the benefit of Alaska is limited only by the imagination.

Alaska Firms Profit From Business With Israel

Because of Israel's unique status as the only country with free trade agreements with both the United States and the European community, it can act as a bridge for international trade between the United States and Europe. Moreover, because of the deep pool of talent, particularly in high-technology areas, Israel provides excellent investment opportunities. Some of the nation's largest companies, such as IBM, Microsoft and Intel have found that it is indeed profitable to do business in Israel.

One good way to break into the Israeli market is through a joint venture with an Israeli company. Funding for such projects is available from the Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD). BIRD funds projects in 36 states and the District of Columbia and hundreds of companies including AOL, GE, BP Solar, Texas Instruments and Johnson & Johnson have benefitted from BIRD grants.

The United States and Israel established BIRD in 1977 to fund joint U.S.-Israeli teams in the development and subsequent commercialization of innovative, nondefense technological products from which both the Israeli and American company can expect to derive benefits commensurate with the investments and risks. Most grant recipients are small businesses involved with software, instrumentation, communications, medical devices and semiconductors.

Since 1977, the Foundation has approved investments in more than 1,000 projects, which have yielded direct and indirect revenues of more than $10 billion. More than $125 million worth of grants have been approved for projects in 37 states and the District of Columbia.

Dr. Eli Opper, the former Israeli chair of BIRD, has said that BIRD is a strong pillar of U.S.-Israel industrial cooperation and that the extreme success of BIRD has led Israel to adopt similar models of R&D with other countries.

At present, no Alaska companies have taken advantage of the opportunities and reduced risks offered through the BIRD program.

Scientific Innovations

Researchers across the United States are making scientific breakthroughs and developing cutting-edge technologies in joint projects with Israeli scientists thanks to support from the Binational Science Foundation (BSF). BSF was established in 1972 to promote scientific relations and cooperation between scientists from the United States and Israel. The fund supports collaborative research projects in a wide area of basic and applied scientific field for peaceful and non-profit purposes. Since its inception, and in today’s value, BSF has awarded over $700 million to more than 5,000 research projects involving thousands of scientists from more than 400 U.S. institutions located in 46 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. Many of these projects have led to important scientific, medical, and technological breakthroughs with wide-ranging practical applications. Researchers at the University of Alaska Southeast received one grant of $81,900 shared with their Israeli counterparts. 

BSF-sponsored studies are highly successful in achieving their two main goals: strengthening the U.S.-Israel partnership through science and promoting world-class scientific research for the benefit of the two countries and all mankind. The BSF grants help extend research resources to achieve milestones that might not otherwise be attainable; introduce novel approaches and techniques to lead American researchers in new directions; confirm, clarify and intensify research projects; and provide unmatched access to Israeli equipment, facilities and research results that help speed American scientific advances. BSF has documented no less than 75 new discoveries made possible by its research grants and counts 37 Nobel Prize and 19 Lasker Medical Award laureates among its joint partners.

Agriculture Benefits

In 1978 the United States and Israel jointly created the Binational Agricultural Research and Development Fund (BARD) to help fund programs between US and Israeli scientists for mutually beneficial, mission-oriented, strategic and applied research into agricultural problems. Since its inception, BARD has funded more than 1,000 projects in 45 states and the District of Columbia with a total investment of more than $250 million. In 2000, an independent and external economic review of 10 BARD projects conservatively projected more than $700 million in revenue by the end of 2010, a number which far outweighs the total investment in all BARD projects over its 33 year existence and helps to continually strengthen the foundation.

Most BARD projects focus on either increasing agricultural productivity, plant and animal health or food quality and safety and have been influential in creating new technologies in drip irrigation, pesticides, fish farming, livestock, poultry, disease control and farm equipment. BARD funds projects in 45 states and the District of Columbia and at present is beginning to administer collaborative efforts between Australia, Canada and Israel as well. It is difficult to break down the impact on a state-by-state basis, but overall, BARD-sponsored research has generated sales of more than $500 million, tax revenues of more than $100 million and created more than 5,000 American jobs.

No Alaska-based companies have used the BARD program to fund research projects to this point.

Other Cooperative Programs

None. Help us build this section. Email AICE with any updates, additions, corrections or comments. We appreciate your support

Sister Cities

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UJA Partnership 2000 Communities

Not applicable.

State Contacts

Hillel Campus Profiles

Jewish Federation Alaska
Anchorage Network
25 Broadway, Suite 1700
New York, NY  10004-1010
Phone: 212-284-6595
Fax: 212-284-6853
E-mail: network@jewishfederations.org

Congregation Beth Shalom
7525 E. Northern Lights Blvd Anchorage, AK 99504 
Phone: (907) 338-1836 Fax:(907) 337-4013 
Email: Sholomalaska@aol.com