"Change, Don't Stay Silent": Entrepreneurship Program in Memory of Adir Mesika

FUTURE Entrepreneurship Center at is leading a unique Israeli-American collaborative entrepreneurship program to combat antisemitism. As part of the "LIGHTS OF INNOVATION" program, launched last November, Israeli and American students from the Institute and various U.S. universities are developing innovative technological solutions to eradicate antisemitism and hate phenomena.

Photo: Doron Meserano

"The events of October 7th starkly highlighted the ignorance among young people in the US and Europe regarding the history of the Jewish people and the conflict with our neighbors. This ignorance enables extremist groups promoting antisemitism to sweep thousands of young people through viral trends on social media, which fuel the escalating hate incidents we have been witnessing recently.

Our program enables our students to make an impact and develop innovative ideas that support the fight against antisemitism. The development process was guided by industry mentors and workshops in design thinking, GEN AI, and more. Using tools and skills from the entrepreneurship world. The students developed breakthrough solutions to this challenge in a relatively short period," said Tali Malach Benaim, who leads the program.

The program's culminating event took place on the first evening of Hanukkah, where five mixed groups of students presented their developed projects to a panel of judges, including Yifat Bechor, CEO of UniStream, Shiran Mlamdovsky Somech, founder and CEO of Generative AI for Good, and Omer Dagan, CEO of OCT7. The closing event was held in a special atmosphere that combined innovation, collaboration, and inspiration.

Prof. Eduard Yakubov, President of HIT, opened the event saying: "I am very happy to be here tonight. This event aligns with the Institute's core values and DNA. This initiative will dramatically integrate with everything happening to the Jewish people worldwide. Together we will succeed!"

Shmuel Goldberg, CEO of HIT, emphasized the importance and symbolism of the event: "The essence of Hanukkah is the miracles performed for the people of Israel. Perhaps we are in moments of darkness now, but your light and what you are doing here today will shine. Thank you for your work and giving."

Morielle Lotan, Adir's aunt and founder of the foundation, shared emotional moments: "What you are creating here together will change the world. Even in the most difficult times, we are blessed with determination and courage. Together, American and Israeli students who never thought they would work together, have established connections

and combined initiative and innovation to find solutions. As Adir would say: 'Give me a big problem, and I'll find a way to solve it.'"

Alon Mesika, Adir's father, spoke from his heart: "Usually I don't write and tend to improvise, but this time I decided to write because it's becoming harder and harder. People ask us how we do it, and our answer is: because that's what we decided. This was Adir's wish. Adir, who went dancing after Friday dinner and never came back, decided to fight outside the bomb shelter with bare hands while protecting his partner and her friend. We decided to fight too. More than a year after Adir was murdered, this is how we decided to establish this foundation. This is our victory."

Liran Mesika, Adir's brother, added: "As a bereaved brother, you look ahead and think about how he would want to be commemorated. To bring personal grief to a place of global change; courage, determination, and belief in doing the right thing; from social media posts to technology competition; your solutions that break the glass ceiling; understanding that you can make a change using the tools in your hands is tremendous. We must change and not stay silent - feel and not be suppressed."

Zahava Levy and Pnina Gold, students from the USA, shared their feelings: "There is growing antisemitism on US campuses. We're fighting a battle that no one sees or understands. When we heard about the foundation, it was clear to us that we wanted to take part, and we came here to show how important this is to us."

The winning group, "Team Wolves," consists of Shoval Nasimi, a second-year Industrial Engineering and Management student, Paula Krasikov, a second-year Computer Science student, Dekel Makmal, a second-year Industrial Engineering and Management student at HIT, Ben Mospir, a second-year Electrical and Electronics Engineering student, and Logan Hamilton, a Mechanical Engineering student at Queens College New York. Together they developed a project focusing on producing an interactive television series about the tragic events of October 7th.

The series, comprising three episodes, will allow viewers to "intervene" in the plot and try to change it. "Team Wolves" won a unique prize – a flight to New York for meetings with entrepreneurs, investors, and experts, aimed at advancing their project.

During the event, there was also a festive candle-lighting ceremony with all the students, event organizers, and Adir Mesika's family members.

HIT continues to promote values of creativity, entrepreneurship, and social contribution, through international collaboration for a better future for the Jewish people and society.

Posted: 30/12/2024