“It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made without … taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.” – Isaac Asimov
Dr. Sarit Bensimhon-Peleg recently joined Shatil in the newly-created position of Director of Strategy and Capacity Building. It is the inevitability of change, the fact that change is ultimately the only thing that will always stay constant, that inspires Sarit, and brings her to Shatil.
Sarit comes to Shatil with a wealth of experience in research and academia, but is no stranger to the NIF ecosystem and social change.
When Esther Sivan, Shatil’s director, decided to create the new position, she had two goals: first, to forge a stronger and more meaningful connection between the work of NIF-funded organizations on the ground and the work of Shatil to build up those organizations’ capacity. The second was to create a uniform way to evaluate the effectiveness of the various services that Shatil provides which include: consulting on policy promotion and communications, organizational efficiency, resilience, strategy, and finances.
After more than four decades of work, Shatil is still the only body that is able to provide a bird’s eye view for the needs of Israel’s key civil society actors. Sarit explained that, in her new position, “Shatil will be able to better encourage collaboration between organizations to reduce duplication of programs and to help them achieve their goals, collectively and individually.”
In addition to working with Shatil on various projects and serving on the NIF grants committee in the past, Sarit has also served as the deputy director for research at the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research and worked at the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem as a researcher, heading a program in the Unit for the Development of Integrated Governance Models, and also directed the Hartog School of Government and Policy at Tel Aviv University. She holds a PhD from Oxford University in political science; her dissertation dealt with the justification of universal human rights in a multicultural world.
Sarit’s move to Shatil was prompted by the twin crises of the attempted judicial overhaul and Hamas’s October 7 attack. “At a time of such great crisis and change, it was important for me to be spending my working hours in the service of an organization with which my values are fully aligned,” she said. Ultimately, as the Director of Strategy and Capacity Building, Sarit will seek to empower the changemakers of Israel to be their best by exploring different ways to help boost their capacity.
As per Asimov’s quote, change will continue to bombard us, and–in all of Israel’s history–there has never been a greater need for forward-looking, visionary thinking to support social change-makers to shape a better future for us all.
When not at work, Sarit loves dancing Gaga and spending time with her family.