Our History
The Democratic Institute has created operational partnerships with academic institutions both in Israel and abroad in order to develop unique learning and research tracks.
Our Mission
The Democratic Institute’s main objective is to advance and develope a Democratic Culture together with creating a more equal society in which a Cross-Sector Dialogue takes place, in which room is held for diverse opinions and approaches and holds no tolerance of discrimination.
The Democratic Institute seeks to implement a Democratic Culture within all communities within the public sphere and bring high-quality and Innovative Education to sectors that had historically lacked it.
Our Vision
The community’s part, within a democratic culture, is one that hold responsibility for expressing each person’s uniqueness,together with the advancement of cooperation between parties, it enhances reciprocal relations between the Individual, the Community and its surroundings. The Democratical community seeks to create a Society of Equals, one which is fair, growing and sustainable.
Co-Management at the Democratic Institute
Amit Gal Osem and Talya Yaari are acting CEOs of the Democratic Institute since September 2024.
They both bring to their role integrative skills, experience in educational entrepreneurship, systemic and strategic thinking together with high managemental skills. They also apply their way of thinking to the daily management of the Institute, in a way that demonstrates the uniqueness of the organization, which is managed and run in a democratic manner, while functioning responsibly for the sake of its financial existence and independence.
Talya Yaari
Acting CEO of the Democratic Institute
Co-executive Director of the Democratic Institute
Talya has been working at the Democratic Institute since 2014, in a variety of facilitation and management roles; in the Democratic Institute’s partnerships in the cities of Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Holon, and Majd al-Krum. In recent years, she has focused on the “Social Educational Entrepreneurship Incubator”, a partnership between the Institute and the Kibbutzim College of Education, Technology and the Arts.
Talya has experience in teaching and leading teams within the education system, with an emphasis on alternative learning and assessment methods. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Sciences from Ben-Gurion University and a master’s degree in Political Science from the Hebrew University, with a specialization in Civic Education and Democracy.
She is a pedagogical instructor in Civics education at the Hebrew University and a mentor for novice teachers in a joint project of the Tel Aviv Municipality and Tel Aviv University.
She believes in the human spirit, in listening, in action, and in motivating others to act. She is convinced that the Democratic Institute has an important role in promoting democratic culture in Israel and in leading processes of growth and healing.
She is a Mother of three boys, and lives in Kfar Shmuel in the Ayalon Valley.
Talya Yaari – taliay@democratic.co.il
Amit Gal Osem
Acting CEO of the Democratic Institute
Co-executive Director of the Democratic Institute
Amit has a Bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Sciences and a Master’s degree in Counseling and Human Development, including a thesis (on a fascinating topic—single women).
Amit has 25 years of managerial experience in the educational field, both in the private sector and in the third sector. Additionally, for the past decade, she has been a lecturer in education and psychology at the Kinneret Academic College in the Jordan Valley.
For the last three years, she has managed the partnerships of the Democratic Institute in northern Israel.
She has a strong belief in the human capacity—particularly the feminine quality, which is a defining trait of the Democratic Institute—to build relationships that foster meaningful change. The past year has demonstrated this power, even in the face of destruction and hardship. She finds great fulfillment in witnessing the impact our facilitators create.
She is a mother of three boys (a profession in itself), from Kibbutz Afikim.
Amit Gal Osem – amit.g@democratic.co.il
The Democratic Institute’s Board of Directors
Rafael Youdelevitch
Executive Committee Chairman of The Democratic Institute
since September 2024
member of The Democratic Institute’s board
since 2017
Michal Zimler
Michal’s special perspective expresses the combination of a variety of different sectors, including the government, international businesses, tech and social startups, hi-tech companies, and non-governmental social organizations, where she served in different managerial positions throughout the years and consistently achieved business and social growth.
Michal has over 30 years of experience in management with an extensive background in establishing and creating multidisciplinary initiatives.
Before joining MIND as a partner, she was VP of Microsoft and leader of the CSU unit. In Israel, she was GM of Orbs, a blockchain infrastructure company, and CEO of IVN, a leading impact investment company in the Israeli business-social ecosystem. She also founded and managed the first social investment funds in Israel. In addition, she served as a partner in Deloitte, where she founded and led the management consultation unit, and before that, she founded and managed the CRM department at the Israeli telecommunications company, Cellcom.
Michal has lectured throughout the years at academic institutions. She is a board member in governmental, business, and social organizations.
Michal has three grown children with her partner of many years and lives in Even Yehuda.
Tamar Kedar Harris
Democratic Institute board member
since 2012
Dr. Miriam Druks
Democratic Institute board member
since October 2014
Ronnie Kenneth
Democratic Institute board member
since October 2014
Eyal Meluban
member of The Democratic Institute’s board
since 2017
A senior media person, with vast experience in production, management and regulative activity. Eyal has been leading and managing organizations in the field of culture for many years.
Rana Fahoum
member of The Democratic Institute’s board
since 2022
She holds a BA in International Relations and English Linguistics from the Hebrew University, an MA in English Linguistics from the Hebrew University, and an MA in Political Science from Tel Aviv University. She is a graduate of the Mandel School of Educational Leadership and a member of the Maoz Network.
Rana is the director of the Center for Shared Society and a member of the Shalom Hartmann Institute administration. She was the CEO of YMCA Jerusalem and the Three Arches Company up until January 2022. In 1998 Rana had established a girls’ middle school in Jerusalem’s Abu Tur neighborhood, and was the school’s principal for 14 years. Over the years, the school grew from three classrooms to 15, its special approach emphasizing the sciences, languages, and feminist and humanitarian education. Rana was later appointed as the general supervisor of the Ministry of Education, responsible for elementary education at the Jerusalem Education Directorate. Alongside this position, she had served as a referent for the manager training in East Jerusalem.
In the years prior to management, Rana worked as a teacher and counselor at the Ministry of Education; she was a tutor and teacher’s assistant at the Hebrew University’s ׳English Linguistics׳ department, and an English teacher at the ׳English as a Second language׳ department. Rana is a member of the Israeli Council of Culture and the Arts, of the Board of Directors of ׳The Museum of Islamic Art׳, and of ׳Lavi׳ – the Municipal Association for the Advancement of Education in Jerusalem.
Avital Blonder
member of The Democratic Institute’s board
since 2023
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