Americans and Israeli had relationship as the state and local level, but a milestone in formalizing these contacts occurred in 1984 when the Texas Israel Exchange was created to promote mutually beneficial projects between the Texas Department of Agriculture and Israel's Ministry of Agriculture. Since then, at least 19 others states have signed agreements with Israel to increase cooperation in trade, tourism, reseach, culture and other activities of particular interest to individual states. It has now become a routine for governors to lead delegations of business leaders, educators and cultural affairs official to Israel and for state agencies and institutions to initiate joint projects. To give just one example, North Carolina signed an agreement for broad cooperation with Israel in 1993. In just three years, a number of projects have been initiated, including the creation of North Carolina-Israel Development Center in Rehovot and North Carolina's Research Trinangle Park, the establishment of an Israeli center for people with autism based on a North Carlina model, an art exchange that will result in the largest exhibition of Israeli visual arts ever displayed outside Israel and the adoption by the state's third largest school district of a peer tutoring program developed by Hebrew University.
The financial benefits to the states from bilateral agreements can aslo be substantial considering that 50 states exported at least $500 million to Israel annually. NY state is leading they way with $1.1billion. |
