Welcome to the 2019 MOR!

Dr. Liad Mudrik – journalist and researcher at the School of Psychological Science and the Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University

Dr. Liad Mudrik, a highly awarded young researcher, combines frontline brain research with age-old philosophical questions to understand the workings of human consciousness and its many mysteries.

Mudrik began her academic career as a student of the Adi Lautman Interdisciplinary Program for Outstanding Students at Tel-Aviv University and earned a rare double Ph.D., one in neuroscience and the other in philosophy from the same institution. She then went on to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship at the California Institute of Technology.

In 2015, she began her appointment as a faculty member in Tel Aviv University’s School of Psychological Science and the Sagol School of Neuroscience.

Dr. Liad Mudrik has been a journalist in the IDF radio station ‘Galei Tzahal’ for more than 15 years, hosting and editing news programs as well as documentaries. She now hosts the “Broadcasted University” program

Prof. Marcelle Machluf – Dean of the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology

Prof. Marcelle Machluf received her PhD in Biotechnology from Ben-Gurion University, after which she went on to complete a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School. Since joining the Technion in 2001, Machluf’s research focused on the bioengineering of drug and gene delivery systems for cancer therapy. Her lab is also engaged in developing scaffold platforms for tissue engineering of the heart, blood vessels and pancreas.

In 2017 Machluf was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Biotechnology & Food Engineering. She is also the Deputy Executive Vice President for Research for the Pre-Clinical Research Authority and the Heado of the Interdisciplinary Biotechnology Program at the Technion.

Prof. Machluf  has published more than 80 papers and chapters in books and has 6 patents in National Phase and 2 international approved patents in the field of drug delivery and tissue engineering.   Her papers have appeared in leading generalized and specialized journals including Nature Biotechnology, Nano Letters, and Blood, and have been cited over 3,200 times, awarding her an h-index of 26 (Google Scholar).

She was chosen to light one of the 12 torches at Israel’s 70th Independence anniversary ceremony on Mount Herzl. Recently Lady Globes Magazine selected her as Women of the Year (2018).

Judith Yovel Recanati – Business & Philanthropy leader, co-Founder and Chairperson of NATAL (Israel Trauma and Resiliency Center)

Judith Yovel Recanati is the Co-Founder and Chairperson of NATAL – Israel Trauma and Resiliency Center, where she has been actively involved since its establishment in 1998. Together with her late husband and three daughters, she established the Gandyr Foundation in 2004, which aims to strengthen Israeli society with special emphasis on young adults and youth movements.

She is also founder of Shitufim – Strategies for Social Impact, whose mission is to encourage a more active civil society and philanthropic culture in Israel. Yovel  Recanati is an active member of the Committed to Give initiative (CTG), a social entrepreneurial group which promotes Israeli philanthropy. In addition, she serves on the boards of several organizations that work to advance civil society. Yovel Recanati is the mother of three daughters and a grandmother of eight.

Tal Ohana – Mayor of Yerucham

In the November 2018 Municipal elections, Tal Ohana was elected Mayor of Yeruham, becoming the first woman to lead the southern city. She was born and raised in Yeruham and is a fourth generation of immigrants from Morocco. An activist since her teenage years Ohana served as Chairperson of the Student Council and Chairman of the Youth Council. After her military service she completed her undergraduate degree in Organizational Sociology at the Emek Yezreel College in the North and earned a M.A. in Government, Diplomacy and Strategy from the Lauder School of Government at IDC Herzliya.

Ohana has held a wide array of managerial positions at the Rashi Foundation, the ISEF Foundation and the Yeruham Community Center.

From 2010 until her election as Mayor, Ohana served as Deputy and Acting Mayor of Yeruham.  This was the first time a woman was nominated for this position. She also held the portfolio for Education and Strategic Development, and was a member of the Planning and Building Committee.

Oshra Friedman – Deputy Director-General, the Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women

Oshra Friedman is an Israeli media personality, entrepreneur and social activist. In July 2018 she was appointed as Deputy Director-General of the Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women. The appointment is the highest-ranking position within the Israeli Government and its national Authorities ever attained for a woman of Ethiopian descent.

Oshra made Aliyah from Ethiopia as part of the clandestine “Operation Moses” when she was seven years old. In 2002 she received her BA degree in Criminology and Human Resources from Bar Ilan University and in 2007 earned a Master’s Degree in the field of Immigration and Social Absorption from the Ruppin Academic College. Oshra is currently studying for her Doctorate in Education and Leadership at Haifa University.

Following a long and successful career as an Education Officer in the IDF, Friedman joined the Rashi Foundation in 2000 and spearheaded the concept which led to the establishment of The Rashi Foundation’s Katzir Scholarship Fund. In 2016 Oshra became a moderator on Israel’s Channel 10  TV program “Outside the bubble” which focuses on a variety of issues affecting Israeli society. She is also part of the team that founded and manages shared Israeli leadership to Arabs and Jews.

Oshra and her husband Tzahi are the proud parents of Lidor, Or and Guy.

Yariv Sultan  – Senior Advisor, International Development, World WIZO

Yariv Sultan has many years of leadership experience in marketing and resource development for NGOs and in the public sector, specializing in managing and building relationships with international donor and affiliate networks.

He received his MA degree in Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and his MA in Public Policy (Magna Cum Laude) from Tel-Aviv University’s Executive Program.

Among his previous professional activities he served as Executive Director for International Operations at World WIZO, Vice President of the University of Haifa. He lived in Zurich for eight years and served as CEO of the Jewish National Fund (JNF) in Switzerland and Austria.

Sultan has held board positions at The Foundation for the Advancement of Philosophy in Israel (Switzerland), the Pierre and Germaine Blum Foundation (Switzerland), the Reuven and Edith Hecht Museum, Carmel LTD – the Economic Corporation of the University of Haifa, and the Haifa Research Center for Maritime Policy & Strategy.

MK Dr. Michael Oren – Deputy Minister of Public Diplomacy

Dr. Michael Oren is the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and a member of the Knesset for the Kulanu party.

Dr. Oren served as Israel’s Ambassador to the United States during the Obama administration. He was instrumental in obtaining US defense aid, especially for the Iron Dome.
He is a graduate of Princeton and Columbia Universities. His last three books—Six Days of War, Power, Faith, and Fantasy, and Ally: My Journal Across the American-Israel Divide—were all New York Times bestsellers.
Dr. Oren served as a Lone Soldier in the Israel Defense Forces, as a paratrooper in the First Lebanon War and, as IDF Spokesman, as an officer in the Second Lebanon War and the Cast Lead campaign in Gaza.
Dr. Oren was named by Politico as one of the fifty most influential thinkers in America, by the Forward as one of the five most influential Jews in America, and by the Jerusalem Post as one of the ten most influential Jews worldwide.

Rolene Marks – World WIZO Executive Member for Public Diplomacy for the Chairperson’s Office, Marketing & Media Consultant

Rolene Marks is a freelance journalist and broadcaster and appears on international radio, television and has been published in numerous global publications and is the owner of Rolene Marks Consulting, specializing in Media, Public Relations, Social Media Marketing as well as Media Training with both local and international clients as varied as public relations companies, security, strategic planning, hi-tech and commercial.

Marks can be heard everyday on Chai FM, a Johannesburg based radio station and has been invited to speak to international audiences including in Brazil, Germany, Australia, South Africa, Israel and others.
In 2007 Marks participated in the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Young Jewish Diplomats Leadership course. Currently residing in Modiin, Israel, Marks volunteers for WIZO and is a member of the World WIZO Executive holding the Public Diplomacy portfolio and previously represented the organisation on the World Zionist Congress.

Aryeh Lightstone – Chief of Staff, American Embassy

Aryeh Lightstone is the Senior Advisor to David Friedman, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Prior to joining the State Department, Lightstone has worked as an educator, management professional, entrepreneur, and issue advocate. A native of Denver, Colorado, he completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees at the Yeshiva University, where he excelled in finance, management, biblical studies and political science with an emphasis on the Middle East.

A successful entrepreneur, Lightstone has founded and co-founded numerous business endeavors in education technology, infrastructure, and real estate. In addition to his work with for-profit entities, Lightstone has served at the executive and management level at several not-for-profit organizations. Finally, he was instrumental in the creation and mission implementation of several prominent advocacy organizations, focused on U.S.-Israel relations and National Security.

In addition to being a prolific not-for-profit and political fundraiser, Lightstone has developed a proven track record as a turn-around expert for not-for-profit organizations, and advisor on social corporate responsibility issues. His specific areas of expertise are in funding, management and revenue generation. He is married to Estee Lightstone, an educator and education technologist, and is the proud father of four children.