The Jerusalem Foundation strengthens communities and ensures an inclusive, thriving Jerusalem through investing in sport. Our sport programs teach inter-cultural tolerance and empower future leaders by uniting children and youth from all religious, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds. Participants enjoy shared physical and social activities, building skills, self-confidence, and crucial connections with peers across the city.
Our Jewish-Arab female basketball and leadership programs advance equality and tolerance while challenging stereotypes. They introduce girls to the joys of the sport, specifically expanding access to basketball for Arab girls, where the opportunity is often less available.
The all-women Hapoel Lev basketball organization – which focuses on dismantling barriers and fostering a welcoming and empowering environment for girls and women in the world of basketball – runs these programs.
Her Court, Her Future
Girls ages 10-12 from Jewish and Arab elementary schools in the city play basketball together and become “champions for peace” – to advance coexistence in their communities and beyond. They develop basketball skills, boost their physical and mental self-esteem, engage in regular exercise, meet for joint ‘tolerance learning’, and gain the chance to succeed. Sessions alternate between the school campuses (in East and West Jerusalem) and at a mid-way community sports center in Jerusalem.
Game-Changers: Young Female Leaders
Jerusalemite girls aged 18-20 – who have played high-level basketball for years and are interested in leadership roles in basketball – receive superb sporting and leadership training. They develop skills in strategic planning and create a leadership identity, deepening their motivation and that of younger girls in basketball. Likewise, they gain a “gender lens” to confront challenges facing women athletes and build a vision to lead change in professional basketball.
These girls are dribbling, passing and scoring – all the way to their future.
With more support, we can connect girls from both sides of the city, build mutual trust, and cultivate young female leadership — through sports, our shared language.
