State-to-State Cooperation:
Ohio and Israel

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Ohio Jewish History

• Trade & Population Statistics
• Binational Foundation Grants
• Bilateral Institutions
• Cooperative Agreements
• Government Missions to Israel
• Partners for Change
  • Business/Industry
  • Science/Technology
  • Agriculture/Farming
• Other Cooperative Programs
• Sister Cities & State Contacts

Trade and Population Statistics

Exports to Israel (2015)	$223,070,046
Percentage Change (2014-2015)	-7.55%
Total Exports to Israel (1996-Present)	$4,065,709,267
Israel's Trade Partner Rank (2015)	29
Military Contracts with Israel (2015)	$745,883,001
Jewish Population (2015)	173,700
Jewish Percentage of Population	2%

 

Binational foundation grants shared by Ohio and Israel

Agricultural Research & Development (1979-Present)	$2,643,151
Science & Technology (1996-Present)	$4,970,991
Industrial Research & Development (1977-Present)	$2,021,389
Total Binational Grants	$9,635,531

Grant recipients in Ohio from U.S.-Israel binational foundations:

Audio Technica US, Inc. Bowling Green Case Western Case Western Medical School Case Western University Hospital Cincinnati Electronics Corp. Cincinnati Milacron Inc. Cleveland Clinic Cleveland Clinic Foundation Computer Logics Ltd. Essef Corporation Frantz Medical Development

Keithly Instruments Inc. Kent State NCR Corporation Ohio State University Proctor & Gamble, Miami Valley Labs Spectra-Physics Laser Plane, Inc. Telxon Triplett Corp. University of Cincinnati University of Cincinnati Medical School University of Toldeo Wright State

Bilateral Institutions:

Ohio-Israel Agricultural Initiative -
Launched by the Negev Foundation with help from Senator George Voinovich in 2002, the Ohio-Israel Agriculture and Rural Development Initiative was established to improve agricultural trade and development between Israel and the state of Ohio through the farmers, research institutions and trade associations of both places. The initiative ensures the viability of Ohio as well as the Negev desert in southern Israel.
Learn more about the OIAI, CLICK HERE.

Ohio-Israel Chamber of Commerce -
The Ohio-Israel Chamber is a statewide non-profit economic development organization created in 1996 to facilitate business between Ohio and Israel. The Chamber is also an enterprise solutions provider that works to create collaborative relationships between companies seeking to commercialize technologies in both places. Since its creation, the Chamber has helped organize and hosted the largest overseas trade mission to come to Ohio, worked with Israeli and local companies to facilitate business, matched Israeli businesses with Ohio counterparts and facilitated multi-national joint ventures. In all it has worked with over 500 companies to create business opportunities and has undertaken consulting assignments for Fortune 500 companies in the areas of innovative technology transfer and commercialization.
Learn more about the Ohio-Israel Chamber, CLICK HERE.

Dayton Region-Israel Trade Alliance -
The Trade Alliance seeks to identify and assist in realizing opportunities for sustainable business collaboration between Israel and communities in the Dayton region of Ohio. Potential types of business collaboration include subcontracting on R&D projects, manufacturing Israeli products in Ohio, and the licensing of Israeli technologies to Dayton.
Read more about the Trade Alliance, CLICK HERE.

Cooperative Agreements - "Memoranda of Understanding":

In June 2010, the Ohio Clean Technologies Group, based out of Youngstown, signed an MOU with LN Green Technologies Incubator in Haifa which outlines a plan for Ohio Clean Technologies and LN Green Technological to cooperate and share resources with the objective of bringing new alternative energy technological applications to market in the United States. The agreement was borne out a trade mission to Israel during January 2010 in which business, community and government leaders visited a number of incubators. Learn more, CLICK HERE.

In September 2009, the Dayton region and the Israeli city of Haifa signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at boosting economic development in both locations. The document lays out a framework for cooperation to enhance economic growth and create new employment opportunities in both locations. It also calls for the Dayton-Israel Trade Alliance to establish an economic development office in Haifa to promote bilateral business and development cooperation over a three-year period. Read more, CLICK HERE.

In February 2006, the visionary city of Akron earmarked a $1.5 million investment from local public and private sources in a Netanya-based technological incubator. Though some state governments have made similar investments, Akron was the first US city to place its "faith" in Israeli technology by investing directly in an Israeli technological incubator. In exchange for the investment, any companies that are created from the incubator will then base their US headquarters in Akron, a move which will provide local jobs and income tax to the city, plus dividends from part ownership in the companies. Read more about the visionary partnership, CLICK HERE.

Ohio Government Missions to Israel:

November 2011 - Cincinnati mayor Mark Mallory traveled to Israel with the American Jewish Comittee (AJC) and four other major U.S. city mayors as part of Project Interchange, and AJC-run educational institute.

July 2011 - Congressman Steve Chabot and Congresswoman Betty Sutton traveled to Israel and the West Bank to assess the progress of American aid and effort. To read more, CLICK HERE.

March 2007 - Representative Dave Hobson joined a Congressional delegation led by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on a fact finding mission to the Middle East that included stops in Syria, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Israel. While in Israel the delegation met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as well as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and discussed the viability of the proposed Saudi Peace Initiative with both national leaders.

January 2006 - Akron Mayor Dan Plusquellic will lead a delegation to Israel on behalf of regional business interests from northeast Ohio, a trip that will include meetings with Israeli business and government officials as well as the American ambassador to the Jewish state. Israel is developing new technology business and manufacturing innovations at a rapid pace," said Plusquellic. "Their companies are coming to the United States and we can create opportunities for them in Greater Akron so that our residents can be employed." Read more about the trip in the Mayor's press release, CLICK HERE.

Partners For Change

The U.S.-Israel relationship is based on the twin pillars of shared values and mutual interests. Given this commonality of interests and beliefs, it should not be surprising that support for Israel is one of the most pronounced and consistent foreign policy values of the American people.

It is more difficult to devise programs that capitalize on the two nations' shared values than their security interests; nevertheless, such programs do exist. In fact, these SHARED VALUE INITIATIVES cover a broad range of areas, including the environment, science and technology, education and health.

As analyst David Pollock noted, Israel is an advanced country with a population that surpassed eight million people in 2013 and a robust, dynamic economy that allowed it to join the  Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Between 2005 and 2013, Israel has represented a larger market for U.S. exports than Saudi Arabia. Although Israel's citizenry make up just 3 percent of the total region's population, Israel accounts for 25 percent of American exports in the Middle East.

"It has also been one of the top 20 foreign direct investors in the United States since 2009," Pollock confirms. He adds that "$2.25 billion of the $3 billion in annual U.S. aid to Israel comes back via Israeli purchases of U.S. military equipment - and that is just 5 percent of the total bilateral trade each year."

Today's interdependent global economy requires that trade policy be developed at the national and state level.

Many states have recognized the opportunity for realizing significant benefits by seeking to increase trade with Israel. Ohio is one of 33 states that have cooperative agreements with Israel.

In 2012, Ohio exported over $204,821,894 worth of manufacturing goods to Israel. Since 1996, Ohio exports to Israel have totaled more than $3.5 billion and Israel now ranks as Ohio’s 19^th leading trade partner.

Additionally in 2012, Ohio received more than $55,080,048.33 in foreign military financing (FMF) for US military aid to Israel. Some of those companies that have received funding through FMF in 2012 or past years include: Duramax Marine LLC in Hiram, Bird Electronic Corp. in Cleveland and General Electric in Cincinnati.

Israel is certainly a place where potential business and trade partners can be found. It can also be a source, however, for innovative programs and ideas for addressing problems facing the citizens of Ohio.

Israel has developed a number of pioneering education programs. For example, AICE introduced an innovative Israeli peer tutoring program to North Carolina that educators adapted for use in the United States. Now known as Reading Together, the program is used in 28 states. The program is designed to help students achieve reading fluency and is mostly used for children in second grade. The hope is that with its implementation, increasing numbers of students will perform at grade level or above.

A range of other exciting approaches to social problems like unemployment, environmental protection and drug abuse have been successfully implemented in Israel and could be imported for the benefit of Americans.

The potential for greater cooperation with Israel for the benefit of Ohio is limited only by the imagination.

Ohio Firms Profit From Business With Israel:

Because of Israel's unique status as the only country with free trade agreements with both the United States and the European community, it can act as a bridge for international trade between the United States and Europe. Moreover, because of the deep pool of talent, particularly in high-technology areas, Israel provides excellent investment opportunities. Some of the nation's largest companies, such as IBM, Microsoft, Motorola and Intel have found that it is indeed profitable to do business in Israel, as have more than 300 Ohio firms.

When Governor George Voinovich led a mission to Israel in 1993, he opened doors for many Ohio companies and institutions. Voinovich, for example, persuaded the Israeli government to hire Battelle Memorial Institute of Columbus to match up Ohio users of technology with Israeli sources.

Neil Moss, chairman of the investment banking firm Global Linx Corp., announced his company would expand its Israel-based operations and work on the contracts with Battelle.

The Limited, the Columbus-based clothing retailer, closed a deal to acquire Tefron, making The Limited's subsidiary, Macpell, one of the 100 largest companies in Israel.

Electra Form Inc., a Vandalia-based firm that manufactures plastics-processing machinery, already sells equipment in Israel. Director of sales Philip Brun found several new customers on the Governor's mission, including one who tentatively agreed to purchase more than $1 million of new equipment.

William Lhota participated in a dual capacity as a senior executive from the American Electric Power Co. and as chairman of the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce. AEP is a leader in the development of clean-coal technology. Lhota explored opportunities to work with his Israeli counterparts on the use of these technologies to improve the environment. In his role with the Columbus Chamber, Lhota sought to promote the city as an air distribution point for Israeli exports to the Midwest.

Most delegates who traveled with Voinovich did not expect to make deals when they were in Israel but hoped to establish contacts that might lead to future business. Two of the participants, David Miller and Joseph Borovsky, for example, were from small companies that identified new buyers and began discussing possible joint ventures. Miller is president of Aquatech, a Cleveland-based company that manufactures sewer cleaning equipment, and Borovsky is president of Columbus-based Enzymol International, a new company that makes a nontoxic industrial resin.

One good way to break into the Israeli market is through a joint venture with an Israeli company. Funding for such projects is available from the Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD). BIRD funds projects in 36 states and the District of Columbia and hundreds of companies including AOL, GE, BP Solar, Texas Instruments and Johnson & Johnson have benefitted from BIRD grants.

The United States and Israel established BIRD in 1977 to fund joint U.S.-Israeli teams in the development and subsequent commercialization of innovative, nondefense technological products from which both the Israeli and American company can expect to derive benefits commensurate with the investments and risks. Most grant recipients are small businesses involved with software, instrumentation, communications, medical devices and semiconductors.

Since its inception, BIRD has funded more than 800 joint high-tech R&D projects through conditional grants totaling more than $210 million. Products developed from these ventures have generated more than $8 billion in direct and indirect revenues for both countries and has helped to create an estimated 20,000 American jobs. Dr. Eli Opper, the former Israeli chair of BIRD, has said that BIRD is a strong pillar of US-Israel industrial cooperation and that the extreme success of BIRD has led Israel to adopt similar models of R&D with other countries. At least ten Ohio companies have shared grants with Israeli companies totaling nearly $2 million since 1980.

Greg Leonard, marketing manager for Cincinnati Electronics Corp., said his company does a great deal of business in Israel and was able to develop a new product in a joint venture with Ricor thanks to a BIRD grant. Ricor, he said, builds a unique cryogenic cooler that was combined with a duer made by Cincinnati Electronics to produce inexpensive, reliable packaging for focal plane arrays. These devices are used in infrared cameras that have military and commercial applications for things like surveillance and target location.

One of the big advantages of BIRD grants is that they allow smaller companies access to Israel's talented labor force. Todd Haug, Vice President of Engineering for Triplett Corporation in Buffington, said his company had almost no chance to work with engineers who are knowledgeable in the fields of digital signal processing and radio frequency electronics. "Israel has a lot of talent in these areas that BIRD gave us access to." The project also entailed greater risk than Triplett could normally undertake, but, Haug says, the grant helped reduce the risk to the point where it was doable.

Triplett is working with Elisra to develop a device for testing the new generation of digital cellular phones. By itself, Triplett didn't have the expertise, but the company was able to combine its knowledge of testing equipment with Elisra's engineering experience to design the cellular phone tester. The companies are working so well together, Haug says, "When we complete this project, we'll be looking for the next one."

In 2011, the Cleveland Clinic - one of the four top U.S. hospitals - was awarded funding through the BIRD Foundation to partner with the Israel-based MedCPU to develop a patient care decision support system. This grant was part of over $8.1 million awarded by BIRD to nine new projects in December 2011 to companies throughout the US and Israel.

Scientific Innovations:

Ohio researchers are making scientific breakthroughs and developing cutting-edge technologies in joint projects with Israeli scientists thanks to support from the Binational Science Foundation (BSF). BSF was established in 1972 to promote scientific relations and cooperation between scientists from the United States and Israel. The fund supports collaborative research projects in a wide area of basic and applied scientific field for peaceful and non-profit purposes. Since its inception, BSF has awarded some $480 million through more than 4,000 grants in 45 states and the District of Columbia.

BSF-sponsored studies are highly successful in achieving their two main goals: strengthening the US-Israel partnership through science and promoting world-class scientific research for the benefit of the two countries and all mankind. The BSF grants help extend research resources to achieve milestones that might not otherwise be attainable; introduce novel approaches and techniques to lead American researchers in new directions; confirm, clarify and intensify research projects; and provide unmatched access to Israeli equipment, facilities and research results that help speed American scientific advances. BSF has documented no less than 75 new discoveries made possible by its research grants and counts 37 Nobel Prize and 19 Lasker Medical Award laureates among its joint partners.

Institutions in Ohio have shared with their counterparts in Israel nearly $4.6 million in BSF grants awarded since 1996 alone. Bowling Green, Case Western Reserve, Kent State, Wright State and Ohio State University are all among the universitites which have received BSF grants.

Dr. Marc Rothenberg, the director of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, collaborates with his Israeli counterparts for a wide variety of scientific and medical programs through the hospitals Israel Exchange Program. Additionally, in 2009 he recently received a two year grant through BSF to partner with Dr. Ariel Munitz of Tel Aviv University designed to research and eventually understand mechanisms of lung inflammation.

Dr. Rothenberg's BSF-supported team has uncovered a new pathway, involving the resistin like molecule (RELM) which is not only involved in the development of lung disease, but also insulin resistance (which means metabolism and obesity). Their work is opening new understandings and treatment strategies for these disease processes. Dr. Rothenberg, and the Children's Hospital Medical Center, incredibly appreciate the cooperation and collaboration they are having with their partners in Israel. The BSF funded research projects are just another way to expand medical expertise and help people all over the world feel and live better.

Albert Soloway, a chemist at OSU, is working on a promising therapy for treating malignant tumors. The idea is to develop compounds that can be used in conjunction with neutron beams to destroy tumor cells without harming normal ones. "It is scientifically stimulating to work with people in Israel who want to apply this new therapy," Soloway says. Though his grant has expired, he is continuing to collaborate with his Israeli counterparts.

Bowling Green's George Bullerjahn is interested in learning how photosynthesis is regulated. "Crops have to adapt to changing light intensities during the day," he explains, "so if it is possible to understand the physiological changes that take place in plants in high and low light, it may ultimately be possible to engineer plants to thrive in different kinds of light."

Collaborating with a Hebrew University scientist has been enormously helpful to Bullerjahn, who says that his colleague's physiology-ecology approach compliments his microbiology focus. The two have already published four papers and are working on the fifth. Bullerjahn says the work "really helped establish my career." They are now applying for a new grant to study a particular algae that thrives in low light in the Red Sea. Bullerjahn would not have access to this unique algae if it were not for his Israeli collaborator.

While much of the research is practical, some BSF grants enable Americans to do more theoretical work. Steven Rallis, for example, is a mathematician at OSU who is able to work with "first-rate scientists" in Israel. "I have seen no other country that takes an interest at this level in collaborating and in maintaining such a high level of science," Rallis says. Though his work is not "glitzy," Rallis believes he gets enormous benefits from a relatively small grant.

Agriculture Benefits:

In 1978 the United States and Israel jointly created the Binational Agricultural Research and Development Fund (BARD) to help fund programs between US and Israeli scientists for mutually beneficial, mission-oriented, strategic and applied research into agricultural problems. Since its inception, BARD has funded more than 1,000 projects in 45 states and the District of Columbia with a total investment of more than $250 million. In 2000, an independent and external economic review of 10 BARD projects conservatively projected more than $700 million in revenue by the end of 2010, a number which far outweighs the total investment in all BARD projects over its 33 year existence and helps to continually strengthen the foundation.

Most BARD projects focus on either increasing agricultural productivity, plant and animal health or food quality and safety and have been influential in creating new technologies in drip irrigation, pesticides, fish farming, livestock, poultry, disease control and farm equipment. BARD funds projects in 45 states and the District of Columbia and at present is beginning to administer collaborative efforts between Australia, Canada and Israel as well. It is difficult to break down the impact on a state-by-state basis, but overall, BARD-sponsored research has generated sales of more than $500 million, tax revenues of more than $100 million and created more than 5,000 American jobs.

Ohio institutions have shared grants worth almost $2.5 million since 1979, with Ohio State receiving the lion's share.

Professor Erich Grotewold of Ohio State University used a BARD grant to collaborate with Dr. Rivka Barg of the Volcani Center in Israel on a project entitled, "Regulation of tomato fruit development by interacting MYB proteins." So far their research has enabled them to identify and characterize three plant specific MYB-like proteins capable of physically interacting with each other, and which collectively control plant cell enlargement. These three novel genes are founders of a new network of factors controlling cell and organ development, which impact tomato fruit size and shape, two important attributes affecting fruit quality. Overall this BARD-sponsored project offers new target genes to be exploited in breeding for desirable fruit attributes. Additionally, the Dr. Grotewold and Dr. Barg anticipate that in the future, genes like these could be exploited for the shaping of other crop organs, which might be highly beneficial in the breeding of leaf-vegetables.

Without the support of BARD, though, the collaboration and future scientific achievements and advancements made by Dr. Groteworld and Dr. Barg would never have been able to be realized. "The interaction between Dr. Rivka Barg and my lab would have been impossible without the BARD support," Dr. Grotewold says, "The BARD has enormously facilitated a synergy between both labs that would have been impossible without it."

Ohio State received another grant to investigate the cause of wheat diseases. The Ohio Agricultural Research & Development Center at OSU and Israel's Agricultural Research Organization also worked together to find the natural enemies of sap beetles, an insect that is responsible for up to 10 percent of the losses in Ohio strawberry fields.

One problem common to Israel and the United States, as well as many other countries, is plant diseases caused by a combination of fungus and a microscopic type of roundworm. "Today, there is growing concern about the environmental impact of soil fumigant chemicals typically used to fight these diseases," said Randy Rowe, a plant pathologist at OSU. "We are doing preliminary research into the cause of these diseases that may eventually lead to the development of alternative ways of controlling them." Rowe has now been working for several years with Israeli scientists at the Volcani Institute who share his interest.

Another OSU plant pathologist, Harry Hoitink, has been working for more than a decade with Israelis interested in waste recycling by composting. Hoitink is now working under his second BARD grant in an effort to measure the decomposition of waste. By developing a new way to analyze organic matter, he says, it will be possible to predict the sustainability of soil. Ultimately, the research could lead to products that will help plants, particularly ornamental flowers, suppress diseases and reduce the need for fumigants.

BARD grants have also helped fund numerous other projects run through OSU. In 2006, researchers from the The Ohio State University and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem collaborated and studied the functionality of Saponins, including soybeans and chickpeas, which have shown to lower cholesterol. Their research developed a procedure to extract Saponins that can then be inserted into bread to increase its health benefits. The results of this research resulted in another grant from BARD to pursue further research on Saponins and will hopefully lead to business collaboration with an Ohio company.

Additionally, researchers from Israel’s Agricultural Research Organization, The Ohio State University, and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem jointly studied the microbiology of compost as it relates to plant disease suppression. Using multiple rRNA gene sequences, the researchers found that as compost cures, a number of different microbial communities are produced depending on the stage of the compost

A 29-person delegation of Ohio farmers traveled to Israel at the end of February 2006 to learn about Israeli approaches to water management, milk processing, urban expansion and other agricultural issues (AP, February 23, 2006).

Ram Ben-Dor, who lived on an Israeli farm for 20 years, said Ohio farmers should be able to help the Israelis with technologies that would increase their productivity and make them more competitive in world markets. He said it would be an opportunity for the Israelis to make contacts that could increase soybean imports from Ohio.

“I’m extremely intrigued by the ability of them to grow enough crops for 7 million people in the desert,” said Daniel Corcoran. Corcoran raises soybeans, wheat and alfalfa on his 4,000-acre family farm near Waverly. “Hopefully,” he said, “there are things we can bring back here.”

John Bechtel raises trout, perch and bluegill near Fredericktown. He wanted to learn how Israelis prevent the spread of disease among fish as well as pick up tips on fish nutrition, genetics and water-quality management.

Michael Putnam, a dairy farmer from Frankfort, wanted to see if Israeli equipment will allow him to process milk on his farm rather than ship it out. This would allow him to save transportation costs and enable him to make cheeses and yogurt he can sell to niche markets.

Bob Peterson raises hogs and grows corn, soybeans and wheat on his farm near Washington Court House in central Ohio. He said that residential and commercial development from Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton are limiting his ability to expand his operation. He was interested in how the Israelis manage to farm in densely populated areas while increasing production and profits.

Other Cooperative Programs:

The Israel Exchange Program: The Israel Exchange Program (IEP) is a collaboration and exchange of knowledge and expertise between Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and leading pediatric clinical, academic and research institutions in Israel. 

The benefits of this collaboration include: Improved Clinical Care for Children; Accelerated Research; Shared Best Practices in Quality and Safety; Enhanced Education and Training; and Innovations in Global Health. To Learn more about the IEP at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center CLICK HERE or contact them at [email protected].

 

Sister Cities:

OHIO. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ISRAEL
Akron	Kiryat Ekron
Columbus	Herziliyah
Cleveland	Holon
Dayton	Holon
Canton	Acre

UJA Partnership 2000 Communities:

OHIO. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ISRAEL
Cincinnati	Netanya
Akron	Western Galilee - Akko
Canton	Western Galilee - Akko
Dayton	Western Galilee - Akko
Toledo	Western Galilee - Akko
Youngstown	Western Galilee - Akko
Cleveland	Bet Shean - Valley of Springs
Columbus	Kfar Saba

State Contacts:

Hillel Campus Profiles