The Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership at Tel Aviv University (TAU) has announced the first 20 mayors and municipal heads from across Israel that will participate in an intensive, yearlong executive education and training program that will equip them with the tools and skills to deliver better and more equitable public services to residents, strengthen social bonds, and deepen ties to the global community of innovative city leaders.

The Center was established at TAU’s Coller School of Management and will be led by Professor Moshe Zviran, the former Dean of the School, who will serve as the Head of the Center and the Academic Director of the Program. The mayors will conclude the year with additional training and networking hosted by Bloomberg Philanthropies and Harvard University in New York City and Boston, in the United States.

“Israel’s local authorities have a much greater impact on citizens’ lifestyles and quality of life than the central government,” said TAU President Professor Ariel Porat. “The quality of sanitation, transportation, welfare, education, and health services mostly depends on the local authority’s performance. This new program aims to improve the management of local authorities in Israel, thereby enhancing the quality of life of Israelis throughout the country.”

Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Sagol family launched The Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership at TAU earlier this year as a major new effort to strengthen local leadership across Israel. Inspired by the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, the new program aims to help mayors of cities across Israel — north and south, large and small, Jewish- and Arab-led — deliver better and more equitable public services to residents, strengthen social bonds, and deepen ties to the global community of innovative city leaders.

“The Bloomberg-Sagol Center builds on all the work Bloomberg Philanthropies is doing to help local leaders around the world innovate, lead effectively, and share ideas for tackling complex problems,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, 108th Mayor of New York City and founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg L.P. “This inaugural class brings together a dynamic group of mayors from across Israel. We’re looking forward to working with them, and to seeing the results in their cities and beyond.”

“When I became aware of the Bloomberg Harvard City Initiative, I realized how suitable it can be for us in Israel, by creating a long-lasting impact on our cities and local leadership,” said Yossi Sagol, Chairman of Sagol Holdings Corporation. “Mayors serve as the first and most significant line of leadership for the citizens in Israel, and they manage the most important matters for its residents. Through learning and training at the Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership, we will be able to bring best in class skills and advanced doctrines from the business world to the local authorities and its leaders. By doing so, we aim to develop great local leaders, supporting bold public innovation, and creating more effective city halls. The partnership with my partner, Mike Bloomberg, is very exciting and will undoubtedly strengthen the leadership of the local authorities across Israel.”

In 2016, Bloomberg Philanthropies established the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, an unparalleled effort by Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School to build the leadership capabilities of mayors and their teams. By engaging 40 mayors and 80 senior city leaders each year, this program develops effective organizational practices in city halls around the world, invests in a new generation of city leaders, and advances knowledge and establishes the field of city leadership at large. The program has trained 196 mayors and 318 leaders from 25 countries in the past five years.

Sagol began working with Bloomberg Philanthropies in 2018 to develop an Israel-based program similar to the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative that could strengthen the country from the local level up. The Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership is the first-ever “sibling program” to the Bloomberg Harvard program.

The State of Israel has 257 cities and towns with mayors. The Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership will invite applications and up to 20 mayors will be admitted each year. Selected mayors will also invite two key members of their team to go through the program.

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About Bloomberg Philanthropies

Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 941 cities and 173 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works in cities around the world. In 2021, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $1.66 billion.

About Sagol Family Philanthropies

Over the years, the Sagol family translated their philanthropic activities into a way of life, generously investing in promoting community and education while also fostering coexistence in the periphery, bringing together Jews, Arabs, and Druze. The Sagol family is a strong supporter of numerous cultural and educational organizations, including all universities in Israel, the New Israeli Opera, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tel Aviv Museum, the Bezalel Art Academy, and many more. The Sagol family established ground-breaking activity aimed at making Israel an international hub for advanced research in life sciences and healthcare, setting up the Sagol Neuroscience and Longevity Network, a network of schools and research centers in leading academic and medical institutions throughout Israel, promoting multidisciplinary projects, laboratories, and technologies. The Sagol Network has recently been expanding internationally via collaborations with Ivy League Institutions such as the Sagol MIT-Weizmann Bridge program, the Sagol-Kandel Brain Longevity Program at Columbia University, and the Sagol Center for Epigenetics of Metabolism and Aging, building a bridge between Monash University in Sydney and the Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv.