JNF UK launches Green Sunday to strengthen Israel’s border communities - The Jewish Chronicle

JNF UK, the nation’s oldest Israel charity, is calling on its supporters to help raise funds towards rebuilding Israel’s border communities during a Green Sunday telethon on February 22.

More than a quarter of a million families evacuated their homes along the Gaza and Lebanese borders in the aftermath of October 7. Around 25 per cent of them have yet to return.

JNF is launching initiatives along four of Israel’s borders, calling the sum of these projects a “ring of resilience”.

The aim is that it will restore daily life, strengthen communal bonds, and encourage future generations to put down roots in the regions, said the charity.

“These initiatives are about far more than bricks and mortar,” says Elan Gorji, CEO of JNF UK. “They are about people. With the generous support of our donors, we are rebuilding the social fabric of communities – restoring connection, purpose and leadership where daily life was shattered. These projects can truly make the difference between survival and renewal.”

In the south, along the Gaza border, JNF is running gap-year programmes for Israelis to bring in young Jews to revitalise the region by leading rebuilding efforts.

In the north, by Lebanon, the Dishon community centre is among communal infrastructure being refurbished.

In the east, next to Jordan, funds will go towards leadership and educational programmes to help attract young families to the Arava region, and in the west, near Egypt, specific communities, such as Be’er Milka, are being equipped with communal facilities to enable families to build civilian life in the area.

Be'er Milka Community (credit: JNF UK)[Missing Credit]

Gorji said: “Israel’s borders are not merely geographical lines – they are the starting line of the nation itself. When these communities are strong, the heart of Israel is strong.”

The project in the south will, among others, support Kibbutz Nahal Oz, which was left devastated on October 7 when Hamas terrorists killed 15 civilians and took eight more hostage, and killed 61 IDF soldiers at a nearby military base.

It wasn’t the first time the sense of safety on Nahal Oz had been violated; in 2014, during Occupation Protective Edge, mortar fire from Gaza killed four-year-old Daniel Tragerman. Seventeen young families left the kibbutz shortly afterwards.

At the time, JNF UK helped to establish a gap-year programme to help rejuvenate the kibbutz. The programme relocated north after October 7, but in 2024, participants returned as essential workers, and by June 2025, a full gap-year programme had resumed.

Former head of security at the kibbutz, Eli, said: “When you have young adults, you have life”.

The Dishon Community Centre (credit: JNF UK)[Missing Credit]

On the other side of the country, the renovation of the community centre in Dishon will provide a space for residents returning to the north to convene and reconnect.

To learn more about JNF UK’s Green Sunday Appeal 2026 and to donate, click here.

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