Photo by Keren Manor, Activestills
Staff
Noa Sattath
Executive Director
Noa Sattath took the helm of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) in November 2021.
Noa is an ordained Reform Rabbi and spent the past 11 years as Executive Director of the Israel Religious Action Center (IRAC), where she was responsible for leading the organization's public strategy regarding religion and state, gender equality, and the fight against racism. Noa has been partner in leading social justice struggles, especially the struggle against the exclusion of women and against the election of racist candidates running for Knesset.
Prior to IRAC, Noa served as Executive Director of the Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance, where she aided in the historic move to lead the first Pride March in the city.
Noa also served as Executive Director for MEET, an organization that uses technology to develop the joint leadership of young Israelis and Palestinians from Israel and the West Bank.
Take a look at the insightful interview with Noa from October 2022 in the Israeli newspaper HaAretz.
Attorney Dan Yakir
Chief Legal Counsel
Dan Yakir has been active in ACRI since 1982, and has been officially working as a lawyer at ACRI since 1989. From 1989-1995, he served as a lawyer in ACRI's legal department, and since 1995 has served as ACRI's chief legal counsel.
Over the years, Dan has led ACRI to unprecedented achievements in the promotion of human rights, in particular the right to equality, freedom of expression, human rights violations in the occupied territories and LGBTQI rights. The landmark cases and petitions in which Dan represented ACRI include the Kaadan case, cases against torture, marriage registration of gay couples married abroad, the cancellation of a British Mandate Press Ordinance, and more. He has received many awards for his work in advancing human rights, among them a special prize from Israel's LBGT Taskforce (2005), The Human Rights Defender prize from the New Israel Fund (2011), The Goldberg Prize from the Institute for International Education (IIE) in New York (2012), and the Yeshayahu Leibowitz Prize of Yesh Gvul (There's a Limit) (2018).
Dan has a LL.B. from the Faculty of Law at Tel Aviv University and an LL.M. from American University Washington College of Law, where he studied as part of the New Israel Fund's law program. During his secondary studies he worked as an intern at the ACLU of the District of Columbia and at the LGBTQ Project of the ACLU in New York.
Yael Edelist
Director and Spokesperson
Yael joined the Association for Civil Rights in Israel in June 2021. She began her professional career as the spokesperson for the Israel Women’s Network. Afterwards, Yael managed the communications and government department at Adam Teva V'Din (Israel Union for Environmental Defense) for eight years. At the same time, she taught communications courses at the Open University. Yael then went on to work at the Foreign Ministry in Nepal for a year and, upon her return, she served as the spokesperson and acting director of marketing for the Israel Museum.
Yael holds a master’s degree in law from Bar-Ilan University and a bachelor’s degree in communications from the Open University and is a graduate of journalism and media studies.
Gili Meisler
Social Media Manager
Gili completed undergraduate studies in Cinema and Television and Hebrew Literature at Tel Aviv University and then pursued graduate studies in Hebrew Literature.
In addition to teaching at schools and universities, he also started a video production studio and edited and produced several projects. His lifelong dream was realized in 2009 when he produced, directed, and edited the movie "Fireflies," which was screened in festivals worldwide and in Israel. Additionally, he directed and edited the film "Fractures”.
Gili joinedACRI in summer 2022. Previously, he worked at the “The Parents Circle – Families Forum (PCFF)” as the media and social media director. Furthermore, he produced the Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day ceremonies on behalf of the forum. Additionally, Gili facilitates dialogue sessions to share with the audience how his attitude changed after he was bereaved, seeking to use his story to promote dialogue and reconciliation.
Tal Dahan
Content and Website
Tal Dahan has worked at ACRI since 2001, first as the Information Center Coordinator, and, since 2006, as the head of content and the website. In her current position, Tal is responsible for producing Hebrew-language publications, responding to information requests, and developing and maintaining ACRI’s website. Tal holds a bachelor’s degree (Magna Cum Laude) in Psychology from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and a master's degree in Law Studies from Bar Ilan University.
Attorney Debbie Gild-Hayo
Director of Policy Advocacy
Attorney Debbie Gild-Hayo joined ACRI in 2006, overseeing ACRI’s policy advocacy work in the Knesset committees and before leading decision-makers and government officials. She received a bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies with minors in Arabic and History from the Hebrew University, followed by an LL.B. from Tel Aviv University, as well as a master’s degree in Public Interest Law from Tel Aviv University. Debbie completed her legal internship in the law division of the Defense Ministry, and went on to work as an attorney in private practice in the field of commercial law for 8 years before joining ACRI in 2006.
Karen Saar
Director of Resource Development and Outreach
Tamara Newman
Director of International Relations
Tamara Newman moved to Israel from Australia in 2013. Since arriving in Israel Tamara has worked in the field of refugee rights, as the Director of International Relations & Development at the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants (2014-2019), establishing and managing an emergency humanitarian aid program for the refugee community at the outbreak of Corona (2020), and at Elifelet - Citizens for Refugee Children (2021-2022).
Prior to moving to Israel Tamara was involved in establishing the New Israel Fund in Australia. Tamara holds a B.A. in Development Studies and History from the University of New South Wales and a Masters Degree in Non-Profit Management from the University of Technology Sydney.
Smadar Sarna
Director of Resource Development in Israel
Smadar joined ACRI in January 2007 as the Director of Resource Development in Israel, founding ACRI's membership structure. In this position, she continues to coordinate efforts to identify and cultivate potential donors within Israeli society, and to develop a network of influential supporters. Smadar holds a bachelor’s degree in Humanities from Tel Aviv University. Before she joined ACRI, Smadar was a journalist and spokesperson for the cable television program company ICP.
Naomi Beyth-Zoran
Director - Education Department
Naomi Leads ACRI’s Human Rights Education Department. She holds a law degree from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and both her Master’s degree in Education and her Teaching Certificate in Civics and Social Sciences from Beit Berl College. She also has a certificate in educational organizational consulting.
Naomi worked for ACRI in 2013 as the coordinator for Education Against Racism, and in 2015 took on the role of Hebrew Education Coordinator. In this role, she guides workshops and training sessions, develops educational materials and content, and manages the education department's many facilitators. She is responsible for cooperation among and with universities and colleges for teacher trainings, as well as schools and organizations throughout the country that implement ACRI's materials and workshops.
Mesi Aychek
Coordinator of International Humanitarian Law Project
Mesi joined ACRI in 2012 as the coordinator of Youth Education in ACRI’s Human Rights Education Department. As of 2015, she is the coordinator of ACRI’s International Humanitarian Law Education Project and the Education Department's online web portal.
Mesi possesses vast experience in informal education, including therapeutic intervention for children at risk. She has worked in the past at Yad-Rachel, an NGO that operates educational centers for at-risk children, and served as the Director of Education and Culture at the Aviv Home in the Beit Ekstein Children Village for persons with special needs (intellectual disabilities and autism).
Since 2004, Mesi has been writing for Yediot Negat, a newspaper for the Ethiopian community in Israel, and in 2005 she won the prestigious Elke Aynor Journalism Award.
She has a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Tel Aviv University, and a BA in Communications, Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Haifa.
Dr. Soli Vered
Training Coordinator
Soli holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and in a program for general and interdisciplinary studies in the humanities from Tel Aviv University, a master’s degree in organizational-applied sociology from the University of Haifa, and a PhD from Tel Aviv University’s School of Education.
After nearly a decade of working in various management positions in human resources, training, and organizational development, Soli turned to postgraduate studies in order to engage in the study of Israeli society from an educational perspective, especially in the context of living in the shadow of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In her academic research, Soli focused on the field of education for peace, democracy, and coexistence, particularly the Ministry of Education’s policy on these issues and the challenges facing peace educators who work in the educational field. At the same time, Soli supervised and taught courses and seminars in various educational frameworks, including schools, pre-military preparatory schools, and colleges.
Soli joined the Education Department of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel in 2019. As a part of her role, she writes and develops educational materials and training programs for teachers and teachers-in-training in the field of human rights education, democracy, and the fight against racism. Soli assists the instructors and facilitators of the Department of Education in leading workshops, seminars, and courses from the Association, and is also involved in creating collaborations between universities and colleges for teacher training, officials in the Ministry of Education, PISGA centers, schools, and partner organizations.
Sarit Eliah
Secretary and Information Center Assistant
Sarit joined ACRI in 2004 as a secretary in the Jerusalem office. Today, Sarit also helps coordinate the information systems and press updates.
Before joining ACRI, Sarit managed an office in a dance school and was active in a nonprofit for persons with disabilities.
Naama Yadgar
HR encompasses Payroll, Office Manager (Jerusalem)
Naama Yadgar joined ACRI in 2001 as the Jerusalem office secretary. Today she is the office and HR manager.
Before ACRI, Naama was the secretary at a rehabilitation organization for persons with mental health disabilities.