Israeli high-tech is mobilizing for the national rehabilitation mission: A new collaboration between the volunteer organization Code for Israel and the Rehabilitation Fund of the Kibbutz Movement is, for the first time, delivering an advanced technological tool for managing growth and rebuilding processes in the kibbutzim of the north and the western Negev. The new system, called “The Spotlight,” is designed to bridge the gap between the complex needs on the ground and the flow of resources and assistance, using digital innovation tailored to the post–October 7 reality.
Since the outbreak of the war, kibbutz communities have been facing unprecedented rehabilitation challenges. Even in places where there has been a physical return to homes, the communities are required to rebuild themselves in the face of a changing reality that includes managing education, health, economic systems, and demographic growth under trauma. The managerial complexity of a multi-sector economy requires a transition from manual management, based on phone calls and personal meetings, to a data-based system that enables a complete and up-to-date picture in real time.
The system operates through a user-friendly WhatsApp bot interface, through which role holders in the kibbutzim report urgent needs in their respective fields. The information flows directly to a smart dashboard that centralizes data from all communities, identifies cross-cutting trends, and ranks the urgency of responses. Thanks to the use of technology, the Rehabilitation Fund has already been able to identify pressing issues shared by many communities, such as difficulties in returning home after prolonged evacuation and the need for commemoration and memorial solutions—issues that in the past might have taken a long time to be recognized as a broad strategic need.
Neri Shotan, Director of the Rehabilitation Fund of the Kibbutz Movement, notes that rehabilitation is not limited to physical construction but involves deep community processes. According to him, “The Spotlight” changes the rules of the game by enabling sensitive and precise information management, while reflecting the situation to donors and directing resources exactly to where they are needed. He emphasizes that this is the first time technological tools at such a level have been used for kibbutz rehabilitation, significantly shortening response times and increasing the impact of every donation.
Yasmin Lukatz, founder of Code for Israel, explains that the project was born out of the understanding that Israeli high-tech must accompany not only immediate emergency situations but also long-term rehabilitation processes. According to her, the connection between the human and technological capital of the Start-Up Nation and the real needs emerging from the field makes it possible to create deep and sustainable change for Israeli society as a whole. The new system is already helping many kibbutzim receive personalized responses, ranging from basic needs to complex solutions for community resilience.