Los Angeles, where I was born and raised, has a special relationship with the State of Israel. Despite the thousands of miles between us, we share so much —connections of culture and commerce, and ties of blood and family.

We are people who have made our deserts bloom; who have been strengthened and sustained by our immigrants; who take pride in our flourishing ports; who share the values of pluralism and democracy; and who strive for peace, prosperity and a brighter future for our children.

Los Angeles and Israel are both homes of creativity and bastions of innovation—places defined by a deep respect for diversity, a longstanding belief in what’s possible, and the fervent hope, dream and commitment to build a peaceful tomorrow.

Over the past decade, the ties between Israel and Los Angeles have grown stronger as a result of the L.A.-Tel Aviv Partnership. Started as part of a national movement to connect American cities with Israeli counterparts, the L.A.-Tel Aviv Partnership has set the standard for bringing Israeli and American students, families, civic leaders and peer professionals in education, social services and the arts together; it has strengthened mutual understanding and nurtured lasting friendships that benefit both cities; and it has given the people of each city an inside look into one another ’s daily lives.

As part of this program, students from Jewish day schools in Los Angeles are “twinned” with counterparts in Tel Aviv, studying in Israeli classrooms, living with Israeli families, and learning about the challenges and benefits of growing up in Israel. Likewise, Israeli students get an up-close experience of Los Angeles and the United States when they visit here.

For one week in late February and early March, Israeli environmental leaders came to L.A. and shared their expertise on developing solar energy and building a greener, more sustainable future. They met and learned alongside the city ’s experts in sanitation, wastewater treatment, clean air, green buildings, recycling and renewable energy, and had frank discussions with leaders in environmental justice.

During this same decade, professors from Israel’s top universities have brought their work, words and wisdom to the halls of the University of California, Los Angeles, the University of Southern California, Cal Tech and other colleges to offer their unique

perspectives on politics and religion, and to share cutting-edge findings in the fields of science, medicine and technological innovation. Los Angeles has taken inspiration from the small nation that developed the technology for instant messenger programs; figured out how to install cameras on cell phones; gave us the latest advances in medical procedures; and showed the world how to build a thriving agricultural sector in a country where the majority of the land is a desert.

Here in Los Angeles, we celebrate the state of Israel and our own Israeli community in a variety of ways. We host the largest showcase of Israeli films in the United States and we have built a strong relationship with our sister city, Eilat. Thousands of Israeli students of all ages have attended and enriched our schools and synagogues, and Israeli security specialists have come to the Tom Bradley International Terminal at the Los Angeles International Airport to help protect airline passengers and foreign visitors. Each year, the city ’s Israel Festival brings together over 40,000 people in the largest celebration of Israeli culture anywhere. And, overcoming the obstacles faced by so many immigrant groups, the vitality and vibrancy of L.A. ’s Israeli families never diminish and only grow stronger every day.

Israel’s sixty years have been shaped by the resilience, strength and devotion of its people. Through criticism and condemnation, the Jewish state has stood up for the values and principles that have long made the Jewish people a “light unto the nations.” Israel’s citizens have kept faith with the hope—ha tikvah—that they might live as a free nation, in peace and security, in the land of their ancestors. I know the City of Los Angeles and our people will continue to benefit from a close relationship with the State of Israel long into the future.