Ma'alot is a small city in the north of Israel, settled by immigrants from Morocco and the Soviet Union. It merged with Tarshiha,a 900 year old neighboring Moslem and Christian Arab village to form a single municipality, and it remains a model of interdependency. The are using network connections in the schools for links to the community and to foster communications between Arab and Jewish neighbors inside and outside of Israel.

The Ramat Negev Regional Council, which comprises the largest territory of any other regional council in Israel, is now setting up a freenet which will connect all of the settlements, educational institutions , and regional council offices to the Internet. We expect the factories in the area to connect to the freenet in the future, also.
1) The Ramat Negev Freenet will allow each and every resident, who owns a computer and modem, to connect to the Internet at a minimal cost.
2) The Ramat Negev Regional Council has set up its own Internet server through which the residents and institutions of the region can connect to the Internet.
3) This server will be the heart of the Ramat Negev Information Network, which will provide information about all the activities of the council and the area both for the residents of the area and for interested parties from around the world.
4) This information network will also provide an interactive service. Residents will be able to sign up to both virtual and real life courses through form generated Web pages. Residents will be able to set up their home pages, open discussion groups, and post notices on bulletin boards.
5) The freenet will be an important tool for educators and educational institutions in the area. Not only will the schools be able to work with other schools around the world through the Internet, but students and teachers will be able to access the I nternet from their homes also. We plan to set up educational projects and data bases unique to our region. We will of course invite schools from Israel and from around the world to participate in these projects also.
6) The information on the Ramat Negev Freenet Web Pages will appear in both English and Hebrew. It is important that the freenet be accessible both to a local and foreign audience. The educational projects will be based on this principle also, allowing students to communicate on a certain project in Hebrew with schools in Israel (and Jewish schools in other parts of the world), and in English with schools around the world.
7) We expect the institutions in the region to form a web of cooperation and communication through the Freenet. For instance, schools and industry may work together on special projects.
8) We wish to set up contacts through the Internet with Jewish communities around the world, at all levels of community life.
9) We hope that this freenet will serve as a model for other communities in Israel. Hopefully our efforts will interest other regional councils, especially in the Negev, and communication of this type will slowly spread out over the Negev and into every corner of Israel.