42 | JULY 20 • 2023 

ERETZ

front and dead center on the 
show floor,
” she said. “Given 
our focus, Israel’s Ecomotion 
Week is an important show 
for Lambert, my clients and 
my transportation-energy-
focused team.
”

ECOMOTION WEEK 
The Ecomotion pavilion was 
part of Ecomotion Week, 
which included 109 exhibit-
ing startups from Israel and 
abroad, 75 sponsoring part-
ner organizations, dozens of 
speakers and side events with 
800 people from more than 50 
countries meeting 2,700 peo-
ple from Israel.
Ecomotion is considered 
Israel’s dynamic and growing 
institutional community 
comprised of more than 
650 startups and 15,000 
community members. It is a 
joint venture of the nonprofit 
Israel Innovation Institute 
and Israel’s ministries of 
Transport and Road Safety, 
and Economy and Industry. 
Its “ecosystem” includes 
650 startups and 15,000 
community members.
“Ecomotion creates 
a platform for startups 
to connect with other 
community members such as 
global industry, entrepreneurs, 
academy, government, 
investors and more in the 
field of smart mobility, to 
collaborate, network and 
explore synergies,
” according 
to Jennifer Schwarz, the 
executive 
director. 
“Ecomotion 
encourages 
innovation 
through a variety 
of events such 
as meetups, 
challenge competitions, 
adaptations, the annual Main 

Event and more,
” she said.
All was not just (ecological 
mobility) business on the 
mission. The Michigan 
delegation began its five-day 
sojourn in Israel with a tour 
of Jerusalem’s Old City, Yad 
Vashem, historic Jaffa, and the 
Tel Aviv beach and café scene.
Back at work, the MIBA 
delegation visited more than 
the one-day Ecomotion 
event. Michigan participants 
experienced several special 
presentations.
Among them was 
the “DriveTLV Event - 
Sustainable Mobility from 
Vision to Reality,
” presenting 
the latest mobility trends 
in smart and sustainable 
mobility. They also learned 
about first- and second-stage 
fundraising during an era 
of economic uncertainty 
and witnessed live startup 
pitches at an event hosted 
by Mobilion, an early-stage 
smart mobility venture fund 
focused on after-market 
innovations. 
Tying Israel’s history and 
future in the transformative 
sphere, they visited the 
Peres Center for Peace and 
Innovation, founded in 1996 
in Jaffa. Its “Israeli Innovation 
Center” showcases the Israeli 
innovation nation story, 
promoting it across a variety 
of sectors.
Ward is very positive about 
the MIBA
’s work enhancing 
Michigan’s economy through 
Israeli partnerships. 
“They have really opened 
the door for Michigan/Israel 
collaboration with the MIBA 
‘Elevator,’ a physical space in 
Downtown Detroit to act as 
a landing zone established 
to connect Israeli companies 
to Michigan businesses,” she 
said. 

Jennifer 
Schwarz 

continued from page 41

Stay in the know 
with all things 
Jewish...

Get The Detroit Jewish News 
print edition delivered 
to your door every week for 
less than $2 per issue.

thejewishnews.com/subscription

Subscribe Today!

