Fifty residents of Beit Shemesh-Yehuda Plains took part in a Conference of activists which took place on Friday, October 27, 2006 under the auspices of the Economic Development Committee of the Jewish Agency's Partnership 2000 project. For the last few years, the Committee has been promoting a process of community building in which residents are active partners in policy making and regional economic development.

The Conference brought together representatives of six tourist sectors which Partnership 2000 has supported in recent years: cycling tourism, ethnic cooking, wine, aromatic oils, art and regional festivals. In addition, the Conference was attended by representatives of both local and national government.

"The conference represents a significant stage in the activity of the Economic Development Committee in recent years. The roundtables which have been established now have a strong foundation and are working energetically. The time has now arrived to enter a new stage in accordance with the community building concept and to reinforce cooperation between the various roundtables," says Danny Taragan, the Chairman of the Economic Development Committee.

Participants in the Conference took part in discussions and shared their knowledge and experience with regard to possible channels of cooperation between the various tourist sectors with the goal of promoting and labeling the Beit Shemesh-Yehuda Plains region as a preferred area for both internal and external tourism.

"Click here to view more pictures "