Two decades ago, leading Israel educators began to recognize a marked "vibe shift" in the field. With the foundering of the Oslo peace process, the eruption of the Second Intifada and significant social changes in Israel and the Diaspora, leading practitioners recognized that new and innovative approaches to Israel and Peoplehood education were called for. They needed to capture the complexity and multivocality of Israel and the Jewish People without sacrificing clarity and accessibility. "Simplexity" was the order of the day.
 

The Jewish Agency for Israel turned to Israel-Education Connoisseur Jonny Ariel to launch an education laboratory. Since its earliest days, Makom has focused on generating innovative educational tools and approaches — from "Hugging and Wrestling," "the Four Hatikva Questions" and "Stories from the Sake of Argument" and more —cultivating leading practitioners, working toward systemic change in the Israeli education system — never desisting from seeking to strengthen mutual understanding and commitment between Israel and Global Jewry.