Tzedek Centers

What Tzedek Centers does

Tzedek Centers (מרכזים לצדק חברתי) is an Israeli non-profit association founded in 2016 that operates as a national grassroots movement of local communities promoting equality, democracy, and social justice. It serves Israeli citizens, municipal council members, and electoral candidates across more than 30 cities (including Jerusalem, Haifa, Tel Aviv, Acre, Nazareth, Be'er Sheva area, Kiryat Shmona, Katzrin and others), with each city staffed by a dedicated center manager and hosting training programs, action groups, and community events. Its core offerings include a 12-session Leadership Training Program for Social Change, approximately 50-70 active Action Groups that work on local policy issues (transportation, shared society, accessibility, resource preservation), the Local Voice (קול מקומי) professional training program for municipal council members and candidates, community building events, and national public campaigns on issues such as elections, the national budget, and democracy protection.

The organization does not sell a commercial product and has no proprietary technology stack; rather, it is a civic organizing platform that uses digital channels (website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube) and physical local centers as enablers for program delivery. Its underlying operating model is a structured pipeline: citizens enter training → graduate → form action groups → some advance to elected office → influence local policy. Over 6,000 citizens have graduated from leadership programs and the Local Voice program trained more than 80 candidates for the 2023 municipal elections. During COVID-19 lockdowns, mutual aid networks created by the organization reached over 250,000 citizens.

Tzedek Centers is funded through a diversified mix of membership dues and small private donations, partnerships with Israeli government ministries, and grants from foundations including UJA-Federation of New York, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, Keren Berl, Habatzelet, HaTeva, Kakal, and others. The organization is led by founder and chairman Yizhar Carmel (יזהר כרמון) and CEO Lev Litman (לב ליטמן), supported by a core staff of approximately 12 employees. It co-leads the Equality Forum (פורום השוויון) coalition with the Local Voice program, and operates registered brand identities for "Tzedek Centers" and "Local Voice" (קול מקומי).

Name

Tzedek Centers

Legal name

מרכזים לצדק חברתי

Website

https://merkazim.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tzedek Centers is an Israeli non-profit founded in 2016 that runs a national grassroots civic organizing movement across 30+ cities, training citizens and municipal council members through leadership programs, action groups, and the Local Voice professional training program for elected officials.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Education and Grassroots Community Organizing

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (81331), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Civil Society Strengthening & Civic Space (BPADAGAD), Civic Participation & Leadership Development (Voting, Advocacy, Community Leadership) (EDAAADAL)

Keywords

• Civic leadership training
• Community organizing programs
• Grassroots advocacy training
• Municipal council training
• Social justice education

Headquarters

HQ city

Binyamina (בנימינה)

HQ country

Israel

HQ region

Middle East

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership dues and small private donations: The organization is primarily a grassroots movement supported by its own members through membership dues and small private donations. This is a recurring revenue stream reflecting the organization's community-owned character.
2. Government ministry partnerships: Partnerships with government ministries provide institutional funding and legitimacy, supporting program delivery across municipalities.
3. Foundation and civil society grants: Support from foundations and civil society organizations funds specific programs and operational costs. Named partners include UJA Federation of New York, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, and others.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Tzedek Centers is a national grassroots civic movement that delivers free leadership training programs, action groups, and community-building activities to Israeli citizens in more than 30 cities. It also runs the "Local Voice" (Kol Makomi / קול מקומי) professional training program for elected municipal council members and electoral candidates, providing them with knowledge and tools to advance social-democratic policy at the municipal level. Programs culminate in action groups that advocate on local policy issues such as public transportation, accessibility, shared society, and resource preservation.

Product overview

Tzedek Centers operates as a nationwide movement of local communities working to promote equality, democracy, and social justice in Israel. The organization offers a portfolio of interconnected programs: its flagship Leadership Training Program (12-session course) that trains citizens in social change methodology; Action Groups (approximately 70 active groups) formed by graduates to advocate on municipal policy issues; Community Building activities featuring lectures, workshops, and cultural events; and the Local Voice (קול מקומי) program specifically training elected municipal officials. Additional offerings include national public campaigns around elections and democracy, and policy change content reaching tens of thousands. During COVID-19, the organization also built mutual aid networks reaching over 250,000 citizens. The organization is structured as a grassroots civic movement, not a technology product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• קול מקומי (Local Voice): A professional training program for council members and candidates running for local office, focusing on promoting social democratic policy at the municipal level.

Products and services

• Leadership Training Program for Social Change (תכנית הכשרה לשינוי חברתי)
• Action Groups (קבוצות פעולה)
• Community Building Program (בניית קהילה)
• Local Voice (קול מקומי / Kol Makomi)
• National Public Campaigns Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 6,000 graduates from leadership programs who participate regularly in the organization's work
• +4 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered major and minor.

• The Movement for Quality Government in Israel (התנועה לאיכות השלטון)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025The Movement for Quality Government in Israel is a co-organizer of the third Local Voice Council Members Conference, bringing expertise in government quality and accountability to the event. The organization contributes professional knowledge on promoting equality and democracy in municipal governance.
• The Aguda - Israel LGBT Task Force (האגודה להטב)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025The Aguda is listed as a conference partner for the third Local Voice Council Members Conference, bringing LGBTQ+ advocacy and social equality expertise to the municipal governance context.
• Life and Environment (חיים וסביבה)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025Life and Environment (Israel's largest environmental organization) is a conference partner, contributing environmental policy expertise to the municipal governance agenda.
• Israeli Movement (תנועה ישראלית)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025Israeli Movement is listed as a conference partner, contributing to the collaborative civic agenda of the Local Voice conference.
• 50:50 Partnership for Gender Equality (50:50 שותפות ושוויון מגדרי)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 202550:50 is a partnership for gender equality in Israel, listed as a conference partner bringing gender equality expertise to municipal council members.
• The Israel Center for Jewish Peoplehood (המרכז ליהדות)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025The Hartman Institute's Center for Jewish Peoplehood is listed as a conference partner, contributing Jewish ethical and communal thought to the civic governance agenda.
• The Israeli Institute for Local Government (המכון לשלטון מקומי)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025The Israeli Institute for Local Government provides expertise and leadership programming for municipal officials. It is a key institutional partner for the Local Voice council member training and conference program.
• Tzalul - Water Advocacy (צלול)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025Tzalul is an Israeli water advocacy organization listed as a conference partner, contributing water and environmental policy expertise.
• Shita (שיטה)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025Shita is listed as a conference partner, with its specific contribution area not detailed in the available material.
• Jerusalem Open Beauty (פתוח)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025Jerusalem Open Beauty is listed as a conference partner, contributing to the cultural and community strand of the municipal governance conference.
• Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (חברה להגנת הטבע)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2025SPNI (Nature and Parks Authority partner) is listed as a conference partner contributing environmental protection expertise to municipal governance discussions.
• The Zionist Council in Israel (המועצה הציונית בישראל)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Zionist Council in Israel is listed as a partner, suggesting alignment on Zionist and democratic values. The specific nature of the partnership (funding, programmatic, or ideological) is not detailed.
• Equality Forum (פורום השוויון)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Equality Forum is a coalition of civil society organizations creating collaboration and promoting equality and democratic values in local politics. Tzedek Centers co-leads the forum with Local Voice, serving as a core organizational partner and driver of the coalition's agenda. The forum organizes joint campaigns and events including the annual council members conference.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Israeli Institute for Local Government: Israel's leading training and capacity-building body for municipal officials. Listed as a major Tzedek Centers partner and direct peer in providing professional training to local council members.
• Israeli Movement (HaMovil HaIsraeli): Israeli civic and social-justice movement that is explicitly listed as a Tzedek Centers partner. Operates in the same civic-organizing and equality-advocacy space with overlapping programs.
• The Aguda - Israel LGBT Task Force: Israeli LGBTQ+ advocacy organization listed as a Tzedek Centers Local Voice conference partner. Comparable as a values-aligned social-justice NGO working in the same advocacy and coalition space.
• The Movement for Quality Government in Israel: Israeli government-accountability NGO co-organizing the Local Voice Council Members Conference with Tzedek Centers. Highly comparable as a democratic-governance civil-society organization.
• Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI): Israel's largest environmental organization, listed as a Tzedek Centers conference partner. Comparable as an established Israeli civil-society organization participating in the same coalition-driven policy advocacy model.
• 50:50 Partnership for Gender Equality: Israeli gender-equality advocacy coalition listed as a Tzedek Centers partner. Comparable as a coalition advancing equality policy at the municipal level.
• Shatil: Capacity-building arm for Israeli civil society, providing training and organizational support to social-change NGOs. Highly comparable in building grassroots civic capacity, with overlapping training-and-organizing methodology.

Broad incumbents

• UJA-Federation of New York: Major Jewish philanthropic federation that funds Tzedek Centers. Comparable as both mobilize diaspora Jewish support for Israeli civil society and democracy-related programming.
• Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (Israel office): German social-democratic political foundation that is a named financial partner of Tzedek Centers. Comparable as both promote social-democratic values through civic-education and capacity-building programs.
• New Israel Fund: The largest funder of progressive Israeli civil society, including many of Tzedek Centers' peer NGOs. Highly comparable as both operate in the same Israeli progressive civic space and overlap on democracy, equality, and social-justice advocacy.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC2lv1WGw8tfRw0JTmG5pn2w
• Facebookfacebook.com/Merkazim
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tzedek-centers
• Instagraminstagram.com/merkazim.letzedek

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tzedek Centers