Gidi (Gideon) Grinstein is an Israeli societal entrepreneur. He is the founder of th
Reut Group(formerly the
Reut Institute
The Reut Group (formerly known as the Reut Institute) is a non-profit policy think tank and Israeli lobby organization in Tel Aviv. It was founded by Gidi Grinstein in January 2004 to provide decision-support to Israeli policymakers.
The Reut Inst ...
), a non-partisan not-for-profit research, strategy and leadership group. He helped to foun
TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers a global nonprofit that aids the disabled, elderly and poor. In December 2017, Forbes named TOM one of fifteen technology companies to watch in 2018
here. Grinstein is the author o
Flexigidity: The Secret of Jewish Adaptability and the Challenge and Opportunity Facing Israel
Grinstein served as Secretary and Coordinator of the Israeli delegation for the negotiations with the PLO in 1999–2001. He was on the team that established Taglit-Birthright Israel, and is the co-author of the ISRAEL 15 Vision, plan for Israel's long-term economic development.
Biography
Gidi Grinstein was born in 1970 in Israel and grew up in Israel, Ivory Coast and the Cameroon. He graduated Ayalon High School and Tel-Aviv University Schools of Economics (1991) and Law (1999). He is a captain (Res.) in the Israeli Navy (1991-1995). In 2002, he graduated the Harvard Kennedy School of Government with an MPA.
In 2015 Gidi relocated to New York City, and became President of Reut USA.
He is married and the father of five.
Organizations and initiatives founded
* Reut Group (formerly the
Reut Institute
The Reut Group (formerly known as the Reut Institute) is a non-profit policy think tank and Israeli lobby organization in Tel Aviv. It was founded by Gidi Grinstein in January 2004 to provide decision-support to Israeli policymakers.
The Reut Inst ...
)
* Israel 15 Vision
Leapfrogging the Peripheryfor Israel's long-term prosperity.
* XLN: A network of 3D printer maker spaces
TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers a global nonprofit that aids the disabled, elderly and poor.
Strategic planning career
Following his military service, Gidi worked with the Economic Cooperation Foundation, where he coordinated and led projects on economic cooperation among Israel, the Palestinians and Jordan (1995-1997) and then a policy-planning effort on Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. During that period he also founded and led the Israeli team that designed the
Birthright Israel
Taglit-Birthright Israel ( he, תגלית), also known as Birthright Israel or simply Birthright, is a not-for-profit educational organization that sponsors free ten-day heritage trips to Israel, Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights for young adult ...
program, based on the ideas of
Yossi Beilin
Yosef "Yossi" Beilin ( he, יוסף "יוסי" ביילין, born 12 June 1948) is an Israeli politician who has served in multiple ministerial and leadership positions in the Israeli government. Much of his political career was in the Labour Pa ...
.
In 1999-2001 Gidi served as the Secretary and Coordinator of the Israeli Delegation for the Negotiations with the PLO in the Office and then in the Bureau of the Prime Minister of Israel,
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...
. He was the youngest participant at the
Camp David
Camp David is the country retreat for the president of the United States of America. It is located in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont and Emmitsburg, about north-northwe ...
Summit in July 2000.
In the summer of 2002, Grinstein established Reut Institute. Key milestones include the launch and leadership of the ISRAEL 15 Vision; multiple efforts on Israel's relations with World Jewry; the effort against antisemitism and the de-legitimization of Israel; and the work on civil resilience in times of crisis.
In 2012, Reut published a strategic framework calle
21st Century Tikkun Olam calling upon the State of Israel and the Jewish People to improve the lives of 250,000,000 within a decade. The work of the Reut Group was expanded to include innovation in design and technology to address neglected needs in society. Within this framework, he led the launch of XLN (2011-2018), of Impact Labs in partnership with WeWork (in 2017) an
TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers(in 2014).
Public service career
Gidi Grinstein served in the Government of Israel between 1999 and 2001 as Secretary and Coordinator of the Israeli negotiation team on the Permanent Status Agreement between Israel and the
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establ ...
in the Office and later in the Bureau of Prime Minister
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...
(1999–2001). He was the youngest member of the Israel delegation at the time. On the night of July 17–18, 2000, at the
2000 Camp David Summit
The 2000 Camp David Summit was a summit meeting at Camp David between United States president Bill Clinton, Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat. The summit took place between 11 and 25 July 2000 a ...
, he used the Heimlich maneuver to dislodge a
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible Seed, seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small ...
from Barak's throat.
In addition to the Reut Group, he founded Yesodot Group for reforming Israeli Governance; was a member of Kol Dor Group for global
Jewish peoplehood
Jewish peoplehood (Hebrew: עמיות יהודית, ''Amiut Yehudit'') is the conception of the awareness of the underlying unity that makes an individual a part of the Jewish people.
The concept of peoplehood has a double meaning. The first is d ...
; a member of "Israel 2025 – Scenarios for Future Developments"; and a founding member of a group that put together the "Birthright Israel" program.
Published works
In 2013, Grinstein published
Flexigidity: The Secret of Jewish Adaptability & Challenge and Opportunity Facing Israel"
References
External links
Reut Institute Founder Gidi Grinstein: Realigning Israel’s Presence in the World by the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
“Flexigidity” and the Jewish Peopleon Schusterman
Time for a Revolution in Israel's Global EngagementFathom: For a deeper understanding of Israel 2 June 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grinstein, Gidi
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Israeli activists
Israeli military personnel
Tel Aviv University alumni
Harvard Kennedy School alumni