With evidence of settlement dating back to 8,000 years, the city of Lod has recently been included in the list of heritage sites of the World Monuments Fund, a leading private organization dedicated to saving the world’s most treasured places.

Lod is home to various religious and ethnic groups — Jews, Muslims, Christians as well as new immigrants from Ethiopia, India and Russia.

The formal launching of Lod’s Community Foundation was celebrated in the city. The foundation hopes to lure in more tourists.

[Ilan Harari, Mayor of Lod]:
"In Lod we have a mosaic of cultures, three cultures, and three communities. It is the only place in the world where in a surface of 20 meters we live side-by-side, a mosque, a church and a synagogue. It shows the possibility for all of us to live in harmony and peace."

But many communities in Lod need social support. Among them are the new immigrants from Ethiopia. The "Alma" is a center of Ethiopian handcraft and it gives an opportunity for artists in the community to get together. Their art preserves traditions.  

[Aviva Rachamim, Manager, Alma]: 
"Men tell in their embroidery stories from the Bible and also their prayers to come back to the land of Israel. Women make embroidery of motifs to stay healthy from our book of secrets. It helps us to work with dignity."

The varied cultures in Lod could be seen through the folk dances that were performed by the children during the event.

The Community Foundation has a lot of work ahead of it, a work with a lot of hope for the future.

[Ruth Wasserman, Lod Community Foundation]: 
"There are many difficulties in the city; there is a drug problem, there is an infrastructure problem, there is a huge problem in terms of education, there are tensions between Arabs and Jews... This is a human project, it's not about the Arab community or the Jewish community or the Christian community, it's not about arts, it's not about inter-faith, it's about everything put together, it's a human project of developing a city."  

Lod's officials hope that their new actions will be successful and the city will be a model for others.