Adv. Zaki Kamal

Advocate Zaki Kamal’s Contribution to the Institution and Society

Adv. Zaki Kamal’s contribution to the college, to the Arab community and the Israeli society is evident in various fields – it is evident in instilling values, in teaching, in administration and organization, in bringing about systematic and academic change regarding student inclusion and in the field of culture and intellectual literature.

For more than four decades, and especially since 1996 when he served as co-founder and chair of the board of trustees and the board of directors of the Arab Academic College of Education – Haifa, adv. Zaki Kamal led the transitioning of the Academic College of Education from a teacher seminar into an academic college. Along with leading academics in the Arab community, he managed to promote a process of academization of the institution vis-à-vis the Council for Higher Education. Thanks to him, the year 1996 was a turning point as it was the year in which the institution was recognized as an academic, degree granting college.

In 2006, adv. Zaki Kamal was elected as chair of the board of trustees and the board of directors. Ever since then, he has worked consistently and tirelessly to strengthen the status of academia and the education system as well as to enhance their accessibility in the Arab community in particular and in Israel in general.

Adv. Zaki Kamal fulfills his duties faithfully, with dedication and with a strong desire to promote Israeli society in general and the Arab community in particular. He performs these duties without pay or compensation of any kind. He merely believes in giving without rewards.

Adv. Zaki Kamal’s public-volunteering work spans over approximately five decades, and touches upon many areas of the lives of Israeli citizens, Arabs and Jews alike, and the citizens of many countries in the Middle East and around the world. Adv. Zaki Kamal works tirelessly to bring hearts together, to promote tolerance, acceptance of the other and peaceful coexistence of all citizens of Israel, Arabs and Jews alike. He works hard to outline and communicate the message to leaders from the broader Arab world.

Adv. Zaki Kamal works as a volunteer at the Netanya Academic College where he serves as a member of the board of trustees and as chair of the Audit Committee.
Adv. Zaki Kamal works at the regional and international levels as a senior member at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. The institute is home to high-ranking world leaders including politicians, intellectuals and academics who promote approaches to peace and shared life based on open and authentic dialogue among all parties.
Adv. Zaki Kamal promotes good neighborly relations and dialogue with influencing bodies from Arab countries including lawyers, academics, journalists, public opinion leaders and senior executives in the media – from Morocco, Jordan and Egypt, among many others.
Adv. Zaki Kamal has promoted many projects for bridging social gaps and advancing social justice among Arab citizens in Israel. Some of these projects have in the college, some in other institutions. For example:

He has encouraged research activities of faculty members, establishing a foundation to encourage research among for the college’s academic faculty, believing that academic work, curriculum development, professional and academic development of the faculty can provide solutions to challenges in the educational field and in society, as well as enabling academic advancement of faculty members. In 2010, he established the college’s research authority, which operates in accordance with customs adopted by other academic institutions.
He founded the Center for the Development of National and International Academic Relations, sponsoring scientific conferences attended by lecturers and researchers from Israel and the world from the fields of science, language, and education, which provoked a positive response and promoted the college, placing it on the global research platform.
In the college, he founded the Arab Institute for Acting and Theater, the first of its kind to be established in the Arab community since the establishment of the State, including theater and acting courses of study.
He founded the Center for Multiculturalism, which has become the stage and home for multicultural education. Many leaders from Israel and from around the world were hosted and presented their vision at the center including Dr. Abdelsalam al-Majali, former Prime Minister of Jordan; the late Israeli President Shimon Peres; former President and former Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Reuven Rivlin; former minster, Dr. Ze’ev Binyamin Begin; attorney general of Israel, Dr. Avichai Mandelblit; party leaders from across the political spectrum; former State Comptroller of Israel, Yosef Shapira; former Minister of Finance, Moshe Kahlon; former Director General of the Ministry of Justice, Mrs. Emi Palmor; Mr. Benjamin Gantz, current Minister of Defense; Mr. Gabi Ashkenazi, former Chief of General Staff and Minister of Foreign Affairs; Colonel (reserve force) and former Minister of Defense, Moshe Ya’alon. The center granted honorary degrees to celebrated writers, Arabs and Jews alike.
He founded the Center for Children’s Literature in Arabic – a unique and special center for the Arab community in Israel.
He founded the Center for Religious Understanding, hosting leading public figures from Israel and from around the world to promote inter-religious understanding featuring senior Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Druze clerics, including holding unique cultural and religious evenings related to festivals and holidays for all Arab and Jewish students and lecturers.
He worked intensively for the promotion of equal opportunities and female empowerment by integrating leading Arab academic women in academic and administrative roles in the college. This includes the undersigned, Prof. Randa Kheir-Abbas, as Head and Rector of the college, he first woman to head an academic institution from the Arab community in Israel. He appointed female lecturers and researchers who are now serving as heads of most of the learning programs and departments in the college. He led an international conference on “Women’s Empowerment” attended by intellectuals, journalists, and lecturers from Israel and from abroad.
Adv. Zaki Kamal served as a director of the Druze religious committee for approximately 16 years, during which time he brought about a change in the rulings and laws of Druze religious courts regarding the status of women, determining that the status of the rights of Druze women are equal, notably in marriage and divorce law. Thus, for example, Druze women received senior status from men in determining their fate as married, and the absolute right to divorce their husband without the latter’s consent.
He promotes values of shared life, accessibility to and quality of academic education, peace with countries of the region and inter-religious and inter-cultural understanding through his weekly columns, interviews and appearances in Israeli, Arabic, and international media, including Arabic newspaper al-Sonnara published in Nazareth, Panet website and Panorama newspaper, as well as in the 100-year-old Jordanian Arab newspaper, al-Dostour.
Adv. Zaki Kamal has authored 6 books of thought illuminating philosophical perspectives on current issues that took place between 2017 and August 2021 both in Israel and around the world. The book series will be published towards the middle of December 2021 by Jordanian publishers al-Dostour and al-Zahran under the title Mental Illuminations by Thinker Zaki Kamal on Education, Law and Academia. The books constitute a compass and a light for philosophical, intellectual, educational, and social learning for both academics and all people seeking in-depth knowledge and understanding of intellectual, social, and educational issues.
Adv. Zaki Kamal is a sought-after lecturer among departments and institutions of higher education in Israel and around the world.
He is hosting at the college an international conference in June, 2022, “Social Justice in Multicultural Settings.”