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Who's Who at Derech Hateva
The Derech Hateva table at the wedding of former staff members Sarah and Gadi
 Yael Ukeles
Founder/Director |
Yael Ukeles, Founder and Director of Teva Adventure and Derech Hateva, has an extensive background in teaching about Judaism, nature and the environment. As part of Teva Adventure, Yael has lead wilderness programs in the Rockies for teens with NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) and through JEE/Derech Hateva throughout Israel. In the summer of 02, Yael was a recipient of a Cummings Fellowship in Jewish environmental education. She serves on the education committee of Canfei Nesharim and was a Senior Fellow at ATID for the 2004-6 program. Yael lives outside of Jerusalem having made Aliyah from New York 8 years ago. A graduate of University of Pennsylvania and Midreshet Lindenbaum, she began her career in TV production and migrated to web interface design & product marketing management. Although a workaholic, Yael does love to hike, bike, rock/mountain climb and ski and when on a hike, can often be found picking up garbage on the trail.
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 Batel Meshel
Marketing & Recruiting,
Kehillat Natan Coordinator |
Batel (Beth) Meshel grew up 'round the US as she moved with her family from Missouri to California to Maryland. She grew up in Young Judaea, the Zionist youth movement of Hadassah, and attended its Year Course program in Israel after graduating high school. After a second year in Israel at Midreshet Harova, Batel completed her university studies at Stern College for Women receiving a BA in political science in May, 2003. After graduating, she was sent by YU's Counterpoint program to work for 6 months in the Jewish community in Perth, Western Australia. Upon completing extensive travels in Australia and NZ and a round the world tour, Batel realized she wanted to combine her passion for Jewish education and nature and find work in Jewish outdoor education. She made Aliyah in 2004 with Nefesh B'Nefesh and during her first year in Israel served as the madricha on Young Judaea's Year Course Shalem program. In fall 2005, Batel met Yael Ukeles while studying at Yeshivat Simchat Shlomo's Eco-Activist Beit Midrash program. Ever since, Batel has been a full time student at the yeshiva and has been working part time with Derech Hateva as the Marketing & Recruiting Coordinator. She also manages the interns who participate in Derech Hateva's Leon Shaw Memorial Internship Program, as well as the Kehillat Natan fellows.
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 Rona Atlas
Program Coordinator | Rona Atlas grew up in Jerusalem. During her army service in the Nahal unit she lived and worked on Kibbutz Ein Hanatziv, worked with children in Jaffa and with youth in Beit Shean. She received a B.A. in Jewish History from Hebrew University. Most recently, after a year of travels in the US and some farming as an Adamah fellow at the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center in Connecticut, Rona returned to Israel and began working at Derech Hateva in June 2007. She is also currently studying Shiatsu, and will answer the phone "Boker Tov" at any time of day.
 Udi Hammerman
Program and Curriculum Development | Udi Hammerman, who works on Program and Curriculum Development for Derech Hateva is a second year student at Hebrew University studying Psychology. Concurrently he is in the process of completing his studies at the Bat-Ayin Yeshiva for Rabbinic Ordination from the Jerusalem Rabbinate where he has also served as a part-time teacher. He worked as a Senior Jewish Outdoor Educator for Teva Adventure’s 2004 summer program in Wyoming with NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) and for Derech Hateva's Israel Trail Teen Adventure in the summer of 2005. An avid biker and runner, Udi also volunteers weekly with disabled veterans and the blind as a tandem biker and spends weekends with Ethiopian immigrants in Ashkelon. Udi made Aliyah with his family at the age of 10, and after completing high school at Chorev, was a paratrooper in the Israel Defense Forces through the Hesder Program at Yeshivat Har-Etzion. He loves to hike and climb and can often be found leading his friends on hikes and sharing words of Torah.
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Yannai Kranzler
PR and Marketing | Yannai serves as Derech Hateva's PR and Marketing Coordinator. In 2007 he and his wife, Chana, completed a 5-month trek through Ireland and the Western U.S., on a mission to open up the discussion on sustainability through their project, Walking Towards Sustainability. Through this project, they raised money for Derech Hateva that will go towards programs on urban sustainability. These programs will be aimed at nurturing leadership in DH teen alums. Check out the Walking Towards Sustainability blog at walkingtowardssustainability.blogspot.com.
Yannai received his B.A. in Communications and Political Science from Bar Ilan University. He grew up in Riverdale, NY, and Chana grew up in Pittsburgh. They have been married and living in Jerusalem for four years.
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Liron Kranzler
Web Assistant | Liron Kranzler grew up in Riverdale, NY. Living in Israel since October 2006, she has been studying abroad while completing her B.A. in Ecology and Environmental Biology from Columbia University. During this time Liron has been studying life, torah, and some more ecology (at Hebrew University), and working at Derech Hateva as a Web Assistant. She was a counselor this past summer on the ITTA '07 program. Her loves include music, movement, art, and gardening/farming, and her soon-to-be husband Eliyah.
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 Devora Liss
Program and Curriculum Development | Devora Liss was born in Ann Arbor and after 3 years, moved to Dayton, Ohio for 7 years. She came to Israel for a year with her family, who ended up staying and making aliya in 1992. After 12th grade, Devora moved to California where she attended UC Berkeley. There, she studied anthropology, and was active in the Hillel and the Israel action committee. She graduated in 2005 and worked at San Mateo Outdoor Education for a year. She then moved back to Israel, where she studies anthropology and Turkish part-time at Hebrew University. She enjoys reading, knitting, general crafts, and hiking.
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