Tel Aviv University International students volunteering and support group

 A while ago, during those terrible days of the Iran-Israel conflict, some of us had very unpleasant experiences when it came to enter the shelters.  "Unpleasant" is actually an euphemism, because  in reality, their lives were at risks. Back then, in the midst of the storm, we sent to the Lowy International School representative this email ( LINK ), a call for action and support given the confusing, scary, difficult times. At first, we had the quick answer of Meshi (TAU Researcher coordinator)  Dear Valentina & Bhavana, Thanks for arising this important matter. The issue is known and has already been addressed. If something like this happens in the future, please let us know immediately, including clear details (such as the relevant apartment number). Wishing us quite days soon, Best, And now, a while later, we got the answer from Maureen, the director of the TAU Lowy International school, which we publish here for transparency and for informing all of you on how...

 As we know, there are many things going on in Broshim, and many of you approached us with their own stories and concerns while living in the dorms. In particular, this latter year things are unpredictable and confusing, mainly because of the big societal impact that the war brought up and the delicate, sophisticated equilibrium between TAU and Shikun and Binui, the company that owns the Broshim dorms. We demanded clarifications on two topics in particular: The situation on the waiting list The housing time limits At this moment (Dec 2024- Jan 2025) the waiting list is "not very long", due to the war, and the International  School is committed to assist in every possible way when someone requests to leave the dorms mid-contract. Unfortunately, we asked several times to have more public transparency on the waiting list, but our demand was not met. Therefore, we don't know neither how long the list is, and which position one holds while waiting.  When we asked about the tim...

 People come and go in Broshim, the dorms close to TAU and affiliated with the university (but not its property, they are owned by a private company, Shikun and Binui). Typically, the International researchers have a one-to-one contract with the dorms, mediated by TAU International office (today called the Lowy International School). This means that the tenant (meaning us scholars) in this case is bound to the rules of the contract, which are clearly stated in there.          --> attempts to change the rules have been made, but quite unsuccessful. The major issue is that the contract lasts one year, and therefore by the signature the tenant commits to pay the whole period.  This thing was not a big issue before, because of the turnover of the tenants. Typically, in a few weeks, the Housing coordinator (back then Shlomi, now Vicktoria) would find a replacement, so any tenant would be able to leave at any time and shift their contract to someone else....

Today we met to discuss about the current status quo in Broshim, by listening to people sharing their stories and needs concerning living in the dorms. The event was bittersweet because the people involved this time were a few (very sad), but very friendly and passionate. They brought up their own issues and suggested new ideas! Another reason for this taste is the fact that the years go by, but the problems are always the same and the things do not improve!  As a short summary, the last campaign that kickstarted was in June 2023, with the establishment of the Tenants' committee, in a joint effort of Israeli and International tenants to advance demands to change the current contract in some clauses ( HERE you can read the post published back then for details). The list of demands was compiled and presented to the Student Union representatives in charge of dealing with the University and Broshim management. Other initiatives were organized alongside this, such as the design of a p...

In these days of confusion and unclear weather, many of us are stuck in an uncomfortable position on what-to-do in our lives. Luckily, some of us have clear minds, at least regarding this situation, and they decided to say Bye Bye to Israel. At least for now. A relevant group of us lives in Broshim, and they are very concerned about maintaining a rent and an apartment that is relatively expensive, especially with a scholarship that is not that big money (and with big doubts for the future). An appealing possibility is in all people's mind: maybe it is the time to pack up and evacuate the apartment in the dorms. Maybe one comes back later, finding another accommodation, or maybe one does not want to come back at all. Meanwhile, it is wise to save some money and relax with the bills and the rent prices. Thus, we figured out a way to give up the apartment and save your personal stuff if you did not have time to pack up before. 1) the agreements In order to leave the apartment, you nee...

Somewhere around a month ago the Tenants' committee has been formed in order to diplomatically interface with the University on the most important matters of Dorms Tenants. The main group amounts to 200 people. In particular, the committee has monitored and collected data from Broshim and Einstein Dorms, reaching a pool of approximately 100 respondents. Then, it went through the various reports made by these people and listed a series of common problems and demands. There is so much work to do that the very first action has been directed towards changing the terms of the contract: the committee went through the points of the current contract (updated 2018) and highlighted the most problematic ones, which conflict with the demands of the tenants. NOTE: these are proposals, still need to be evaluated by the dorm managements and the University! At the start of July, the following demands have been submitted: 1) Allow bringing in personal furniture and to hang items on walls, including...

Entering the Dorms Whether you are abroad or in Israel and you are a PhD or a Post doc, if your intention is to be close to the university and in a simple accommodation, you might want to consider living in Broshim, the complex or dorms in direct partnership with TAU.      Added note: Master students generally get an accommodation in Einstein, another campus dorm complex.  It is not allowed for a PhD student or post doc to live in Einstein. The first thing to do is to to add your name in the Broshim waiting list, for which you need to contact the housing coordinator. --> here the official website page from The Lowy International School . 2024 update--> FORM for signing up to the waiting list Please note:  there is a waiting list active all over the year and tenant initiatives are not considered, which means no subletting and no swapping of rooms. When you need replacement, the TAU housing office will deal with that. There are exceptional cases, which will...

In these days, we received an invitation (with the words below) via social media to join a project called Tenants' committee "If you too are tired of the unacceptable treatment from the dorm management, the intrusion of privacy, the restrictions on guests, the complete indifference, and their racism, then you should join us tonight for the first tenant’s meeting. In which we can all share our frustrations with the way the dorms are being run and start working together to change it! We must stand together if we want to make a real difference 💪🏼💪🏾💪🏿 " The Tenants' committee is a group of representatives of the people living in the dorms (TAU and outside) self-elected as members. The idea of becoming part of the committee is to act as a social person who highlights the problems within the dorms and takes action to improve the life conditions of all of their inhabitants. The first meeting was an introduction to what is the purpo...