From Sydney to Israel to Toronto

AUSTRALIAN-born Israeli diplomat DJ  Schneeweiss (pictured) has been appointed the new Israeli consul-general in Toronto, Canada.

The Sydney Boys High and University of Sydney graduate, who has previously served as deputy Israeli ambassador to China and chief press officer at the Israeli embassy in London, will start the posting in the middle of next year.

“It’s a new challenge and a new opportunity,” he told The AJN.

“Canada’s a very close friend to Israel and the community there – the Jewish community and the broader community – provide a platform for a lot of good work together to promote things that are important to both countries.”

He said he expected the role to be a varied one.

“[It] is a sort of a mix of all sorts of different types of work. You’re there to do trade issues, you’re there to engage in the public discourse about Israel [and] you’re there to make contact with local political leaders and the movers and shakers of society,” he said.

“At the same time, we’ve got lots of specific challenges and specific agendas that we want to try and promote, whether it’s understanding of Israel’s inner policy agenda, or whether it’s communicating the real face of Israeli society.”

Schneeweiss – currently based in Israel as head of a unit aimed at countering the global Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign – said becoming involved in politics and diplomacy was a “natural progression” after growing up in a traditional, Zionist home.

“I was involved in arguing Israel’s case right from when I was a kid, so it’s not surprising I guess that I’m involved in doing it also as an adult,” he said.

A former Bnei Akiva chanich, he made aliyah in 1994. He said he tried to come back to Australia each year.

“I love Australia, I’m very grateful for the life it gave to my family and to me, but my personal story, my personal roots and where I feel that I belong is definitely here in Israel,” he said.

GARETH NARUNSKY