Israel Zari

Youth affairs

In his youth affairs portfolio, Zari worked to increase funding for youth movements and expand the range of youth organizations operating in the city, including the LGBT youth organization IGY and the Oz organization affiliated with Bnei Akiva. In September 2019, he promoted a reduction in membership fees across the city's youth movements, as part of the municipal Ramat Gan Plus initiative to encourage participation in extracurricular educational activities.

In June 2021, the city's first youth center, named Nehora in memory of Nehora Bar-Haim, opened at the Marom Naveh Center on Zari's initiative. He also supported construction of a new facility for the Yarden Scout troop.

In 2025, he promoted a municipal decision to subsidize 30% of the cost of summer camps organized by youth movements in Ramat Gan. The measure was intended to make the camps more affordable and reduce financial barriers to participation. According to the account in the original article, it resulted in the lowest youth camp prices in Israel.

In 2026, Zari led an initiative offering two-year academic scholarships to youth-movement and youth-organization coordinators who completed two years of work in the city. The program aimed to strengthen youth organizations by supporting both their participants and coordinators.

In January 2026, he also promoted a proposal to designate Tuesdays as Youth Movement Day in Ramat Gan, intended to encourage participation in informal education. The proposed changes included ending the school day by 2 p.m. on Tuesdays, avoiding competing municipal activities in the afternoon and evening, and minimizing Wednesday examinations wherever possible.

Diamond Exchange District

Zari promoted a plan to develop nightlife in Ramat Gan's Diamond Exchange District. Under the initiative, Schnitzer Square was developed as a central public square and hosted Israeli Independence Day celebrations and regular weekend events. Plans were also advanced to demolish existing Israel Diamond Exchange buildings and construct three office towers. A master plan for the district was approved in February 2022.

Further redevelopment of the district included improvements to public spaces and expansion of green areas, including additional shade trees. In May 2026, Wolt relocated its local headquarters to the district. Zari also participated in efforts to relocate Shenkar College of Engineering, Design and Art to the district as part of the planned Vertical City development in the Diamond Exchange Triangle, incorporating office towers, housing and educational facilities.

LGBT community affairs

During Zari's tenure overseeing LGBT community affairs, the municipal budget for related programs increased and a new departmental management position was established. He revived the municipal committee for promoting LGBT inclusion, which had been inactive for several years. In 2018, Ramat Gan held its first municipal Pride event, displayed Pride flags and painted benches and signposts in rainbow colors for Pride Month. Zari also worked to adapt municipal education forms to include same-sex families and LGBT parents.

In 2019, Zari and the mayor received recognition from the president of Israel following Ramat Gan's fourth-place ranking in the Aguda – Israel's LGBT Task Force index of municipalities' LGBT inclusiveness. Ramat Gan rose to third place in 2022 and second place in 2023.

In September 2022, Zari inaugurated Ramat Gan's first LGBT community center, with spaces for activities and regular community programming. On Family Day in 2023, five same-sex couples from the city held wedding ceremonies and received municipal partnership certificates intended to provide them with municipal rights and benefits equivalent to those of married couples. Zari sought to expand LGBT-related training across the city's schools. In 2023, Ramat Gan received an award from the organizations Hoshen and IGY for incorporating their training sessions and workshops into the municipal education system.

Environmental affairs

As the municipal official responsible for environmental quality and sustainability, Zari promoted initiatives addressing noise pollution, green spaces, waste reduction and reuse.

In 2024, he advanced an amendment to the municipal noise bylaw to strengthen enforcement and increase fines for inappropriate vehicle-horn use, loud music and construction work during prohibited hours. He also promoted the installation of cameras designed to detect and document excessive road noise. Preparations included selecting technology, identifying noise hotspots, legal and operational planning, and training municipal inspectors. Installation was expected in 2027.

Zari also participated in efforts to establish a therapeutic forest in the Ramat Efal neighborhood, near a municipal community foraging area. The initiative draws on forest bathing practices, involving guided activities in natural surroundings intended to promote physical and mental well-being.

Other projects he supported included community sharing centers and cabinets through which residents could donate or take usable clothing, toys, books and household goods. These included a sharing center at Blich High School in Ramat Hen, another in Marom Naveh, and a sharing cabinet in the Rishonim neighborhood.

He subsequently participated in establishing the Otsarot Center on Mendes Street, a secondhand initiative based on circular economy principles. Furniture, household goods and other items are collected, sorted, cleaned and offered at affordable prices. Revenue is directed toward supporting local social-welfare families and people affected by the war, who may receive household furniture and equipment free of charge or at nominal cost.