Israeli-based SodaStream believes economic opportunity will lead to peace
Daniel Birnbaum, the American-born CEO of the Israeli company SodaStream, is on a mission. But whether that mission is to make millions of dollars selling fizzy water makers, to promote his personal brand of Zionism, or a combination of both, depends on whom you ask.
SodaStream is navigating a complicated political landscape in which private companies are often called on to defend the state of Israel and engage in public diplomacy, providing a shield for some of the government's most controversial policies. And Birnbaum, a public figure in Israel, wants to appeal to a liberal, humanitarian audience largely based overseas.
In the middle of the Negev desert, just a little over 10 miles from the conflict-ridden Gaza Strip and next to the world's largest Bedouin city, Birnbaum has opened a factory that employs Jews, Palestinians and Bedouin men and women who work side-by-side.
Bedouins have the highest poverty and unemployment rates in Israel, and it is rare for Bedouin women to work outside of the home. In the Soda足Stream factory where young Bedouin women manage teams of Palestinian and Jewish men, they tell that they are treated with respect by their male colleagues. The factory has prayer rooms for both Muslims and Jews, and employees are permitted to rest while they're fasting for religious holidays. Birnbaum has personally fought to obtain work permits for the 120 Palestinians employed in his factory so
