The First Portugal-Israel Strategic Forum on Civil Resilience
On May 31st, 2026, the first Portugal–Israel Strategic Forum on Civil Resilience took place, an event dedicated to strengthening cooperation between Portugal and Israel in the fields of civil resilience, volunteering, post-trauma human recovery, and the reinforcement of institutional and community relations between the two countries.
The event brought together institutional representatives, members of the Israeli community, international guests, healthcare professionals, academics, and civil society partners, creating a space for dialogue, exchange of experiences, and the development of joint initiatives.
Dr. Carla Rocha performed the opening of the Forum
One of the central moments of the forum was the official inauguration of SAR-EL Portugal, the national representation of the Israeli organization SAR-EL (Service for Israel), internationally recognized for its civilian volunteering and humanitarian cooperation programs supporting community resilience in Israel.
The mission of SAR-EL Portugal will be coordinated by Dr. Carla Rocha, specialist in Internal Medicine and PhD candidate in Bioethics, who over recent years has been developing initiatives of cooperation between Portugal and Israel in the fields of healthcare, human resilience, and humanitarian support.
The forum also provided an opportunity to present other initiatives linked to human recovery and post-trauma resilience, including POD-STRA — Path of Dignity, Service & Trauma Recovery Alliance — a platform dedicated to humanitarian cooperation and the development of integrated responses for trauma, service, and human dignity.
The Ambassador of Israel to Portugal, Oren Rozenblat, was one of the speakers
The concept Healing Camp – ResMind Program was also presented under the motto “Where Pain Becomes Purpose”, an initiative inspired by recovery and resilience models developed in Israel, focused on supporting soldiers, reservists, trauma victims, and young people experiencing emotional distress, promoting reintegration, life purpose, and human reconstruction.
According to the organizers, the forum represents the beginning of a continuous agenda of strategic cooperation between Portugal and Israel, based on values of solidarity, responsibility, service, and the building of bridges between peoples and institutions.
