A new educational initiative is bringing together students from Haim Guri High School in Netanya, Israel, and Perczel Mór Gimnázium in Siófok, Hungary, within the framework of the long-standing twin-city relationship between the two municipalities.
The twinning agreement between Netanya and Siófok was officially signed on 30 April 1990. Since then, the partnership has remained strong and dynamic, giving rise to numerous joint initiatives, exchanges, and meetings across cultural, educational, municipal, and social fields. For more than three decades, this cooperation has reflected a shared commitment to dialogue, openness, and mutual understanding.
In the second half of 2025, during an online meeting between representatives of both municipalities, a new idea emerged: to extend the spirit of town twinning to the next generation through a direct partnership between senior high schools. Following a series of discussions and planning meetings between the two schools, a joint project concept was developed, centered on the theme of sustainable and eco-friendly tourism.
The project combines educational content with creative expression, enabling students to explore contemporary challenges in tourism while highlighting the unique natural and cultural assets of their home cities. Through collaborative tasks and digital interaction, students will not only deepen their understanding of sustainable tourism, but also gain valuable experience in intercultural communication, teamwork, and friendship with peers from another country.
A key highlight of the initiative will be a student exchange program. As part of the project, students from Netanya will travel to Siófok to meet their partners in person and present the outcomes of their joint work. This visit will later be followed by a reciprocal visit to Israel, eagerly anticipated by the Hungarian participants. Both sides view this exchange as just the first step — a “first swallow” — in a broader and long-term cooperation between the two schools.
Tourism is a natural and meaningful focus for this collaboration. Both Netanya and Siófok are renowned tourist destinations, welcoming visitors to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and Lake Balaton respectively. By addressing tourism through the lens of sustainability, the project connects local identity with global responsibility, empowering young people to think creatively about the future of travel and their role in shaping it.
This joint school project stands as a living example of how enduring twin-city relations can continue to evolve — nurturing new ideas, engaging younger generations, and building bridges that extend well beyond borders.
