As the UK swelters through another heatwave, and scientists warn that hotter summers and more extreme weather are likely to become the norm, what can Britain learn from a country that has spent decades adapting to heat, drought and water scarcity?

Quite a lot, according to the Israeli entrepreneurs and climate-tech leaders at the forefront of developing solutions to many of the challenges Britain is only beginning to confront.

From water management and agriculture to artificial intelligence, energy and urban infrastructure, Israel has spent decades innovating out of necessity, creating technologies designed not just to tackle climate change but to help societies adapt to it.

Aviva Steinberger is the chief executive of Startup Nation Central, the non-profit organisation connecting global businesses, governments and investors with Israel’s innovation ecosystem. She says the biggest lesson Britain can learn is not any single technology, but a fundamental shift in mindset.

“The UK needs to be thinking strategically,” she tells Jewish News. “Not just; ‘how is it hitting us this season?’, but long term. What are the policies that are going to protect quality of life?”

The challenge extends far beyond a few uncomfortable days each summer. Rising temperatures are increasing the risk of droughts, wildfires and crop failures, placing growing pressure on water supplies, energy systems and public health.

The urgency is becoming increasingly clear. England has just recorded its warmest June on record, with an average temperature of 17.1°C – nearly 3°C above the long-term average – while the UK experienced its second warmest June since records began in 1884. Researchers also estimate that more than 2,700 people died from heat-related causes during the May and June heatwaves in England and Wales alone, underlining the growing human cost of a warming climate.

Rather than simply reacting to each new heatwave, Steinberger argues Britain should be embedding climate resilience into everything from infrastructure and agriculture to water management, energy systems and urban planning.

“This means shifting the conversation beyond simply reducing emissions.

“How do you adapt and how do you mitigate? Those are two different categories.”

Mitigation, she explains, focuses on slowing climate change by reducing emissions. Adaptation, by contrast, is about developing technologies, infrastructure and policies that enable societies to live with the reality of a changing climate.

Uriel Klar, founder and partner at deep tech venture studio Epsilon, believes Israel’s experience demonstrates exactly what long-term adaptation can achieve.

“Israel has engineered its way out of existential water scarcity by building infrastructure that supports its entire population,” he says.

Today, five coastal desalination plants provide around 80 percent of Israel’s tap water, while almost 90 percent of its wastewater is recycled for agricultural and industrial use.

“Israel decoupled its municipal water supply from weather patterns.”

Just two decades ago, Israel faced severe droughts, water restrictions and chronic shortages. Today it is recognised as a global leader in desalination, wastewater recycling and efficient water management, even exporting water to neighbouring Jordan.

But Klar believes Britain’s biggest lesson extends beyond water.

“Because of ongoing geopolitical conflicts, Israel has been forced to design its entire national infrastructure to withstand sudden, extreme emergencies. That has fostered a unique culture of rapid adaptation, resourcefulness and operational continuity under chaotic conditions.”

Steinberger agrees resilience has become increasingly urgent, but warns climate innovation risks slipping down the political agenda as governments focus on defence and national security amid rising geopolitical tensions.

“The climate-tech sector has taken a significant hit in the last few years as the conversation turned to defence. But we can’t ignore the fact that our seasons are changing. It’s not just about a hot summer day. Where will we be in five or ten years in terms of our ability to feed our people and have the energy sources we need to function as societies?”

She adds: “A healthy outlook would balance defence needs and climate security,” pointing to the risks of food insecurity, water shortages and climate migration if countries fail to prepare.

The scale of Israeli innovation reflects that challenge. Startup Nation Central identifies around 950 active climate-tech companies spanning sectors including agriculture, food, water, energy and industrial technologies. The organisation helps multinational companies identify and adopt Israeli technologies across water, sustainable materials, energy and climate resilience.

Those companies span almost every aspect of climate resilience, from water conservation and sustainable materials to predictive AI, weather intelligence and next-generation energy systems. While some are already operating globally, others are developing technologies that could help countries like Britain adapt to increasingly frequent extreme weather.

Klar believes the next generation of Israeli innovation could be just as relevant for Britain.

“Physical AI and remote sensing have enormous potential,” he says. “Using space-borne satellite radar and algorithms, they can monitor rail networks and pipelines, predicting track landslides or water main bursts days before they happen.”

He also points to “next-generation energy generation, storage and management systems that could help support Britain’s offshore wind investments during prolonged periods of low wind, while providing reliable power for heavy industry” adding that “advances in advanced materials and critical minerals will also play an important role in securing supply chains for the energy transition.”

Among the Israeli companies he believes deserve greater international attention are Tomorrow.io, whose AI-powered radar satellite constellation provides hyper-local weather intelligence; FireDome, a wildfire protection system inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome; NanoTherma, which converts waste heat from industrial sites and data centres into clean electricity; and Lava Power, which has developed technology capable of transforming heat into zero-emission power.

Such innovation, says Steinberger, presents “a tremendous opportunity” for UK-Israel collaboration as many of the challenges Israeli companies are already tackling are becoming increasingly familiar in the UK.

“The world knows us as a cyber leader and a fintech leader, but there are significant technologies coming out of Israel that can be scaled at country level. Israel’s opportunity is helping the world recognise how its innovation can solve our shared challenges.”