Hibbat Zion was a movement; it was an idea, it was a proto-Zionist vision and cause probably initiated by Dr. Leo Pinsker. His ideas predated Theodor Herzl. In fact, many of Pinsker’s fundamental concepts found their way into the works of Herzl, the acknowledged father of Zionism. The movement, which began in the early 1880’s, held its first conference in Katowice in 1884.