Increasingly after the turn of the century, Marmorek, who was Jewish, became involved with the rising political activism amongst central European Jewry, particularly the idea of founding a permanent Jewish state.
In 1895, Marmorek met Theodor Herzl, the Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist who founded modern political Zionism.
The publication of Herzl's book Der Judenstaat in 1896 and the first World Zionist Congress in Basel, which Marmorek organized together with Herzl and Max Nordau in 1897, marked a critical break in his life, as Marmorek then decided to dedicate himself completely to Zionism.
At most of the subsequent Zionist congresses Marmorek would give presentations on the development of the movement in different parts of the world.
In May 1901, the architect, acting as Secretary of the Actions Committee, traveled to Istanbul with Herzl and David Wolffsohn, Chairman of the Jewish Colonial Trust to meet the Sultan Abdul Hamid II.
For his utopian novel Altneuland ("Old New Land"), considered to be one of Zionism's key texts, Herzl modeled the character of Dr Steineck on Marmorek.

In 1903 Marmorek took part in the El-Arisch Expedition, which investigated the suitability of the Sinai Peninsula for the purposes of Jewish settlement, though its recommendations turned out to be unfavorable; as a result, the British government offered an area in what is now Uganda as an alternative.
This led, however, to the split of the Zionist movement into the "Old" and "New" camps; the former wanted to seriously study the possibility of a Ugandan homeland and the latter categorically rejected any offer that did not absolutely consider territory in Palestine.
Marmorek allied with the "Old" Zionists.
Although Herzl had entrusted Marmorek with all architectural matters related to Zionism, he did not like the architect's plan for a convention center in Basel, and drafted his own plan instead.

After Herzl's death in 1904, Marmorek was appointed by the Greater Actions Committee of the World Zionist Organization to act as Chairman until the election of David Wolffsohn as new president in 1905.
He was alo elected to the board of the Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien (IKG; the Vienna Israelite Community), which represents the city's Orthodox Jewish population.
Increasingly after the turn of the century, Marmorek, who was Jewish, became involved with the rising political activism amongst central European Jewry, particularly the idea of founding a permanent Jewish state. In 1895, Marmorek met Theodor Herzl, the Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist who founded modern political Zionism. The publication of Herzl's book Der Judenstaat in 1896 and the first World Zionist Congress in Basel, which Marmorek organized together with Herzl and Max Nordau in 1897, marked a critical break in his life, as Marmorek then decided to dedicate himself completely to Zionism. At most of the subsequent Zionist congresses Marmorek would give presentations on the development of the movement in different parts of the world. In May 1901, the architect, acting as Secretary of the Actions Committee, traveled to Istanbul with Herzl and David Wolffsohn, Chairman of the Jewish Colonial Trust to meet the Sultan Abdul Hamid II. For his utopian novel Altneuland ("Old New Land"), considered to be one of Zionism's key texts, Herzl modeled the character of Dr Steineck on Marmorek.
In 1903 Marmorek took part in the El-Arisch Expedition, which investigated the suitability of the Sinai Peninsula for the purposes of Jewish settlement, though its recommendations turned out to be unfavorable; as a result, the British government offered an area in what is now Uganda as an alternative. This led, however, to the split of the Zionist movement into the "Old" and "New" camps; the former wanted to seriously study the possibility of a Ugandan homeland and the latter categorically rejected any offer that did not absolutely consider territory in Palestine. Marmorek allied with the "Old" Zionists. Although Herzl had entrusted Marmorek with all architectural matters related to Zionism, he did not like the architect's plan for a convention center in Basel, and drafted his own plan instead.
After Herzl's death in 1904, Marmorek was appointed by the Greater Actions Committee of the World Zionist Organization to act as Chairman until the election of David Wolffsohn as new president in 1905. He was alo elected to the board of the Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien (IKG; the Vienna Israelite Community), which represents the city's Orthodox Jewish population.
Oskar Marmorek