Bikkurim’s Idea Lab

Do you have an idea for the Jewish community that you may want to develop into a project or an organization? Do you wonder if your idea is feasible? Should you form a non-profit or a for-profit corporation? What would it take to turn your idea into a reality? Bikkurim: An Incubator for New Jewish Ideas invites you to Idea Lab 2009. What you can expect: An introduction to Bikkurim’s program and what it takes to write (and follow) a business plan. Additional free consulting on how to turn your idea into facts on the ground. With special guest Aharon Horwitz, co-founder of the PresenTense Group. Wednesday, March 25, 2009 at 4:00 pm – 25 Broadway, 17th FL. New York; RSVP by March 11, 2009. For more information, contact nina@bikkurim.org. [Translate] Bookmark:  Read More →

A Time of Need

James Besser writing in The New York Jewish Week: Hard Times Meet JCPA: Jewish Group Braces for Deeper Recession Reports from the field will be grim when delegates to this year’s Jewish Council for Public Affairs plenum gather in Washington on Sunday – the first major Jewish meeting since the economic furies hit full force and the first since the inauguration of President Barack Obama. The economic emergency that is changing Jewish communal realities across the country has also transformed the JCPA plenum, an annual event that sometimes seems more like a Jewish debating society but which this year will be shadowed by an economic crisis and a collective craving for on-the-ground responses. Rabbi Steve Gutow, the JCPA president and CEO, acknowledged the desire for practical, immediate help, but... Continue Reading

NewsBits: Around the Jewish Web

from the Canadian Jewish News: Budget cuts force Montreal aliyah centre to close The global economy, drastic cuts to the Jewish Agency for Israel’s (JAFI) budget and the online age converged last month to force the closure of the Montreal Aliyah Centre, one of several in North America slated to shut down by the summer as part of a “major restructuring” within JAFI. But although the move – effective at the end of January – was to some extent anticipated, it came as a sad blow to those associated with the centre, which was almost as old as the State of Israel itself. They now fear that the absence of people “on the ground” could hurt the level of aliyah from Montreal. from The New York Jewish Week: Jewish Outreach In Lean Times Now that I am a board member of a fledgling synagogue, I am... Continue Reading

Reward and Risk

Noam Neusner writing in The Forward: Saving Our Money for Madoff? Of all the shocks of the Bernie Madoff heist, perhaps none was more stunning than the list of victims. Among them were several Jewish foundations and many of our community’s most prominent nonprofits. The losses were staggering, and in some cases crippling. Yet the real Madoff scandal isn’t the losses; it’s that our community was sitting on vast pools of accumulated wealth, much of it used to little effect. Madoff had his secrets to keep, but so, in fact, did many foundations and endowments. They had money to spend, and they didn’t spend it. Now it’s gone. Everywhere in the Jewish community we hear of crises — in Jewish literacy and continuity, in a lack of social action and awareness, in a failure of the synagogue and the... Continue Reading

Cleveland Federation Cuts Back

Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland Announces Plans to Address Projected Budget Shortfall Due to the current economic situation, the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland is undergoing an intensive evaluation process of its structure, programs and activities to look at all potential cost savings. With roughly a one-third decrease in its endowment and a 15 percent reduction-to-date in pledges to the 2009 Campaign for Jewish Needs, the Federation will need to undergo a significant reorganization and retrenchment of its workforce. Although the Federation has already reduced its current year budget by $500K through spending cuts and a hiring freeze, pressing economic challenges require an additional $2.4 million reduction in the operating budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2009. These... Continue Reading

Women in Jewish Society

As we wrote about on Sunday, Jewish People Policy Planning Institute officials briefed Israel’s Cabinet on the JPPPI 2008 assessment. The entire report is now available, and their in-depth section on Women in Jewish Society is worth the read. Here’s what JPPPI’s Board Chair, Ambassador Dennis Ross, has to say: “It is the discussion of the evolving role of women in Jewish life and institutions in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Israel that may be the most interesting contribution of this year’s assessment. While progress is uneven in these different settings and has even triggered a backlash among some in the Orthodox community, women are playing an increasingly powerful role in transforming Jewish life. This trend will only become more significant in time and –... Continue Reading

Jewish LA in the Spotlight

Jewlicious…Jumpstart…Limmud…Jewish LA is a busy place these days. For those interested in innovation we had the release of the The 2008 Survey of New Jewish Organizations, the first-ever survey featuring data for understanding the world of Jewish nonprofits in the midst of an economic crisis. Limmud, growing worldwide by leaps and bounds, held their second LA event. And this Friday, the annual three-day gathering, Jewlicious Festival 5.0, largest youth festival of its kind, celebrates its half-decade with a special appearance by Grammy nominated Jewish reggae sensation Matisyahu. If you’ve never caught the Jewlicious fever before, there is still time to check it out! Here’s more about the recent Limmud from The LA Jewish Journal: LimmudLA Fills 3 Days and Nights of Doing... Continue Reading

Money Makes the World Go Round

JAFI’s Board meetings are usually dull. Not much takes place that has any effect except on those directly involved. This week’s winter session was a bit different as in some respects, the future of the Agency was very much up for discussion. Out of the three meetings a year, the winter meeting has historically been the least attended. This year, according to a senior JAFI executive, attendance was down 35% from last February. The assumption is the economy played a huge part. Maybe yes, maybe no, but besides the lower total number, several key Federation leaders were noticeably absent. Hadassah, which usually sends a very significant delegation, had two registered – and they were the most invisible people in Jerusalem this week. From the Conference of President’s meeting thru... Continue Reading

Mexico’s Madoff

from The Jerusalem Post: Have Mexican Jews lost their wealth in Madoff-like scheme? Texas-born bank tycoon Robert Allen Stanford, who faces unfolding fraud allegations surrounding his Antiguan investment banks, may end up filling a Bernard Madoff-like role for Latin American Jews and specifically the Mexico City community. While a smaller sum of money is involved – “only” $8 billion of investments are being questioned – a lot more is at stake. Thousands of Mexico City’s Jews purportedly invested with Stanford’s banks, lured in by promises of 14-percent returns and a seemingly secure place for their money outside the volatile Mexican economy. Pesos were tucked away in Caribbean accounts, and investors felt assured that their money would be available whenever the need... Continue Reading

Challenge of Developing Leaders: A Never Ending Process for the Non-Profit

The composition of the board of directors is one of the continuing challenges faced by the incumbent professional and lay leadership of non-profit organizations. This is especially true when the top leadership is composed of very committed people who have continually given of their time and financial support to maintain the services provided by the agency. They ponder how they are going to insure the continuity of leadership and the involvement that provides for newcomers who will also be motivated to assume responsibility. Continue Reading [Translate] Bookmark:  Read More →

Next Page »