How Does Innovation Grow

Where is the center of Jewish life? The debate continues. Some say the Upper West Side and others Jerusalem. But, make no mistake, beginning on Monday, that center of Jewish life is clearly located on ‘coffee house row’ – otherwise known as Emek Refaim – in Jerusalem’s historic German Colony. For here, in an unassuming multi-story building, a community centered around sixteen fellows is gathering. With a stated goal to foster innovation and creativity in order to drive the Jewish People’s mission forward, the PresenTense Summer Institute, cohort 3, is about to launch. When one looks at the progress made over the past twenty-four months, particularly in the current economic climate, one cannot help but be impressed with what co-founders Ariel Beery and Aharon Horwitz... Continue Reading

Networks of Collaboration

The Jerusalem offices of both PresenTense and ROI are in full swing finalizing preparations for their summer fellowship programs. Two weeks ago, we introduced the PresenTense Institute 2009 Fellows. Today, the (mostly complete) list of those who will be attending this summer’s ROI Summit. Selected from almost 600 applicants, this cohort’s participants – all first time ROI attendees – call 29 countries home (up one from last year). Sharing a passion for Jewish life, community and innovation they represent the best of our next generation of ‘doers’. Here’s philanthropist Lynn Schusterman, ‘doer’ extraordinaire, on ROI: “The aim of the summit is to promote innovation in the global Jewish community, while developing the participants’ managerial... Continue Reading

An Investment in Our Future

We’ve often posted about ROI120 and the community of innovators that has grown up around them. Now, the latest recap video from this past summer’s Summit. about: ROI is a diverse community of young Jewish innovators and leaders from around the world. United by their participation in the annual ROI120 Summit in Jerusalem, members of the ROI Community are representative of the new DIY, can-do spirit sweeping our Jewish world. [Translate] swfobject.embedSWF("http://www.youtube.com/v/RmiBSSXHNno&rel=0&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=0", "vvq-921-youtube-1", "425", "355", "9", vvqexpressinstall, vvqflashvars, vvqparams, vvqattributes); Bookmark:  Read More →

Jerusalem Innovation; Three for Three

Four incredible weeks of innovation, Jerusalem style. Two brand-new ventures, Amuta 2.0 and Tachlis 2 Point Oh!, premired to packed opening programs. Both in their own way focused on providing cutting edge resources to our communal world. Both with exciting programs taking shape over the coming year. And then last night, to an overflowing audience and live-streamed to their international community, The PresenTense organization formally opened their first permanent, year-round Institute. It was a who’s who of the (mostly) young and forward thinking innovators shaping our world from Jerusalem. The energy was infectious and provided an excellent jumping off point as PresenTense moves from summer to year round programming here in Israel. BTW, this was all accomplished with none other than Paul Cartney... Continue Reading

Your Very Own and Personalized Haggadah

Take a California artist and designer. Add the message of Passover, the traditional story of freedom. Stir in an ROI120 seed grant and a PresenTense fellowship experience. Connect and Incubate. The result: Haggodot.com, an online workspace for Jews of all backgrounds to upload, exchange and personalize their own Passover Haggadot. Haggodot.com; truly a global seder table. Creator Eileen Levinson, in her own words: “The Open-Source Haggadah is a website that allows users to share, personalize, and collectively publish Passover Haggadot. Users upload their pages into a searchable gallery. They may then print a Haggadah of exclusively their own uploads, or mix and match from pieces of anyone else’s contributions to create a Haggadah mash-up. The website will allow for Jews of all backgrounds... Continue Reading

Protecxia; An Oleh’s First Word

Many years ago, on day one of Ulpan – Kitah Aleph, our excellent and high-strung Sabra instructor told us the first word we needed to learn and understand was Protecxia. As a room full of 20-somethings, with at least half planning Aliyah, we were made to understand that grasping this concept was as important as the Hebrew skills she would impart to us over the next six months if we were to have a successful klitah here in Israel. Fast far forward to today and another one of the innovative projects to come forth from this summer’s cohort of the PresenTense Institute is Protecxia: Immigration Integration Initiative Founded by Erin Kopelow, a recent Olah and Jerusalem resident, whose first experience in Israel was with a one-year MASA volunteer program, Protecxia takes this long-standing concept... Continue Reading

Yavnet: Connecting Content and Technology

It was an unusual combination of resources. JT Waldman, the creative director of YAVNET, the new interactive branch of the 120 year old Jewish Publication Society, was here in Jerusalem to attend the ROI120 Summit and then participate as a fellow at the PresenTense Insititue. 21st century innovation meets a publishing industry in turmoil. Behind JT’s participation: JPS has embarked on its most ambitious project since 1985, when after thirty years of scholarly endeavors their English translation of the Tanakh was completed. YAVNET is a different kind of translation project; designed to lead to the creation of the DIGITAL TORAH, it is a community collaboration involving scholars and lay people, the rich legacy of the written and oral Torahs, the vast textual resources of Jewish tradition from the... Continue Reading

Connecting With People

Two University of Oregon undergraduates are the visionaries behind a new initiative launched this past week: Shomer Achi. One of the many projects incubated this summer at the PresenTense Institute, Shomer Achi is an international organization that acts to strengthen Jewish identity and Jewish unity by fostering sustainable and community based connections between Israeli and American Jewish college students through parallel social service initiatives, dialogue, and leadership training. In the words of co-founders Jodi Mererowitz and Jamie Zebrak: “Shomer Achi presupposes an urgency to shift the Jewish self perception. For too long, true dialogue and understanding has been stifled by pre-existing modalities that limit the scope of the Jewish experience. America has either been the generous donor... Continue Reading

Hey, Yiddle Diddle

This past Thursday night, the PresenTense Institute concluded their 2nd summer fellowship program with a presentation to the community on the extraordinary projects they have been hard at work on these past six weeks. eJewish Philanthropy will be profiling many of them for you over the next two weeks. So today, as we introduce our newest project, Cool People, Cool Stuff ™, I find no better candidate for our first profile than Hey Yiddle Diddle Productions, one of the coolest initiatives from this summer’s PresenTense cohort. For me, this was an easy choice. For as the summer went by, and without exception, every time I walked into the PrersenTense ‘home’ in Arnona, I was greeted by the cheerful and huge smiling, Chari Pere – the creative mind behind Hey Yiddle Diddle, Old-fashioned... Continue Reading

Windows into the Future

Last night I had the privilege of attending the 2008 PresenTense Fellowship Pitch Day at Yad Ben-Zvi here in Jerusalem. There, PresenTenses’ 2nd cohort of fellows presented their ventures to the community. It was not just the culmination event of their work, but a testimony to the hours of support that volunteers, coaches, mentors, friends, colleagues, peers, teachers, and more have invested in all the various projects. I’ve been around the Institute quite a bit; not only this summer but for the past fourteen months. And as founders Ariel and Aharon made their summation, what impressed me most was the significant leap forward the various programs of PresenTense have made over the past year. A grass roots start-up not so long ago, PresenTense, along with their 300+ international volunteers,... Continue Reading

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