Yesterday I had the chance to, once-again, sit with 120 hyped-up, caffinated, sleep-deprived young adult movers and shakers of our Jewish world at the 5th annual gathering of the ROI Global Summit. And while perhaps I spent a bit to much time catching up with friends from around the globe, it is clear that this group not only 'gets it' they are actually 'doing something about it'. For not only are they creating cutting edge projects on multiple continents, they are trail-blazing a new level of collaboration among themselves and spurring a growing interchange of ideas between ventures such as JHub, Joshua Venture Group, Jumpstart, PresenTense and UpStart Bay Area. Here are just a few of the many faces of the global ROI Community: From Florianopolis, Brazil, meet community leader Deborah … Continue Reading
The Many Faces of ROI Community: Argentina, Israel, Belarus and Copenhagen
Israel, especially during the summer months, is a melting-pot of innovation. And one of the real pleasures of living here is having the opportunity to meet, and interact, with young adults from around the world who are involved in these new endeavors. As we have in previous summers, over the next month or so, we will bring you snapshots of just some of the many, people and projects, that are shaping our collective future. With the ROI Global Summit opening on Sunday, we introduce you today to four who are a part of this growing, vibrant and important community. Evelyn Goldfinger is Creator/Director of El Toratron Jewish Educational Theatre in Argentina, for which she received an ROI Community grant in May. She is an actress, playwright and director. Together with Hillel volunteers, she directs … 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 and innovation skills. Our assumption is that their … 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. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmiBSSXHNno[/youtube] 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. … Continue Reading
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 … 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 to … 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 … 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
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