I finally caught up with Yossi Abramowitz last night. If you remember, he was the energetic CEO of Jewish Family and Life who resigned two years ago to move to the Negev and sort-of retire. Or for those of you in a different demographic, his wife, Rabbi Susan Silverman is the sister of Sarah. We were part of a small host group of Israeli bloggers invited to meet with the visiting American Internet gurus here for a whirlwind trip to attend an Innovation Israel blogging expedition. Rebecca Markowitz, who is part of eJewish Philanthropy's tech team, wrote a great post on IsraelPlug on the visit. Back to Yossi, I know many of you wonder what he could ...

LIFE: an innovative tikun olam program for Jewish and Israeli young adults from all walks of life. It combines rich exposure to civil-society and leadership experiences in Israel with an intensive 3-month long experience doing international development work in an African country. LIFE: an eight-month long program being tailored by top Israeli and international experts in the fields of international development, Jewish-Zionist education and justice-oriented leadership development. To be launched this year, the program begins with a lengthy period in Israel combining community service, learning about civil society and international development issues and approaches, leadership development and group-building. LIFE: the first initiative of its kind that works simultaneously on two-tiers: bringing Jewish and Israeli young adults together in Israel in a rich ...

The following results are abstracted from a recent survey conducted by the Hartog School of Government and Policy at Tel Aviv University and released Monday morning at the Workshop on Faith and International Development. During the early years of the State, Israel's policy of development cooperation (which began in the mid 1950's), was said to be one of the most extensive technical assistance programs in the world. This slowed in the late 1960's and came to a major about face in the early 1970's. There are various explanations for this change of attitude amongst the Israeli leadership, however the most commonly accepted account is that it stemmed from the actions of African countries during the Yom Kippur ...

A new international agenda, Tikkun Olam, is uniting Israeli aid amutot and Jewish humanitarian groups from around the world in a common mission: partaking in the global effort to overcome the most serious afflictions of poverty, hunger and disease worldwide. Under the auspices of Tel Aviv University’s Harold Hartog School of Government and Policy, this bold agenda brought together, a few days ago, the largest gathering of Jewish and Israeli humanitarian aid groups ever assembled in Israel. Over 100 representatives of Diaspora and Israeli groups participated in a Workshop on Faith and International Development, and heard from development experts, philanthropists, academics and spiritual leaders on the role of the Jewish people among the nations in ...

From Ghana to Venezuela to Israel, 10 Brandeis University undergraduates have been selected to participate in social justice internships around the world this summer. Through The Louis D. Brandeis Legacy Fund for Social Justice, established by the generosity of an anonymous donor on the occasion of Justice Brandeis's 150th birthday, the students are provided a $3,500 stipend to alleviate costs associated with an unpaid internship in a social-service agency that addresses issues of social justice.

"There is in most...some spark of idealism, which can be fanned into a flame. It takes sometimes a divining rod to find what it is; but when found, and that means often, when disclosed to the owners, the results are ...

We invite you to join Jewish communities, organizations and individuals from around the world in celebrating a month of social action and Jewish unity.

Since its establishment in 2005 by KolDor, a global network of young Jewish activists, www.socialaction.com and Member of Knesset, Rabbi Michael Melchior and the Office of the Prime Minister of Israel, Jewish Social Action Month (JSAM) has evoked a remarkable response. For the last three years, Jewish Social Action Month has brought the world together in common cause – around our traditions of tzedek (righteousness) and tikun olam (repairing the world) – during the month of Cheshvan. This year, Cheshvan will be from 30 October to 27 November 2008. By encouraging ...

Community organizing means developing leaders and bringing people together to form powerful organizations that allow people to act on their own behalf to make systemic changes in their lives. Community organizers are people who want to stir things up to motivate people to act for change, who embrace challenge, and who think strategically about power. The Boston based, Jewish Organizing Initiative (JOI) builds a vibrant, pluralistic community of Jewish young adults who learn grassroots community organizing, explore their Jewish identity together, and become leaders in the pursuit of social justice. The JOI year-long paid fellowship program is a source of Jewish community, intellectual stimulation, mentorship, and professional networking. Over the last decade, JOI has built a network of over 100 ...

We feel very strongly about the New Generation of social entrepreneurs, their cutting edge projects, and the renaissance they are creating in our Jewish world. I guess we are not alone in our view of this generation. In Sunday's New York Times, Nicholas D. Kristof wrote from the World Economic Forum in Davos: "But growing numbers of young people are leaping into the fray and doing the job themselves. These are the social entrepreneurs, the 21st-century answer to the student protesters of the 1960s, and they are some of the most interesting people here at the World Economic Forum (not only because they’re half the age of everyone else). Today the most remarkable young people are the social entrepreneurs, those who ...

We first met her at a special performance in Nashville during the GA. Now, Grammy Award-winning musician Miri Ben-Ari, the Israeli "hip hop violinist" who is best known for her collaborations with artists Kanye West and Jay Z, was awarded the first annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Israel Award for her work in bringing together African American and Jewish communities closer together through music. from the official press release... "This award seeks to bring attention, recognition and re­membrance of the dynamic relationship between African Americans and Jews, particularly highlighting the pinnacle of that friendship seen during the Civil Rights Movement in America under the leadership of Reverend King. It will be presented in honor ...

A major theme of this GA was Jewish service; from a plenary to breakout sessions and cocktail receptions we heard how Jewish service is enjoying a moment in the Jewish sun, both changing lives and deepening commitment. The official program has this to say: "Engaging in Jewish service has great potential for strengthening Jewish identity, as well as demonstrating solidarity with people in need around the world." From everything said, it appears Jewish service has become the new rite of passage. This trend is not only apparent in North American but here in Israel. The directors of Ayalim describe these endeavors as "young people realizing dreams." ejewishphilanthropy.com is a strong supporter of the individuals and organizations who are dedicating ...