The Institute for Jewish Policy Research four-part series on Jewish life in Central and Eastern Europe since the collapse of communism has now been completed with the publication of their new report on Ukraine.
The project, which was sponsored by the Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe, was designed to explore how Jewish life has evolved and developed in Hungary, Poland, Germany and Ukraine in the generation since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Its overarching purpose is to provide investors, community development professionals and all interested parties with an overview of the realities and challenges of Jewish life in each place.
This final report in the series is written by Darina Privalko, an expert in the field of Jewish communal life in Ukraine and a doctoral student working on informal education for adults in Israel at the National Academy of Pedagogic Science of Ukraine. It is being published simultaneously in English, Ukrainian and Russian.
Research for the report, based on interviews and focus groups with Ukrainian Jewish leaders, was conducted between 2011 and 2013. Whilst the opinions expressed do not reflect the most recent developments in what continues to be a turbulent period in the country, they nevertheless paint a detailed portrait of Jewish community life in the country, and offer a road map to understand many of the dynamics within it.
The report makes five specific recommendations. It calls for: the creation of a common organisational framework for the development of Jewish life in Ukraine, including reconciling internal dissension; further efforts to achieve financial sustainability and independence for the Jewish community and to reduce its reliance on external sources of funding; the enhancement of Jewish education; preserving and making accessible Ukrainian Jewish heritage; and preventing antisemitism, including more effective monitoring of antisemitic incidents.
The complete report is available for download here.
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