Your Daily Phil: A CEO’s vision for food security — and secure borders — for Israel

Good Friday morning. 

For less-distracted reading over the weekend, browse this week’s edition of The Weekly Print, a curated print-friendly PDF featuring a selection of recent eJewishPhilanthropy and Jewish Insider stories, including: Israeli hostage Alex Dancyg remembered for his commitment to Holocaust education, Israeli-Polish dialogue; A deep dive into the world of Jewish influencers; B’nai B’rith Israel joins effort to support survivors of domestic violence; In Washington, American and Israeli statesmen remember Sen. Joe Lieberman; Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly emerges as top veepstakes contenderPrint the latest edition here.

In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on the death of former Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk and feature an opinion piece by Zach Briton about how to reach a significant untapped audience for Israel education and engagement. Also in this newsletter: Paula GottesmanAnshel Pfeffer and Sarah Levy. We’ll start with a conversation with Yoel Zilberman, a nonprofit CEO who sees Israel’s agricultural future and national security as inextricably linked.

For more than 15 years, Yoel Zilberman, 39 — the co-founder and CEO of Hashomer Hachadash, a fast-growing Zionist organization that emphasizes connection to the land of Israel — has been working to raise awareness to the plight of Israel’s farming industry. Hit hard over the past three decades by changes to the iconic kibbutz model and vulnerable to crime, the sector is now in further disarray following Hamas’ horrific Oct. 7 terror attacks, which destroyed multiple agricultural communities and decimated their workforces.

Now is the time for the Jewish state and world Jewry to step up and reshape this essential industry — not only as a way to support struggling farmers or help rebuild communities devastated by Hamas, but also to secure the country’s food supply for future crises, Zilberman told Ruth Marks Eglash for eJewishPhilanthropy

“I think [the current conflict] has made all of us realize that we are too dependent on countries that could suddenly stop supplying us with food,” he said, highlighting Israel’s precarious relationships with Turkey, which has already halted imports, and Jordan, which is highly critical of Israel over its military campaign in Gaza, as well as Ukraine, which is in the midst of its own turmoil. “It became very clear after Oct. 7 that Israel was in a new phase. Israelis and world Jewry suddenly realized how important it is for us to have an independent food supply and how dangerous it is for us to be so dependent on imports from other countries.”

The destruction of many agricultural communities in the Gaza Envelope and the ensuing evacuations in the south and north have also brought into sharp focus the crucial role that such communities, which dot Israel’s borders, can play in strengthening the country’s security, he added. He thinks the shocks caused by Oct. 7 will afford Israelis the opportunity not only “to rebuild the security system in a new way” but also refocus Zionism with an emphasis on loving and nurturing the land.  

“We first need to return security to these areas and then we can rebuild the agricultural ecosystem differently with a focus on high-tech so we can generate more food and make farming more profitable in order to sustain us for the future,” he said; such changes were the only way to get “families to leave the center of the country and understand the mission to live on the borders of Israel, because this is the future of our security.”

The transition from startup nation to agri-tech innovation would also provide “solutions to a problem that is worrying the whole world,” said Zilberman, highlighting that his goal is to see goods mass produced in Israel transported throughout the whole region and beyond.

“I believe this is the next stage for Zionism,” he continued. “It is something we put aside over the past few decades because we thought it was more important to build the business sector, and while that is a very important and strong engine for Israel, I think this war has made people realize that we need to return to our roots, return to the land, because without that it will be almost impossible to live here.”

Read the full report here.

IN MEMORIAM

Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk dies at 73

Teens from across the country celebrate Opening Session of USY International Convention in Orlando, Fla. with teens from the Metropolitan New York area.
Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Martin Indyk, a veteran Mideast peace envoy, former U.S. ambassador to Israel and founding executive director of an influential Washington think tank, died on Thursday at his home in Connecticut from complications of esophageal cancer, reports Haley Cohen for eJewishPhilanthropy’s sister publication Jewish Insider. He was 73.

‘An unrelenting spirit’: Dennis Ross, a fellow diplomat and friend of Indyk’s for more than four decades, said on X that Indyk “battled cancer the way he lived his life, with purpose and an unrelenting spirit. Martin lived a life of meaning; he pursued peace-making between Israel and its neighbors with passion, skill and decency.” 

‘A true American success story’: Indyk held several prominent roles, including the first executive director of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, ambassador to Israel in the Clinton administration and special Middle East envoy in the Obama administration. Born in London and raised in Australia, Indyk was “a true American success story,” said Robert Satloff, Indyk’s successor as executive director of The Washington Institute. Satloff said in a statement that Indyk “came to Washington to have an impact on the making of American Middle East policy and that he surely did – as pioneering scholar, insightful analyst and remarkably effective policy entrepreneur.” 

A role model: Indyk was also a member of the Israel Policy Forum’s board of directors, and he met with “countless” groups of IPF’s young leaders to instill in them a commitment to a secure, Jewish, democratic Israel and future two-state outcome, Shanie Reichman, IPF’s director of strategic initiatives, told JI. “Ambassador Indyk was a champion for peace throughout his life and recognized the necessity of passing the baton onto the next generation, as he knew Israeli-Palestinian peace demands perseverance and a long-term commitment from today’s young leadership to become the future trailblazers of this pursuit,” she said. “He took seriously the obligation to inspire the next generation of pursuers of Israeli-Palestinian peace.”

Read the full obituary here and sign up for Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff here.

READER RESPONDS

How the pro-Israel world can embrace the influencer era

Francesca Carto fotografo/Getty Images

“Haley Cohen’s recent article ‘A deep dive into the world of Jewish influencers’ (eJewishPhilanthropy, July 23) highlights an existential crisis facing the pro-Israel world. It is a crisis exacerbated by the events of Oct. 7, but not created by it: the increasing ignorance and apathy around Israel, particularly among next-gen Americans,” writes Zach Briton, chief advancement officer of BZ Media, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy

A self-segregating system: “The ‘influencer era’ has forced our community to grapple with the most basic realities of new media. As a community focused on measurable impact, we have never been more out of our comfort zone. Social media amplification metrics such as impressions and views are susceptible to endless bots around conflict-related posts and are less and less relevant. Meanwhile, ‘For You Page’ algorithmic suggestions allow users an unprecedented ability to curate what they want to see, effectively guaranteeing that ‘mainstream’ American kids — the most valuable target demographic — will never see the content our ‘Jewish influencers’ put out. They may not see the other side’s content either, but that leaves them in a precarious state of indifference and uninformedness, a result confirmed by all the best survey data on young audiences.”

An untapped audience: “We all recognize we must find different ways to engage with those outside of our own community, yet we continue to employ the same broken tactics we always have, assuming outside onlookers will be swayed by the exact same content our own community finds so compelling… The Jewish community has long ignored the highest-reward opportunities to engage and activate tens of millions of mainstream young Americans, who can create a lasting relationship with Israel if mobilized in a natural way. So, what do we know about the world we are operating in and these young Americans whom we are trying to meet?”

Read the full piece here.

Worthy Reads

New York State of Hate: In The Wall Street Journal, Allan Ripp writes about his recent assault in New York’s Central Park by an assailant who attacked Ripp while shouting antisemitic slurs. “I was walking my daughter’s dog Biscotti on a sultry Saturday evening in Central Park, just below one of the cast-iron bridges leading to the reservoir. It is a shady, idyllic spot I’ve traversed thousands of times since moving to the neighborhood in 1976. A man on a CitiBike rode past and gave me a hard shove with his left elbow. I’m not one to call out cyclists for disregarding park rules, but the push was so intentional that I blurted, ‘Hey, you’re not allowed to ride your bike on the path.’ He immediately slammed on his brake, threw the bike aside and stormed toward me, his eyes bugging with rage. I tried to apologize, but he was already wound up. ‘You f—ing Jew pig. I am going to kill you and your animal,’ he screamed. In seconds he was upon me, spitting at me and hurling ‘Jew! Jew! Jew!’ while pummeling my face.” [WSJ]

No Regrets (Just Kidding): In Forbes, Julia Dhar shares some of the biggest regrets she’s heard from former C-suite executives in the hopes that others can learn from them. “They say experience is the best teacher. But even better is learning from other people’s experiences — and one of the most effective ways to do that, behavioral scientists have found, is to reflect on their regrets. By regrets, we mean powerful negative experiences associated with deep sadness, disappointment, or even shame. You might be surprised how many highly accomplished leaders harbor such feelings. A 2023 international study by Oracle and author Seth Stephens-Davidson, for example, indicated that some 85% of business executives suffer from ‘decision distress — regretting, feeling guilty about, or questioning a decision they made in the past year.’ Perhaps that helps explain the unusually high number of American CEOs who resigned last year. The Behavioral Sciences Lab at Boston Consulting Group, my employer, recently asked a group of about 70 former CEOs, C-suite executives and board chairs from a wide range of industries to tell us what they most regretted during their tenures, and to rank how intensely they regretted these situations.” [Forbes]

Around the Web

The National Post reports that the Canada Revenue Agency is planning to revoke the nonprofit status of Canada’s Jewish National Fund, alleging that JNF Canada supported Israeli military infrastructure in violation of its status as a charitable group…

Hamodia reports that a Canadian judge granted an injunction on Wednesday against national regulations that Jewish groups and kosher meat companies argued effectively outlaw kosher shechita… 

Philanthropist Paula Gottesman was honored for her support for Jewish summer camps at an event celebrating the centennial of Camp Nah-Jee-Wah, located in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania…

Leading Edge published a list of the members of the inaugural cohort of its Culture Accelerator, a professional development program…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is awarding $45.1 million in grants toward initiatives focused on behavioral health

In the largest single grant distribution ever by the Ohio Arts Council, a total of $22.7 million will be distributed among 935 grant applicants across the state…  

The U.S. Bank Foundation awarded $11.8 million in Community Possible grants to support community-development projects… 

The Los Angeles Department of Arts and Culture is awarding over $6.4 million to 318 nonprofit organizations focused on local support for the arts

The Community FoodBank of New Jersey, the state’s largest anti-hunger organization, announced it has received a $100,000 grant from Bank of America

Literacy Delaware, a nonprofit focused on teaching adults how to read and speak English, has been granted $8,000 from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation

Israeli journalist Anshel Pfeffer announced Thursday on X that after almost 30 years working for Haaretz Group he is leaving to cover Israel full-time for The Economist

The Jewish Telegraphic Agency profiles Team USA rugby player Sarah Levy, great-granddaughter of South African rugby star Louis Babrow, before the start of the Paris Olympics

Pic of the Day

Courtesy/Shimmie Katz

An unnamed IDF general sings arm in arm with NCSY Kollel participants during an emotional kumzitz (sing-along) on Tuesday at a memorial site for the victims of the Oct. 7 massacre at the Nova music festival in Reim, Israel.

Birthdays

Jonathan S. Lavine, co-managing partner and chief investment officer of Bain Capital Credit
Gary Friedman

On Friday, former administrator at the University of Illinois and the University of Houston, chancellor of the California State University system and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, Barry Munitz

FRIDAY: Retired member of the British House of Lords, Baroness Sally Oppenheim-Barnes… Former mayor of Las Vegas for 12 years, Oscar Goodman… Journalist and author or co-author of nearly two dozen books, both of her parents were killed in Auschwitz, Paulette Cooper… Author, podcaster, columnist and rabbi, Shammai Engelmayer… Member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2012 to 2016, Richard Stark… President and chief medical officer at Laguna Health, Alan H. Spiro, MD, MBA… Film and television director, Lesli Linka Glatter… Sports columnist, author, television and radio personality, he works for ESPN’s Charlotte-based SEC Network since 2014, Paul Finebaum… Venture capitalist and brother-in-law of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, James W. Breyer… Actor, comedian and producer, Jeremy Samuel Piven… Former correspondent at ABC News for 23 years, now co-founder at Ten Percent Happier, Daniel B. “Dan” Harris… Founder and chairman of the DC-based consulting firm, Stonington Global, Nicholas Muzin… U.S. Sen, (R-OK), Markwayne Mullin… Actress best known for her role in the “Spider-Man” trilogy, Mageina Tovah Begtrup… Managing partner of the D.C. office of ColdSpark, Nachama Soloveichik… Political correspondent at Israel’s Walla NewsTal Shalev… Israeli born classical music composer, Gilad Hochman… Israeli born R&B singer and songwriter, Hila Bronstein… Tel Aviv legal headhunter, Minna Ferziger Felig… Former manager of clinical communications at Henry Ford Health, Lauren Garfield-Herrin… Actress and filmmaker, Hallie Meyers-Shyer… Member of the comedy group “The Try Guys,” Zachary Andrew “Zach” Kornfeld… Analyst at the congressionally created Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Drew Gerber… Running back for the NFL’s New York Jets, Tarik Cohen… Pitcher on the Israeli Women’s National Softball Team, Tamara “T” Statman Schoen… President at B&B Digital Media, Tomer Barazani

SATURDAY: Real estate developer who founded Aspen Square Management, he heads an eponymous foundation known for its flagship program PJ Library, Harold Grinspoon… Forensic pathologist known for his HBO show and his work investigating high-profile deaths, Michael M. Baden… Managing partner of Access Fund Management Company, he is a past president of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, Harold Zlot… Former deputy secretary of defense and then CIA Director in the Clinton administration, now a professor emeritus at MIT, John M. Deutch… Steven M. Mizel… Former chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Stephen M. Greenberg… Artist and museum founder focused on Fusionism, Shalom Tomáš Neuman… Israeli author and television producer, Yarin Kimor… Israeli-born fitness personality, Gilad Janklowicz… Comedian, writer, producer and actress, Carol Leifer… Washington bureau chief and White House correspondent for the Christian Science MonitorLinda Feldmann… Former VP of global communications, marketing and public policy at Facebook, he previously held a similar position at Google, Elliot Schrage… U.S. Army colonel (retired), Jeffrey Brian Carra… Israeli television and radio personality, Erez Moshe Tal… Heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune, now a film producer, Jean “Gigi” Pritzke… Former CEO of the Rabbinical Assembly, she is now the managing director at Leading Ethics, LLC, Rabbi Julie Schonfeld… Member of the Hungarian Parliament for 20 years, then a member of the European Parliament since 2009, Tamás Deutsch… Rabbi at Kesher Israel: The Georgetown Synagogue, Rabbi Hyim Shafner… Former national platform director for the Democratic National Committee, now a political consultant and recruiter, Andrew Grossman… Former chief of staff of the House Republican Conference, he is now the managing partner at Capitol Venture, LLC, a boutique public affairs firm, Jeremy Deutsch… Senior vice president of marketing at Xometry and winner on “Jeopardy!” in 2019, Aaron Lichtig… D.C.-area political activist, Benjamin Rothenberg… Senior vice president at Upland Workshop, Jeremy Adler

SUNDAY: Survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau as a teen, he emigrated to Israel and became an artist, Yehuda Bacon… Chicago radio news personality, Walter David Jacobson… U.S. District Court Judge in Manhattan until 2006, then U.S. attorney general for the last 14 months of the Bush 43 administration, now of counsel at the international law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton, Michael Mukasey… Swedish industrialist and former chairman of the Nobel Foundation, Marcus Storch Ph.D. … In 1986 she became first woman in the IDF to hold the rank of brigadier general, then she served as a member of Knesset, and now serves on multiple for-profit and nonprofit boards, Amira Dotan… Oldest active quarterback, he also manages football teams in Baltimore and Jerusalem, Joe Pollak… President of the Council on Foreign Relations for 20 years until he retired in 2023, Richard N. Haass… Sports columnist, commentator and author of 44 sports-related books, John Feinstein… Tel Aviv-born real estate developer, he has restored many historic buildings in Downtown Los Angeles, Izek Shomof… Partner and managing director of Meadow Lane Advisors, he serves on the board of American Jewish World Service, Marty Friedman… French-Israeli hairdresser and entrepreneur, Michel Mercier… Sports executive, attorney and former president of basketball operations for the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves, David Kahn… Television and radio personality in Atlanta, Mara Davis… Tech entrepreneur and investor, Joshua M. “Josh” Linkner… Co-founder and CEO of 23andMe, Anne Wojcicki… Actress and reality show personality, Elizabeth Berkley Lauren… Inaugural Jewish life venture fellow at the William Davidson Foundation, now deputy CEO at UpStart, Jennifer Lew Goldstone… Jerusalem-born actor with more than 30 movie and television roles in the U.S., Ori Pfeffer… Associate justice of the Supreme Court of California, Leondra Kruger… Israeli journalist and former member of the Knesset, Ksenia Svetlova… Managing partner at Altitude Ventures, a healthcare venture capital firm, he is a former White House liaison to the Jewish community, Jay Zeidman… Senior reporter at Bloomberg News, Laura Nahmias… CEO and CTO at Diagnostic Robotics in Jerusalem, the firm produced an app for managing COVID patients during the pandemic, Kira Radinsky Ph.D. … VP of player personnel at MLB’s Miami Marlins, Samuel Mondry-Cohen… Director of operations at Lehigh Valley Homecare in Allentown, Penn., Menachem (Mark) Perl… National political enterprise reporter at The Washington PostRuby Cramer… Larry Gordon…