Schmooze with us at Limmud! Join OLAM’s UK Community Manager Emma Weleminsky and Jewish Service Corps Fellow for OLAM, Angela Stoddard, for some informal networking and nosh. Sunday, Dec. 25th at 2.10pm in the main bar. If you’re unable to make it, email Emma at [email protected] to arrange another time to meet.
Below, find sessions of interest to OLAM and our network. These include sessions facilitated by OLAM and our partners, as well as others, on topics relating to global Jewish responsibility, the Ukraine crisis, Jewish activism, refugees, and more.
Session Name/Link | Day/Time | Description | Speaker/ |
Saturday, 21:50 | Most of us want to make a difference. Ideas like tzedakah (giving charity) and tikun olam (fixing the world/social justice) are central to our faith. But working out what to do and how to do it is a real challenge. Bringing together perspectives from effective altruism and Jewish tradition, this session will explore the crucial question: how can we use our resources to help others the most? | Abe Tolley, Raise; | |
Sunday, 13:00 | As the war in Ukraine reaches almost the year mark, what do charities do now? Does the Jewish public still care about this crisis? Are charities actually helping? Join experts from World Jewish Relief, ORT and IsraAID to dig deeper and understand the impact of their work and how it will continue long after this crisis drops from the news headlines. | Emma Weleminsky, OLAM; | |
Sunday, 15:20 | A decade has passed since the influx of asylum seekers from Eritrea and Sudan to Israel. So what now? We will discuss what it means to be an asylum seeker in Israel today, what's changed (or not) over the past decade, and what the future holds. | Jess Bricker, ARDC | |
Monday, 13:00 | Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth, will explain how the Torah obligates us as Jews to focus on issues such as the refugee crisis, global public health, climate change and international development. Participants in his ‘Ben Azzai’ programme will describe how Jewish values have inspired their own commitment to social responsibility. | Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, Office of the Chief Rabbi | |
Monday, 17:10 | We are going to learn about the members of an international Jewish network supporting Ukraine. We will look at how this largely under-the-radar network of selfless individuals operate - transmitting information, route donations, arranging logistics and direct medications, food, protective equipment and other necessities without any formal organization or supervision. | Rabbi Alisa Zilbershtein, Beth Tikvah Synagogue, Toronto | |
Monday, 20:40 | Judaism teaches about responsible lending and borrowing, and the opportunity to 'start over' if necessary. This session will look at various kinds of debt in society, but most particularly the unpayable debt of poor countries. We'll discuss how we should respond - as individuals, as nations and as a global community. | Steve Miller, Founder of Tzedek & Restore Community Projects | |
Monday, 23:00 | What do Tel Avivians do after they've drunk their overpriced coffee and taken their dog for a walk? In this session we'll discuss Tel Aviv, activism and all things in between. | Jess Bricker, ARDC | |
Tuesday, 11:30 | Some crises capture the world's attention and secure millions of dollars in aid. Others slip below the radar, leaving communities to cope alone. We'll explore why almost half of all humanitarian funding this year has gone to just five emergencies and discuss what this means for those affected, from drought in Kenya to Vanuatu's mental health crisis. | Hannah Sharron & Juliana Peña, IsraAID | |
Tuesday, 14:10 | One in every 78 people in the world today is displaced. Each individual grapples with difficult questions and decisions surrounding belonging, identity and survival. This session will explore how their journeys are shaped by where they come from, where they seek safety and the vastly different challenges they face. | Jess Bricker, ARDC; |