From the Jerusalem Post
The Jewish leaders of the future?
By GIL SHEFLER
07/06/2011
The rising stars of the Jewish galaxy will be better educated, fluent speakers of both English and Hebrew (at least) and include more women, if the following list is any indication.
We chose 10 people – media moguls, political activists, diplomats, artists and speechwriters – under the age of 32 who are doing interesting things in the Jewish sphere. While we believe these individuals are certainly among the best and the brightest, the list could have easily been expanded to include another 10, 20 or 30 equally gifted candidates. The good news is that despite often-heard complaints about the dearth of good, young Jewish leaders, there seems to be no shortage of talent to take over at the helm once the baby boomers retire; one just has to look in the right places. Ten years from now, or even sooner, we expect some of our selections to have risen to powerful positions, and when that happens, we’ll take all the credit for having found them first.
SARAH EISENMAN
Director of Next Generation at the JDC
As one of the world’s top experts on the Dead Sea Scrolls, Prof. Robert Eisenman has dedicated his career to conduct research into the past of the Jewish people. His 32-year-old daughter, Sarah Eisenman, however, is more interested in exploring its future. As the head of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s Next Generation she is tasked with introducing young Jews to the 93-year-old relief group and involving them in Jewish activism in a global context.
“We started involving young people into the service and putting together a young corps where people can go serve eight days, 10 days, a month or a year – just let them get out there,” she says.
Today, about 400 Jewish volunteers join her program every year and are shipped off to faraway destinations such as Peru and Rwanda to provide relief and aid work.
“I see this as being much bigger than the JDC. It’s about creating a generation that can contribute to the Jewish world,” she says. “In 2008 one million Americans volunteered abroad so you can see people are being more global oriented, and we in the Jewish community are trying to prepare people for dealing with 21st-century global challenges.”
For her efforts the Californian native has won the praise of JDC’s most senior leadership, and one official even said she could head the organization 20 years from now. Perhaps that’s why Eisenman is so concerned with revitalizing JDC – she wants to make sure it’s still a vibrant institution if she gets hold of the reins.
To read the full article, please go to the Jerusalem Post website.
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