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Foundation Update

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

In July 2021, during a moment of transition for our organization, we paused much of our public work to begin an internal process of taking stock, envisioning, and strategizing the next phase of the Foundation’s life. We’re now emerging from our period of reflection, and I’m excited to provide an update about our plans to resume new grantmaking early next year, to introduce a framework we’re developing, and to share that we’ve begun our search to hire a new President. 

Our guiding principle in everything we do remains a core belief that Living Torah can inspire and guide Jews and fellow travelers from all backgrounds to live more meaningful lives and shape a better world. We believe in a Torah that is dynamic, evolving, and in dialogue with the contemporary world, and as an organization we strive to emulate those qualities. To that end, we believe this new phase of the Foundation’s work will help us to extend and deepen our support for organizations that are applying the wisdom of our tradition to the essential questions of our world today. 

We’re so grateful to all of you for being our partners in repairing and enriching the world through thriving Jewish life. Please continue reading for more details on the three announcements I mentioned above. We hope you’ll stay tuned as we share more over the months ahead.

Mamie Kanfer Stewart
Board Chair and Acting President

Grantmaking

Grantmaking to organizations with a national footprint in North America will remain an essential component of the Foundation’s work. While we continued supporting projects we were already funding during our time of reflection, we’re looking forward to making new grants again in early 2023. Over the next few months, we’ll be rolling out an application process on our website for prospective grantees. We will primarily be making grants to organizations that are cultivating, incorporating, or promoting Living Torah wisdom.

Organizations that (a) work to ensure Jewish texts, rituals, norms, and the calendar remain dynamic, evolving, and in dialogue with the contemporary world; (b) apply such wisdom to address different aspects of the universal human condition; or (c) lift up the core Jewish principle of Tzelem Elohim (“the divine image”), human dignity, will be eligible for grants for applying Living Torah wisdom.

The 3Ps: A Framework for Meaning and Belonging

Drawing on the behavioral sciences, research on contemporary Jewish life, and our understanding of Jewish wisdom, we’ve identified a simple framework (the “3P Framework”) that we believe can serve as a blueprint for living lives of increased meaning and belonging. We suspect it can also be a guide for practitioners who seek to help better the lives of their constituents. The 3Ps stand for PURPOSE, PRACTICE, and PEOPLE. We are currently exploring the ways in which the 3P Framework will impact our work. Click here to read more.

President Search

We’re excited to announce that we’ve begun our search for a new President! We are open to a wide diversity of candidates, and we appreciate your help in sharing this with your networks and suggesting potential candidates to us. Please find the job description here.