Welcome to the first World Council of Israelis Abroad Conference
Dates and Locations:
January 18, 2011 3:00pm – 10:00pm Beth Emeth Synagogue
100 Idler Street, Toronto
January 19, 2011 8:45am – 3:00pm Beth Emeth Synagogue
100 Idler Street, Toronto
3:30pm – 6:30pm Sherman Campus | Lipa Green
4600 Bathurst Street, Toronto
January 20, 2011 8:45am – 2:30pm Beth Emeth Synagogue
100 Elder Street, Toronto
Sponsored by UJA Federation of Greater Toronto
Conference Program:
Tuesday
January 18 Location: Beth Emeth Synagogue
3:00 – 3:30 pm Reception
3:30 – 4:30 pm Opening ceremony
Gil Blutrich – Welcome greeting comments from the “World Council
of Israelis Abroad” Committee
MK Yuli Yoel Edelstein - Minister of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora
Affairs - Israel
Ted Sokolsky - President & CEO - UJA Federation of Toronto
Amir Gissin – Consul General of Israel in Toronto
Menachem Kohen - “Mishelanu” – Chairman
Elizabeth Wolf – Chair of the Board
Gil Palter – Campaign Chair 2012 - UJA Federation of Toronto
4:30 – 5:00 pm Intermission
5:00 – 7:00 pm Pillar 1: Building an Israeli Community Abroad –Israeli organizations
around the world
Gidi Grinstein - President and Founder of Reut Institute - Israel
Menachem Kohen - Israeli Centre - Melbourne
Anat Koren – Alondon Magazine - London
Jennie Star - Tarbuton – Israel Cultural Center - San Diego
Eldad Goldfarb - JCCGV - Vancouver
Daniella Givon - JCCGV - Vancouver
Yehuda Freilich - Israel Link - Chicago
Vered Glickman - Israeli Culture Centre- Budapest
Ilan Weiss - Israeli Organization - Berlin
Ron East - Canada Sheli - Winnipeg
Ran Mesterman – "The UJA Israeli Forum" – Toronto
7:00 – 7:15 pm Intermission
7:15 – 7:45 pm From the Myth of Return to the Mainstreaming of the Israeli
Community
Professor Rina Cohen – York University, Toronto
7:45 – 10:00 pm Dinner and Entertainment - The Israeli- Canadian Projects:
Kachol-Lavan, Mifgash, Shevet Hermon
Wednesday
January 19 Location: Beth Emeth Synagogue
8:45 – 9:15 am Reception
9:15 – 11:15 am Pillar 2: The relationships between the Israeli and Jewish
Communities and how to move forward?
Ted Sokolsky – President & CEO UJA Federation - Toronto
Menachem Kohen – Israeli Centre – Melbourne
Jennie Star - Tarbuton – Israel Cultural Center - San Diego
Anat Koren – Alondon Magazine – London
If’at Eilon- Heiber - Israel and overseas department, JFGV –
Vancouver
Yehuda Freilich - Israel Link – Chicago
Ron East - Canada Sheli – Winnipeg
Vered Glickman - Israeli Culture Centre- Budapest
Ilan Weiss - Israeli Organization – Berlin
11:15 – 11:30 am Intermission
11:30 – 12:00 pm First and second generation Israeli emigrants and their perceptions
of the local Jewish communities: North America and Europe
comparison
Dr. Lilach Lev Ari- Oranim - Academic College of Education and Bar Ilan
University
12:00 – 12:45 pm Lunch
12:45 – 2:30 pm Pillar 3: The relationship between the State of Israel and the Israelis
abroad
Mk Yuli Yoel Edelstein - Minister of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora
Affairs - Israel
Amir Gissin - Consul General of Israel in Toronto
Professor Gidi Koren - University of Toronto and University of
Western Ontario, Toronto
Rafi Hadad – Tzofim – North America
Geoffrey Druker - Israel advocacy consultant, JFGV - Vancouver
Israel Pupko – NGO “Mishelanu” - Israel
2:30 – 3:00 pm Israeli Identification and Attachment to Homeland among Israelis
Abroad
Dr. Uzi Rebhun - The A. Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry
and The Hebrew University, Jerusalem
3:00 – 3:30 pm Transfer to Sherman Campus – Lipa Green Centre
Breaking to Location: Sherman Campus - Lipa Green Centre
workshops
3:30 – 6:30 pm 1. Education and Identity of the Second Generation
Chairs: Sara Dobner & Israel Pupko
2. Business, Social and Professional Involvement In Israel
Chairs: Gil Blutrich & Gidi Koren
3. Community Building and Cultural Identity
Chair: Ran Mesterman & Menachem Cohen
6:30 – 7:15 pm Dinner for out of town guests
Thursday Location: Beth Emeth Synagogue
January 20
8:45 – 9:15 am Assembly
9:15 – 10:00 am Presentation of working committees
1. Education and Identity of the Second Generation
2. Business, Social and professional involvement In Israel
3. Community Building and Cultural Identity
10:00 – 11:30 Putting it all together – Reflections, lessons and next steps
Sara Dobner – "The UJA Israeli Forum" - Transformation of identity
– the Israeli-Jewish dilemma
Rabbi Israel Landa – Preserving the Jewish Identity
Nadia Prigat – “Habait Haisraeli”
Hasia Israeli - Chief program officer &Head of North America
delegation -Future relations with the Jewish Agency for Israel
Israel Pupko - “Mishelanu” – Opening dialog for the future
Rafi Hadad – Tzofim – The young of today the future of tomorrow
11:30 – 11:45 Intermission
11:45 – 12:15 Closing ceremony
Ted Sokolsky - President & CEO UJA Federation of Toronto
Gil Blutrich – Thank you from the “World Council of Israelis Abroad”
Committee
12:15 – 1:00 pm Lunch
1:00 – 1:45 pm Natan Sharansky – Chairman of the Executive, Jewish Agency For Israel
(JAFI)
World Council of Israelis abroad Conference Committee:
Ran Mesterman
Sara Dobner
Rina Cohan
Gidi Koren
Gil Blutrich
World Council of Israelis Abroad Conference Professionals:
Nella Feldsher
Orit Ben-Or
Galya Sarner
Israel Pupko
World Council of Israelis Abroad Conference Coordinator:
Orit Ben-Or
Special thank you to Ted Sokolsky, President & CEO - UJA
Federation of Toronto
Sponsored by UJA Federation of Greater Toronto