Suggested Speakers

Connect. Educate. Inspire.

Below you will find a list of suggested speakers submitted by fellow reform rabbis and Jewish professionals.

Speaker Name Title Contact Information Website Topics & Area of Expertise
Uri FeinbergEducatorufeinberg@gmail.com1. Zooming In and Zooming Out: The best we can do is gain blurry political and geopolitical focus. 2. How did we get here: How many steps back do we need to take before we move forward? 3. Resilience, Pain, Sadness and Anger: What a society against a wall looks like. 4. War of No Other Choice: Is it different this time? 5. Leading the charge and demanding change: Women on the front line unlike ever before or anywhere before. 6. The Hostages and the families of the Hostages: Israel needs to take our worst moment and turn it into our finest. 7. Speaking up and Speaking out: Finding our voice, all of us. 8. Teaching our children: Heroism, resilience and standing up. 9. October 7 through Israeli Art: What does it sound like, look like and feel like and does it help? 10. What actually happened and what do I think? 11. Good ol' fashion q/a: anything and everything is on the table.
Dr. Einat WilfAuthoreinat@wilf.org, +972-52-4589967Dr. Einat Wilf is a leading thinker on Israel, Zionism, foreign policy and education. She was a member of the Israeli Parliament from 2010 to 2013, where she served as Chair of the Education Committee and Member of the influential Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Dr. Rafi ValdanSheba Medical Centerformer deputy director, leader in Physicians for Human Rights and learn about how the hospital functions in times of war and his personal take on the Israeli spirit and how it manifests today.
Mika AlmogWriter, Activisit, Founder of Achim L'Neshekmikalmog@gmail.comAchim L’Neshek is a movement that was founded to protest against Democratic Reform, pivoted their goals to become the largest civilian volunteer network on the ground today.
Amir TibonDiplomatic correspondent for Haaretz, Survivor of October 7th from Nahal Ozamir.tibon@haaretz.co.ilIsrael's foreign policy, with an emphasis on the U.S.-Israel relationship and Middle East diplomacy
Col. (Ret.) Miri EisinFormer Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Mediamirieisin@gmail.comGeopolitics of Israel
Hila Peer & Nurit Sheinleaders in Israel LGBTQ+ communityJoint conversation about their work and relationship with the Global Movement
Rabbi Gilad KarivFormer CEO of the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ), Current Member of the Knesset for the Labor Partynirkariv@bezeqint.netRabbi Kariv is the first Reform Rabbi in Israel’s Knesset (Parliament).
Anna KislanskiCEO of the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ)Discusses the challenges facing the Jewish state, and the future of Israel and Liberal Zionism.
Rabbi Dr. Shraga Bar-OnVice President and Director of the Kogod Research Center for Contemporary Jewish Thought and the David Hartman Center for Intellectual Excellence in Jerusalem, and a lecturer of Talmud and Jewish Thought at Shalem Collegehttps://www.hartman.org.il/person/shraga-bar-on/Jewish philosophy and identity addresses a wide range of eras and topics: Second Temple literature, Mishnaic and Talmudic scholarship, medieval Jewish literature, early Zionism, and contemporary Jewish identity
Matti FriedmanJournalistwww.mattifriedman.comUsing discretion when hearing news coming from Gaza
Ofra Ash & Forum Dvorahofra1112@gmail.comThe Role of Women in the Recent War: Meet with Forum Dvorah, a non-partisan, non-profit NGO that was established in order to promote the inclusion of women in national security decision-making processes and peacemaking negotiations.
Haviv Rettig GurCorrespondent and Senior Analyst, Times of Israelhttps://www.timesofisrael.com/writers/haviv-gur
Gil TroyHistoriangiltroy.com
Rabbi Ammiel HirschSenior Rabbi of Stephen Wise Free SynagogueAhirsch@swfs.org
Rabbi Meir AzariSenior Rabbi of the Daniels Centermeir@beit-daniel.org.il
Rachel FishProfessor and Founder of Boundlesshttps://rachelfish.com/speaks to the significance of ending Jewish hate, supporting Israel as a Zionist
Virág GulyásHead of Speakers Bureau, JNF-USAwww.gulyasvirag.coma non-Jew who speaks about why we should support Israel, even when you aren't Jewish, shares her story of growing up in Hungary surrounded by anti-Semitism
Joel ChasnoffComedianhttps://www.joelchasnoff.com/hilarious comedian but also brings in great text studies and serious conversations
Ben FreemanAuthor and Educatorhttps://benmfreeman.com/LGTBQ+ activist, Jewish pride
Sara HefezExecutive Director, New England & the Capital Region - JNF-USAshefez@jnf.org, 617.432.0999 x 811passion for Israel, for the strength in the future of the Jewish people
Rabbi Josh WeinbergVice President, Israel and Reform Zionism and Executive Director, ARZA
Hillary MenkowitzIsraeli Tour Guide and Expert, J2 Adventureshnmenk@gmail.com
Dr. Tal BeckerSenior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institutediplomatic, legal, and policy challenges; Israeli foreign affairs policy expect
Orly Erez-LikhovskiExecutive Director, The Israel Religious Action Center (IRAC)orly@irac.orgThe work of IRAC and the struggle for pluralism, the Western Wall and the struggle for equality, gender and LGBTQ equality, and the fight against racism in Israel, democracy, challenges to democracy and resisting those challenges (the 2023 and continuing legal coup, for example), litigation as an advocacy method for securing the rights and issues described above, using public outreach and engagement with congregation in Israel, and building communities of cooperation between IRAC and overseas Reform Jewish communities.
Tamar RoigDirector of Partnership Development, IMPJtamar@reform.org.ilShare her story of coming from an ultra-Orthodox Jewish background and discovering pluralistic, egalitarian Judaism and what her Jewish journey looks like today. A big part of it is making Aliya to Israel and experiencing Reform Judaism here.

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