As a teenager, I used to groan when it came time to read Vayakhel-Pekudei each year. Privately, I referred to this as the “interior decorating” section of the Torah, and the detailed descriptions of the mishkan bored me to no end. Who cared about the exact height, width and depth of every vessel in the …
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Organization’s 4-Star Rating Indicates Sound Fiscal Management and Transparency New York, NY; March 9, 2012—American Jewish World Service (AJWS), an international development and human rights organization, has earned its 10th four-star rating from independent nonprofit evaluator, Charity Navigator. Four stars represent Charity Navigator’s highest rating and signify that an organization executes its mission in a …
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On New Year’s Day, Maya and I were eating fried pastries on the side of the road in rural Uttar Pradesh, India. I am living in this northeastern part of India as an AJWS World Partners Fellow, and Maya works with me at an NGO that promotes gender equality and women’s health. Maya rented a …
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We often look at Purim as a day of inversion and celebration: we wear masks and don costumes, make noise at Haman’s name, and eat a festive meal with family and friends. But Purim’s meaning goes far deeper than the surface and it is hardly about just masquerading and reveling; everything from the narrative of …
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In third grade, my Hebrew School teacher took our class into the sanctuary to point out its most important fixtures. After the Ark and the Torah scroll, he directed our eyes up to the very top of the ceiling, from which hung a sphere-shaped lamp. With our necks craned to gaze up at the orb’s …
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2012 Farm Bill Reauthorization Gives Congress a Chance to Get it Right with International Food Aid WASHINGTON, D.C.; March 1, 2012– American Jewish World Service (AJWS), an international development and human rights organization, today released its latest report, The Time is Now for Food Aid Reform: Five Reasons Why U.S. Policies are Ripe for Reform …
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Coalition Demands Urgent Action to Address Domestic and Global Food Insecurity Washington, D.C.; February 29, 2012 – As discussions around the 2012 U.S. Farm Bill ramp up, Jewish organizations seized the opportunity to call for reforms to advance a values-inspired vision of food justice. Members of the Jewish Farm Bill Working Group — American Jewish …
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When I applied for AJWS’s Volunteer Summer program in Uganda, I knew that my stay in Ramogi Village would be temporary: seven weeks of volunteering, cultural exchange, education and travel. I never predicted that the experience would permanently impact the way I live my life—then, as a regular college student, and now as a proud …
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The list of plenary speakers for the 2012 International AIDS Conference was just released and something’s missing: women. How is this possible?! Now in its 19th year of existence, the International AIDS Conference is the world’s largest gathering to address HIV and AIDS. More than 20,000 participants are expected in Washington, D.C. this July to …
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Originally posted on the blog of Where Do You Give? On February 3, 2012 the Yale School of Management held its 7th Annual Conference on Philanthropy: “Beyond Best Practices: Financing and Implementing Social Change.” The conference highlighted discussions that have been ricocheting around the philanthropy sector and there a few we just can’t get out …
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