As an organization working in the social justice space, AJWS works to live the core values determined by our staff in partnership with our board, applying principles of diversity, equity and inclusion through a racial equity lens to the entirety of our work. We understand that the process of addressing the institutional, systemic and structural racism that exists in and around our organization is an ongoing process and that continued work is essential to our success.
With our grantees: Our grantmaking strategies amplify and center the grassroots voices of marginalized communities across the Global South, including women and girls, LGBTQI+ people, Indigenous Peoples and religious and ethnic minorities. We seek to learn from our grantee-partners as they adapt to the ever-changing local, national and global contexts that impact them, and we work to engage them with respect and humility.
At AJWS: We strive to build a team that is diverse in race, ethnicity, gender, class, disability, origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, neurodiversity and age. We foster learning among staff that challenges our individual beliefs and perceptions and allows us to reflect upon the impact of our actions on others, promoting strong and supportive peer relationships. Our commitment to dismantling racism is embodied in our cultivation of an inclusive and equitable environment in which individuals can thrive comfortably as their authentic selves.
With our supporters: We aim to provide our supporters with opportunities to learn about with our work and create meaningful touchpoints with our staff, Board and grantee-partners, imparting an educational foundation on the varied communities we support. We also continually seek to broaden our community to welcome and engage more Jews of color, young folks, and supporters from diverse backgrounds outside of the Jewish community.