On March 13-16,2008, UI Principal Steve Greenbaum served as Co-Chair of UJC's 1,100+ person Washington 15 Conference with Speakers Madeleine Albright, Jenna Bush, and many others

03/18/08

Following is a press release from the United Jewish Communities:

One Thousand Young Jewish Leaders Gather in Nation's Capital to "Make it Matter"

New York – March 13, 2008 - Dedicated to activism, involvement and service, more than a thousand young Jewish leaders from across North America will convene in the nation’s capital beginning Sunday for Washington 15, the three-day conference of the National Young Leadership division of United Jewish Communities (UJC).

The theme of the 2008 conference – “Make it Matter” – highlights the power that a new generation of Jewish leaders has, collectively and individually, to create positive social change and practice the Jewish value of tikkun olam, repair of the world.

“We are a generation connected to our local and global communities as never before,” said conference Co-Chair Joanne Moore of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. “These connections compel many of us to support meaningful change in varied and innovative ways. This conference is all about helping people channel their passions into action, making meaningful change happen in their communities, throughout North America, and around the world.”

The conference features a diverse and bipartisan line-up of top American, Israeli and Jewish speakers from the realms of media, government, community organizing, advocacy, arts and culture, philanthropy, politics and other disciplines.

Among those who will appear as speakers or panelists at Washington 15 are David Gregory, White House correspondent for NBC News; Mara Liasson, national political reporter for National Public Radio; Matan Vilnai, Israeli deputy defense minister; Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary; Madeleine Albright, former U.S. secretary of state; Howard Rieger, UJC president and chief executive officer; “West Bank Story” director Ari Sandel; Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism; Jenna Bush, author and international child rights advocate; Erica Brown, scholar-in-residence at the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington; Jonathan Greenblatt, co-founder of Ethos Water and senior advisor to the U.N. Foundation; David Siegel, Israeli Embassy spokesperson; Mark Mellman, noted public opinion researcher and communications strategist; and David Makovsky, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Conference programming will include major plenary sessions, forums and other events designed to inspire and empower attendees to be agents of change in their communities, nationally and globally. A gala celebration of Israel in its 60th year is also planned.

Washington 15 participants will demonstrate their political activism on Tuesday, March 18, when they go to Capitol Hill to discuss issues of concern to the Jewish community with lawmakers and senior congressional staff members. 

Delegates will urge continued support for the Medicaid program, passage of the Expanding the Promise for Individuals with Autism Act, and curtailment of nuclear weapons development and proliferation by Iran.  They will also thank members of Congress for past, present and future support of a strong American-Israeli relationship.

“This conference presents an opportunity to impress upon the next generation of American and Canadian Jews the importance of Making It Matter through advocacy, whether political or social,” said Washington 15 Co-Chair Steve Greenbaum of the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago. “On the political front, it is crucial that we, as the future of North America’s Jewish community, develop and maintain relationships with our elected officials so that we can continue to have a voice in the halls of power. These advocacy efforts and the relationships that result are essential to continuing our communal mission of tikkun olam as they help the federation system deliver services to those in need and ensure a continued strong relationship between the U.S. and Israel. 

“Ideally, conference participants will return to their respective communities with memories of a great experience and a desire to Make It Matter by increasing their community involvement.”

A full program for Washington 15 is at http://www.washington15.org.


United Jewish Communities (UJC) represents 155 Jewish federations and 400 independent communities across North America. Through the UJA Federation Campaign, UJC provides life-saving and life-enhancing humanitarian assistance to those in need, and translates Jewish values into social action on behalf of millions of Jews in hundreds of communities in North America, in towns and villages throughout Israel, in the former Soviet Union and 60 countries around the world.