What Gives? The Jewish Philanthropy Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Episode 54 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network, hosted by JFN President and CEO Andrés Spokoiny. In this episode, Andrés speaks with Zvika Krieger, a dynamic figure who straddles the worlds of technology and spirituality. Zvika was the first ever Director of Responsible Innovation at Facebook, now Meta, though he has had an eclectic career, ranging from journalism in the Middle East to policy work in Washington, DC, before pivoting to technology. We delve into his journey, exploring the intersection of tech innovation and Jewish spirituality. We discuss the impact of social media on society, the search for meaning in the digital age, and how traditional practices can coexist with modern technology. Zvika's insights provide a unique perspective on how we can navigate the challenges and opportunities of our rapidly changing world.

Episode 53 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network, hosted by JFN President and CEO Andrés Spokoiny. In this episode, Andrés speaks with Rabbi Sharon Brous, founder and senior rabbi IKAR, a vibrant Jewish community in Los Angeles known for its inclusive approach to Jewish life. Rabbi Brous delves into the themes of her new book, The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Mend Our Broken Hearts and World, which explores love, loss, community, and connection. She and Andrés touch on the current crises impacting the Jewish world, and how her insights are particularly relevant in these challenging times. Rabbi Brous shares her profound thoughts on the importance of building sacred community bonds and addressing the pervasive loneliness in our society, drawing from both ancient texts and contemporary experiences.

Episode 44 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Dr. Mijal Bitton, Rosh Kehilla and co-founder of the Downtown Minyan, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about being a translator for the stories of Sephardi, Mizrahi, and other non-Ashkenazi Jewish communities. Andres and Mijal talk about what the trajectory of those communities has been in the United States, and the misunderstandings that the larger American Jewish community has about the recent waves of immigrant Jews, politically and culturally. Mijal also gives insight into being a woman leader in an orthodox religious community, and witnessing the transcendence of god through parenthood.

Episode 43 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Rabbi Leon Morris, President of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about his essay in Sources, "In Defense of Surrender in Liberal Jewish Life." Morris argues that a Jewish response to individual agency having eclipsed every other important value is necessary, and can be done through a sense of surrender (of our defenses, our time, and our notion of isolated individualism) to community, rather than submission to authority. Leon talks about what he finds exciting about pluralistic spaces, how thoroughly modern Jews are having trouble finding places for Jewishness in their lives, the enormous relevance that traditional texts still have for our modern time, and what gives him hope for the Jewish future.

Works referenced in this episode:

• In Defense of Surrender in a Liberal Jewish Life
• Kaddish, Leon Wieseltier (1998)
• Judaism in a Digital Age, Danny Schiff (2023)

Episode 42 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Yotam Polizer, CEO of IsraAID, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about how IsraAid is able to deploy to places where Israel doesn't have diplomatic relations, and the knock on effects of sending aid from Israel to unfriendly territories. Yotam spoke about how a humanitarian organization fundraises at times when there isn’t a disaster in the news, and about the steps that he and his team take to ensure that they stay mentally and emotionally happy in the face of this difficult work.

Episode 41 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Casper ter Kuile, CEO of the Nearness, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about Casper’s work in seeking to create a new structure of community experience that uses the ease and accessibility of the internet while also building local connections that become deep friendships. Casper and Andres dive into what the spiritual leadership of the post-COVID world looks like, which models of community we can learn from in creating spiritual belonging, and the importance of the Jewish community asking itself the hard, uncomfortable questions about where it’s going, like what the boundaries of Judaism should be.

Episode 40 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Award-winning author, essayist, and professor of literature Dara Horn talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about her recent essay in the Atlantic, Is Holocaust Education Making Anti-Semitism Worse? They speak about this hallmark of Jewish education, and education about Jews, that has been so prevalent for the last 50 years. Dara talks about what she found in her research for the piece, her thoughts about identity, antisemitism, Jewish culture, and much, much more.

Episode 39 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Daniel Smokler, Chief Innovation Officer of the Office of Innovation, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about how the philosophy of l'chadaysh et ha'yashan, renewing the old, informs his practice of innovation, how his family history of philanthropy influences his own journey, the changes in rabbinical leadership, and the delayed awakening that could come out of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Episode 38 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. David Bernstein, Founder and CEO of the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about the threat of illiberalism facing the Jewish community and the United States at large. They discuss what kind of America the Jewish community should be striving to live in and how that can be achieved. 

Episode 37 of What Gives? the Jewish philanthropy podcast from Jewish Funders Network. Businessman and social activist Eli Paley, talks to JFN President and CEO Andres Spokoiny about strategies for opening our communities to the Haredi sector.