The Jewish Federations of North America (and its predecessor, the United Jewish Communities) long has been criticized for not being sufficiently representative of North American Jewry – not enough young people on board, not enough accommodation of the Orthodox, not enough attention to the grassroots, too much big-city influence.
But in recent years, the federation has gone to great lengths to change that image, from the Tribefest gathering in Las Vegas to the Jewish service day at last year’s General Assembly in New Orleans.
This year’s General Assembly is of a piece with that.
The conference was planned in a bottom-up process in which organizations submitted proposals for sessions, which then were voted upon by a federation committee.
The result, says Joe Berkofsky, a spokesman for the Jewish Federations of North America, is a General Assembly that is “much more reflective of the interests of the federations and the federation community and the Jewish community generally.”
This year, the G.A. sessions are organized into five tracks: Inspirational Leadership, The Innovation Imperative, The Middle East 2011-12, Community Building and Federation Philanthropic Forum.
But of course, as every year, the real business of the G.A. happens in the hallways, in late-night conversations and in impromptu, closed-door meetings.
This is why some 3,000 people get on planes and come here every year: to raise money, network, strategize and help advance their organizations’ missions. One would hope this all has something to do with the good of the Jewish people.
To help keep track of all the conference goings-on, the Jewish Federations is encouraging the use of social media: There is a G.A. blog, a Twitter feed (hashtag #JFNAGA) and Facebook updates. There’s even some video. So if you’re not here in Denver, you at least can pretend you are.
(Yet one more temptation for me to skip out on the confab for the tantalizingly close ski slopes just 90 miles west. Dammit! How come they didn’t hold this conference in Vail?)
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