The Gvanim program develops the leadership that is essential to promote tolerance for diverse forms of Jewish religious expression.

In Hebrew, Gvanim means “color hues” — a most fitting name for a program dedicated to the acceptance and celebration of the entire spectrum of religious observance, from Orthodox to secular Judaism. The program was created by the Jewish Community Federation and the Israel Amuta to develop the leadership essential for promotion of Jewish pluralism. Respect and tolerance for a multiplicity of Jewish religious expression can bring more Israelis closer to their heritage and improve the quality of public life.

The people we help

One Friday afternoon Lilach Yalon, a 40-year-old mother of three, was flipping through the weekend newspaper. Her wandering eye landed on an ad which read, “Leadership program in the area of Jewish pluralism.” The combination of words leadership, Jewish and — of course — pluralism are what drew her to embark on what turned out to be a transformative journey. Growing up in a secular kibbutz, Lilach never felt connected to her Jewish identity. In the early 1970s, her family left the kibbutz and established Moshav Sadot in the Sinai desert, which was evacuated as part of the peace agreement with Egypt in 1982. Her journey of learning and exploration about her Jewish heritage and Jewish values has brought her across the ocean to be exposed to San Francisco-style Jewish pluralism. Today as she sits across the table from Elisha, an Orthodox settler in Gush Katif in Gaza who is struggling to keep his own family from being evacuated, Lilach feels fortunate and privileged to a part of Gvanim. Lilach is one of 50 Gvanim alumni working to strengthen Jewish identity and promote a more pluralistic Israeli society.

What the program does

Leadership — Gvanim brings together dynamic, influential individuals. The group includes journalists, a theater director, educators and artists from all walks of life and hues of religious observance. In some cases, people have been brought together whose paths would never have crossed otherwise — for example, an Orthodox settler from Gush Etzion and a leftist secular theater director from Haifa. The object is not only to sensitize this group of influential Israeli leaders to the issues of pluralism, but also to inspire the leaders to become agents of change, each in their own professional sphere and community.

Learning — Gvanim participants come together for a yearlong course of study with some of Israel’s leading thinkers and activists in the area of Jewish pluralism. The curriculum provides enrichment and exploration, exposing participants to the whole range of viewpoints through intensive learning sessions in Israel and site visits to organizations in the field of Jewish pluralism. The program includes journeys to the Bay Area and New York Jewish communities to gain insight into the manifold expressions of Jewish identity, the practice of Jewish pluralism in these communities and the ways they can apply to the Israeli context.

Social action — While there are several programs in Israel focused on intensive study with an emphasis on pluralism, to the best of our knowledge, Gvanim remains the only program which links study and social action and requires its participants to help develop community-based action programs to foster Jewish identity and promote pluralism. This enables Gvanim to have broad impact and truly create a ripple effect from the participants to thousands of Israelis throughout the country.

Learn more about Gvanim action projects

The partners

The Israel Amuta and the Israel and Overseas Committee developed and integrated this program themselves through the realization that, despite the fact that there are a great number of programs in Israel targeted to promoting Jewish pluralism, there seems to be a vacuum in leadership development in this area — especially leadership resulting in concrete action in the community.