Elluminate’s successful Convening 2024 took place on November 21st, where more than 230 people came together as a community to grapple with today’s most emergent issues through a gender and Jewish lens. It was a moving and meaningful day of solidarity, inspiration and learning.
At the Convening, we engaged with women experts on the state of women at the global, national and local levels; Israeli women’s leadership; abortion access; combating antisemitism; sustainable feminist funding for women and girls; activism through the arts and the importance of storytelling to activate and create change; and so much more.
To see an overview of the Convening enjoy the video below:
Our plenary sessions are below – click the session titles to access the video recordings:
Driving Sustainable Feminist Movements For Social Impact Around the World – A presentation by the author of The Everyday Feminist: The Key to Sustainable Social Impact – Driving Movements We Need Now More Than Ever on how everyday feminists worldwide are creating change—and how we can more effectively support their essential efforts.
Featured Speaker: Latanya Mapp, President and CEO of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors
The State of Women in America Post-Presidential Election – The future of women’s equality and advancement in America is at the center of the 2024 U.S. elections, nationally and locally. We will gather with experts to grapple with the election outcome and set a path forward.
Moderator: Jodi Rudoren, Editor-in-Chief, The Forward
Speakers:
- Idit Klein, President & CEO, Keshet
- Yolanda Savage-Narva, Vice President of REDI Communities of Belonging, Union of Reform Judaism
- Shira Zemel, Director of Abortion Access, National Council of Jewish Women
- Ruth Messinger, American Jewish World Service Global Ambassador, Social Justice Consultant and Elluminate Collective Educator
Israeli Women’s Leadership Post-October 7 – A year after the attacks on October 7th, Israeli women continue to speak out against wartime sexual crimes at the international level and work to strengthen women’s leadership and civil society during wartime. We will hear from Israeli women leaders about their lived experiences and where we go from here.
Moderator: Meredith Jacobs, CEO, Jewish Women International
Speakers:
- Moran Zer Katzenstein, Founder, Bonot Alternativa
- Tamar Shwartz, CEO, Women’s Spirit
- Ifat Baron, Founder and Executive Director, itworks
Workshop 1: Jewish Women Combating Antisemitism and Hate
Together, we learned the insidious ways Antisemitism and other forms of hate show up in in-person interactions and online and how they address them individually and systemically.
Moderator: Brandi Katz Rubin, Deputy Regional Director, ADL NY/NJ
Speakers:
- Julia Jassey, Co-Founder and CEO, Jewish on Campus
- Allison Tombros Korman, Founder and Executive Director, The Red Tent Fund
- Alana Zeitchik, Executive Director, The Narrow Bridge Project, Hostage Family Advocate
Workshop 2: Looking at Social Justice through a Jewish & Gender Lens
In this edifying panel, speakers described how they use a Jewish and gender lens to advance social justice.
Moderator: Nancy Kaufman, Elluminate Senior Advisor
Speakers:
- Cheryl Cook, CEO, Avodah
- Shoshana McKinney Kirya-Ziraba, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Tikvah Chadasha Uganda
- Daphne Lazar Price, Executive Director, Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance
- Rabbi Mary Zamore, Executive Director, Women’s Rabbinic Network
Workshop 3: Advocacy for Women’s Equality, Abortion Access, & Against Human Trafficking
Panelists roused the audience by describing the power of legislative advocacy to prevent abuse before it happens and ensure that abortion and other reproductive care is available to everyone who needs it and what’s next after the success of the New York State ERA.
Moderator: Ruth Messinger, Elluminate Senior Advisor
Speakers:
- Lori Cohen, CEO, Protect All Children from Trafficking (PACT)
- Julie F. Kay, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine (ACT)
- Marcy Syms, Chair, ERA Project, Center for Gender and Sexuality Law at Columbia University
Afternoon Plenary Session, Activism Through Art
Suffs ERA – A fireside chat looking at the creation of Suffs — the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical — and how it is making an impact on recenter women’s history and the movement women led to gain the rights we have today … ones we cannot take for granted and must continue to guarantee.
Speakers:
- Rachel Sussman, Producer of Suffs
- Rachel Weinstein, Tony Award-winning Broadway producer and Immediate Past President of Elluminate
On Being Jewish Now – During a time of growing antisemitism since October 7, Zibby Owens has created a space for authors and advocates to express how life has changed and the unique culture that brings them together. The voices in the On Being Jewish Now collection unite readers and make everyone feel less alone in unsettling and divisive times.
Speakers:
- Zibby Owens, Bestselling Author, Founder & CEO, Zibby Media
- Samantha Ettus, Bestselling Author
- Jacqueline Friedland, Founding Member, Artists Against Antisemitism
We also introduced and highlighted our Elluminate Collective members who are creating impact in diverse areas, from combating antisemitism and protecting access to abortions, to ensuring gender equality and ending child sex exploitation and trafficking. They come from diverse backgrounds—leaders who are lawyers, social workers, rabbis, educators, activists, and thought leaders; leaders who represent the breadth of Jewish spirituality and practice; leaders who come from diverse backgrounds and from communities around the world. To learn more about The Collective, click here.
