Published:
August 3-12, 2010
Source: eJewish Philanthropy
Twenty-seven innovators and social entrepreneurs from twelve European countries and Israel have recently been welcomed by Paideia for its 5th annual Project-Incubator, a two-week intensive boot camp for projects dedicated to advancing European Jewish culture in action.
Since 2006, the Project-Incubator has empowered and educated leaders of more than 80 projects in 26 European countries and Israel, from cultural centers to kindergartens, from theatrical productions to environmental campaigns.
2010 resident initiatives include “Traces of Messiah,” a traveling musical and dramatic production at Poland’s Midrash Theatre led by Agata Nowak and Rabbi Tanya Segal; Jeneration, which facilitates experimentation and personal growth for UK Jews in their 20s and 30s, led by Jude Williams; a Moderne Judishe Kochbuch (Modern Jewish Cookbook) compiled by Sabrina Small, a California transplant to Berlin; and The Venice Center for International Jewish Studies, directed by Shaul Bassi. Additional projects come from Belarus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Slovak Republic and Ukraine.
Paideia was created in 2000 through grants from the Swedish government and the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation as an academic and applied institute of excellence. Its mission is to actively promote the renewal and flourishing of European Jewish cultural and intellectual life, while simultaneously supporting cultural diversity and humanistic values. Funding for the 2010 Project-Incubator comes from the European Jewish Fund, the UJA-Federation of Greater New York, and the Pincus Fund for Jewish Education in the Diaspora.