Editorial – Forty Under 40: Confidence in our collective future

The only certainty about the coming months is the lack of certainty, as our community joins the rest of the world in navigating these unprecedented times. How will the focus of philanthropy change? Is there a magic bullet to fill the gaping hole where events once filled the communal calendar? And how will a community that placed such a focus on coming together cope with the new normal of physical distancing in synagogues and elsewhere?

Getting to grips with some of those issues will fall on the shoulders of many of those over whom we’ve been proud to shine a spotlight in the past five weeks of our Forty Under 40 countdown, alongside the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC).

The strength of our community and the confidence we should have in our collective future is obvious not just from the top 10 or the top 40, but in the many more that deserved a place.

We aimed to celebrate the lay leadership that helps our community tick alongside such a talented pool of professionals. It is therefore a particular delight that the top 10 features stars such as the incoming JLC CEO Claudia Mendoza as well as our inspirational number one, Jonny Benjamin, whose activism continues to shatter the taboo that once surrounded mental health issues.

It’s also worth making special mention of Rachel Riley, who no doubt would have laughed at the time of our last list at the thought of featuring.

Thank you to all our young leaders for all you to do inspire us and thanks to our panel, headed by the indomitable Andrew Gilbert, for enabling us to celebrate them.