Herzog initiative seeks second global cohort after first produces 20 projects

Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s global Jewish leadership initiative has opened applications for its second cohort after more than 20 projects developed by its inaugural council reached proof-of-concept stage.

Voice of the People, which brings together diverse Jewish voices to develop practical responses to challenges facing Jewish communities, is seeking 150 Jews (council members) from around the world for its next 16-month programme, as the initiative’s first cohort approaches the end of its term.

But for debut council member Dan Sacker, a director at global advisory firm Milltown Partners and former senior adviser to Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, who joined a working group examining Israel-Diaspora relations, the programme’s success lies not only in the projects it produced, but in the on-going connections it created.

He told Jewish News: “What I found most valuable was the council itself: the opportunity to hear the different perspectives in Israel and across the Diaspora and the challenges people were facing.

“They were often similar challenges, but people were coming at them from very different angles. It was a great way to build bridges of dialogue and understanding.”

Voice of the People was first proposed by President Herzog in 2023 as a worldwide Jewish advisory council designed to strengthen dialogue between Israel and Diaspora communities and bring a wider range of Jewish voices into discussions about their shared future.

Following consultations with Jewish communities around the world and a survey completed by more than 10,000 people, its first council brought together 150 members from six continents: 50 from Israel, 50 from the United States and Canada and 50 from Jewish communities elsewhere.

Council members included communal professionals, academics, students, rabbis, entrepreneurs and business and technology leaders, who worked in groups to identify some of the most pressing challenges facing Jewish communities and develop potential solutions.

More than 20 of their initiatives have now reached proof-of-concept stage with support from Voice of the People and its partners.

Among them are Hack the Hate, which aims to use technology to combat antisemitism, and One Five Seven, focused on ensuring Jews are represented fairly in artificial intelligence systems and across digital information platforms.

Other projects include MTT, which seeks to address growing social fragmentation and polarisation; Tiny Tribe, designed to strengthen Jewish identity among young children and families; and Otzera, a proposed model for long-term communal resilience and investment.

Dr Efrat Sopher, a Middle East foreign-policy adviser who heads the World Jewish Congress’s International Task Force on Iran and Islamist Extremism, joined a group examining relations between Jewish communities and the non-Jewish world.

The group developed a Jewish–Indian alliance designed to build stronger engagement with the large and increasingly influential Indian Diaspora.

She said: “We identified a problem that we had not concentrated on enough. The Indian Diaspora, for example, is very prominent, very influential and very eager to engage.”

She said Herzog’s involvement gave the initiative particular authority at a deeply challenging time for Jews in Israel and the Diaspora.

“The president is such a unifying voice, especially where we are right now,” she said. “When you have the name and office of the president behind you, and what he represents, that is a unique selling point.”

Dr Sopher said the council’s strength was its ability to bring together people with different skills and viewpoints without becoming constrained by party politics.

“It helps us get to the core of the challenges facing our people and the core of the solutions, while being able to rise above politics,” she added. “We are really able to exchange ideas. That is where the magic is.”

Serge Touati, a financial entrepreneur and private-equity leader with more than 30 years’ experience, also worked in a group examining relations between Israel and the Diaspora.

He came to the council from the business world rather than the Jewish communal sector.

Despite the differences between its members, he said, they shared “a common enthusiasm to help and advance the Jewish people as a whole”.

He added that while many were affiliated with Jewish organisations, they participated as individuals, drawing on their knowledge and experience without representing particular institutions or political agendas.

“The Jewish world can sometimes be like someone who supports Manchester United versus Chelsea,” he explained. “What we need are people who love football. That is what Voice of the People does: it brings people together at a higher level.”

Dr Sopher is encouraging others to apply for the second cohort, citing both the strength of the network and the support members received from the initiative’s executive team.

“The council is very unique. It helps us get to the core of the challenges facing our people and the core of the solutions, while being able to rise above politics. That is where the magic is.”

Sacker said he believed the second cohort could be “even better” than the first by building on the experience and connections already created.

“You are part of a club,” he said. “Even with people from the council I didn’t really know, there is an instant bond. You know they are serious individuals, that they are dedicated and that everyone on that council has expert skills in something.”

Members of the first cohort will continue to be involved through a permanent alumni network, allowing the relationships, initiatives and collaborations developed during the programme to continue after its formal conclusion.

The second cohort will retain the same geographical structure as the first, comprising 50 participants from Israel, 50 from the United States and Canada and 50 from Jewish communities from across the globe.

Applicants must be Jewish, aged 21 or over, proficient in English and able to demonstrate leadership potential and a commitment to the future of the Jewish people and Israel.

Successful applicants will begin by sharing their experiences and identifying challenges facing Jewish communities before forming working groups to develop specific proposals. Selected ideas will then enter an accelerator phase focused on turning them into practical initiatives.

President Isaac Herzog said: “The strength of the Jewish people has always come from our ability to remain connected across differences of geography, tradition and perspective.

“As we open applications for the second Voice of the People cohort, I invite Jews from around the world to bring their voices, experiences and ideas to this growing global network, and to help shape our shared future together.”

Applications close on 12 October.

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