There’s Never Been a Better Time to be a Jewish Innovator
eJewish Philanthropy | March 14, 2016 By Aaron Katler Last week, UpStart closed applications for our 2016 Accelerator program, which [...]
Improv Tools for Organizational Impact
Stanford Social Innovation Review Blog | Mar. 11, 2016 By Maya Bernstein, UpStart Associate The structures and philosophy of the art [...]
2016 Slingshot Winners
Mazel tov to all of the UpStarters, alum, and other innovative organizations included in this year's #Slingshot16 guides! Slingshot, A Resource [...]
25 Years Since NJPS: Did We Make it?
January 19, 2016 By Maayan Jaffe-Hoffman eJewish Philanthropy It has been 25 years since the National Jewish Population Survey was [...]
Leading Change Through Adaptive Design
Excerpt from "Leading Change through Adaptive Design," published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review (Winter 2016) Read the original article [...]
School Change – It IS Possible
January 6, 2016 By Maya Bernstein and Bryna Leider in eJewish Philanthropy If you believe that a changing world and [...]
Innovator Spotlight: Jewish Plays Project
Innovator Spotlight: David Winitsky & the Jewish Plays Project David Winitsky calls himself a "late in life Jew." Raised in [...]
UpStarter Spotlight: JLens Lands $5 Million Investment
Three years ago, Julie Hammerman launched JLens as a channel for Jews to apply a Jewish values lens to investing. [...]
Enabling a Culture of Innovating
How might we change our robust Jewish communal landscape by changing our innovation culture as well?
Living and working in Silicon Valley, I hear the word innovation on a daily basis at the grocery store, at the gym, even at Friday night services. Companies are hiring Chief Innovation Officers and foundations are creating new grants specifically for innovation. The word is used so much, but Im not sure we all define it in the same way. Is it innovative because its new? Not necessarily. Is it innovative because it utilizes technology? Im not so sure. The overuse of the word, perhaps, is a product of the misuse of the word. As all educators know, its not about the destination; its about the journey. And, in this case, its not about innovation a product or outcome; its about innovating a process of building, measuring, and learning.
#RedesigningJewish
Have you ever picked up a small pitcher of milk for your coffee only to have half of the contents dribble down the side and pool onto the counter? Often, design is something we dont think about unless it is really bad or really good. And yet, there is a remarkable and nuanced history behind the shape and construction of almost everything we touch, a story behind the design of each object even the container holding your milk. Once, I thought design meant the funky looking chairs that I couldnt afford from Soho furniture shops. Then my cousin, a textile designer, explained design to me in very different terms. Design, she said, is making everyday objects that are both beautiful and functional. She viewed a well-designed object as art and until that conversation I had never thought of everyday objects that way.
