translating judaism presentation to brandeis v4
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Translating Judaism for the Post-Digital Age
Presentation on the Jewish FutureBrandeis, 2008
Ariel BeeryCo-Founder, PresenTense
Our Motivation
Why?In an age of unprecedented opportunities, and rare if any boundaries, every Jew in effect chooses to live a Jewish life – and there better be a good reason.
As young Jews raised fully integrated into our societies, we kept on coming back to one question:
Radically New Context
Youth knows only the empowered Jew; the victim, powerless Galut self-image is a thing of the past – and messages of alarm do not work for this generation
Digital social networks and global opportunities lead to erosion of local identity
Creation of a Jewish Homeland raises existential questions about Judaism as a whole
Post-Digital Blessings
Post-Digital Blessings
Creative Economy = unparalleled growth in nearly every sector
Since Industrial Age models do not speak to new generation, empowered entrepreneurs are creating not only their own projects, but their own project-generating capacity (ROI, Bikkurim, Reboot, Joshua Venture)
New generation is made up of prosumers seeking participation and co-creation
Unparalleled popularity of social networking platforms proves importance of community to post-digital generation
Global communication generates globe-spanning communities
Key Challenges
Key Challenges
Attention economy pulls young entrepreneurs in various directions
Culture clash when Institutions modeled after industrial age organizations meet youth interested in co-creation and open-source culture
Enormous resources – human, intellectual and financial – are drawn away from a Jewish organizational world that seems closed and is not “hackable”
Jewish community’s highly-developed capacity is not being brought to full potential due to change in paradigm – hurting the younger generation as much as that generation now in power
How to think Post-Digital
Keys to Post-Digital Win
•Focus on Value and enable Creativity in a Jewish Context: to act in the Image of the Creator is to be Creators ourselves
•Invest in opportunities to bridge the old and new: the richness of tradition with the new vehicles for the future
•Create an information-age platform to enable each and every Jew to grow their unique spark of holy creativity so that we can realize our collective potential as the Jewish People
•Value results from an interaction between person and product, but must be bounded by clear statements of core purpose
Tikkun Olam through Yetzirat Ha’Adam
Platform
Platform according to pmarca: “a system that can be programmed and therefore customized by outside developers -- users -- and in that way, adapted to countless needs and niches that the platform's original developers could not have possibly contemplated, much less had time to accommodate.”
=
Not an organization an organizing framework.
We need a Platform
New York
London
Singapore
Buenos Aires
Paris
Bombay
Jerusalem
Moscow
Our vision: A network of creative spaces sharing value, so the whole is more than the sum of its parts
Macro: Organizing Framework
This network enriches current institutions and connects them worldwide
Community Space
Creative Space
Resident Space
Micro: Node Structure Gathering creative sparks =
lighting the Eternal Fire
Each node radiates new energy to its host community
18 Fellows from around the world, 12 Projects
4 Projects come to proof-of-concept in 5 months
Proto-Node in Jerusalem for 6 Week Period
Summer 2007 Institute
Proof of Concept
Space + Network + Enabling = Creativity
Came with: Talented rap skills and an idea for Bible raps
Developed this: A Bible Rap curriculum that can affect youth on a national scale
Matt Bar
Came with: Successful local model for engagement, Challah4HungerGained this: Paradigm for decentralized activism, and acquisition by more established organization
Eli Winkelman
Came with: An idea for a trip to Israel and a passion for the Jewish StateDeveloped this: An impressive proof-of-concept leading to acquisition offers and investment opportunities
Avi Bass
Some Projects Launched
Grassroots events in cities across the world
Arts, culture and discussion fomented
Global network of volunteers developing shared vision
PresenTense Magazine
Proof of Concept, cont.
•Don’t provide the answer, provide the space to question and resources for others to answer
•Focus on value – and enable others to co-create
•Enable risk-taking for start-up ventures
•Learn from established organizations, and work to spread knowledge acquired
•Be the platform
•Encourage hacks
What We’ve Learned
To bring the next age
The PresenTense Big Idea: Translate Judaism’s value into an Information-Age structure
Realize the collective potential of the global Jewish People through fostering creativity
In three words: Network for Creativity