Jerusalem Updates!

We are happy to share this post on the Leichtag Foundation’s work in Jerusalem, written by Executive Vice-President, Charlene Seidle. Charlene is in Jerusalem through the end of this month.

1. Election fever: the municipal elections are October 30 and it seems that, anywhere you look, you are confronted with huge posters, billboards and bus signs featuring some candidate’s face. There are four highly experienced, viable frontrunning candidates which is fairly unprecedented. In prior Jerusalem municipal elections, there has generally been two clear competitors with at least a strong pull to one or the other.

I think one of the most important pre-election takeaways for us is that we’re seeing in real time the trend that’s been manifesting in civil society and among social entrepreneurs and change agents for at least the last five years. There really is no majority in this city, and in order to lead successfully (and be elected for that matter), you need to reach beyond your group to appeal to constituents who might not share your exact same background or national identity. I think in balance that is a good thing — although we will see how it plays out with this election. To amplify this point, we are…[Read more on Medium]