The Atid program for 2005-2006 – Theory and practice Content and educational significance For the 2005-2006 Atid ("Leaders of Tomorrow" – Youth for Tikkun Olam) project, the idea of “learning that leads to doing” continues to guide the educational and practical program. Our working assumption is that taking public responsibility and carrying out change requires study and preparation, especially in the case of teenagers, who are only beginning to be involved in social-communal responsibility. Through the project, these young people will become familiar with the foundation of the Jewish cultural heritage, from which they will be able to draw strength for social action in Israeli society. We are assuming that in order to achieve real action one must be familiar with and study the sources and Jewish history, become aware of the various types of social action advocated in the Jewish sources, and emphasize that a contribution to the community is part of the Jewish world view. In any case, such personal inititive can become part of the personal empowerment of the participants. The human mosaic that composes Atid is a microcosm of Israeli society and of many of its communities. Through community study and activity, the students will learn about a variety of situations and types of encounters at first hand, and will be able to transcend stereotypes, while confronting the complexity of Israeli society and the need to find common denominators in order to work together for the community and for society as a whole. Project Goals: 1) To foster young leaders keenly sensitive to the different voices in Israeli society, who will embrace pluralistic, tolerant and democratic approaches, because they have learned the value of dialogue. 2) To encourage young people to take responsibility for their communities, in cooperation with other groups in the community and in Israeli society, and to have them implement a joint community project together. 3) To develop a sense of pride among young people from Israel’s southern periphery and to nurture young leadership in this region. Three Main Intended Outcomes: 1) religious-secular encounter with "the other," resulting in more understanding, less fear and a greater ability to listen; 2) the development of an active civil leadership, one that takes personal initiative; 3) deeper and more thoughtful Jewish identity. A DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVITY UNITS: Session 1: Topic One: The Jewish calendar as social dialogue The Jewish calendar from a personal and national perspective: Emphasis on the uniqueness of the Jewish calendar as a combination of the cosmic cycle that is not dependent on man and his actions, with nationalist elements that are determined and created as a result of man’s actions. The Jewish calendar therefore constitutes one of the main keys to an understanding of our culture. Through this unit we create an opening for the participants to get to know one another. Topic Two: The image of a leader What is the mosaic of characteristics that make a leader, what are the tools needed by a person who wants to influence and to lead, what is the place of a leader in social change? The study will be carried out by learning about leaders throughout history. We will discuss the positive aspects of leadership and the dangers in various types of leadership. Session 2: Topic: The material and the spiritual Shabbat is one of the social gifts that Judaism gave to the world. However, Shabbat in Israeli society has many faces: religious, human - psychological, social - egalitarian, national, family, et al. The discussion will open with a presentation of “My Shabbat,” with every participant explaining his concept of Shabbat to his friends. Afterwards we will discuss Shabbat in light of the six days of Creation (the command to work and the command to rest). During the second part of the day, we will discuss social dilemmas surrounding Shabbat in Israeli society. By playing a simulation game, the students will learn about the complexities and the significance of the Shabbat issue in contemporary times, when personal freedom and freedom of occupation contradict religious values on the one hand, and social ones on the other. The topics that will come up: the consumer culture, the desire for rest, freedom of choice and the need to respect the other. Session 3: Topic: "Chanukah – Transformations of a holiday and what does it mean to me?" – Discussion about slogans and the values for which we would be willing to fight today. Session 4: Topic One: Memory and Identity: "The 10th of Tevet – Destruction and Rebuilding; the Promised Land and Security; the people and the land; Democracy, the Land of Israel and the State of Israel: values in conflict?" Are the destruction of the Temple and the Exile still painful to us? How do I feel personally about the foundational events of Jewish history? Is the link between the Jewish people and its land essential or necessary? Topic Two: In the light of the events of the past summer, we deepened our discussions about the Disengagement and its implementation, and clarified together with the participants their feelings that came up. What are the deep challenges today for Israeli society in dealing with the social implications of the withdrawal from Gush Katif? Session 5: Topic: Tikkun Olam [Improving the world] The session will take place around the time of Tu B’Shvat. Through a number of ideas that lie behind this day, we will deal with ideas of tikkun olam: First, this is a holiday that is clearly related to nature. We will therefore deal with the topic “Man as a product of his childhood landscape.” To what extent do our surroundings influence our opinions. Second, Tu B’Shvat is also an expression of the yearnings of the Jews throughout the generations. Therefore we will ask whether and for what we yearn today. Third, we will deal with man’s obligation towards creation – tikkun olam – as part of the agreement between G-d and man since the time of Genesis. Man must improve the world while preserving it – the material and spiritual quality of the environment. Later on we will hold a discussion about “My tikkun,” and from there we will begin a search for targets for concrete social action, and examine action as a force for change. Session 6: Topic: "What have I done for a country?" – "Jewish identity": Is it just a definition or is it also an obligation? What do the sources say about the obligation a person has towards his or her fellow human being? (In anticipation of joint community activity projects) Session 7: Topic: Mask and content Before Purim we will deal with the meaning of the “backdrop” to our actions and its contribution to success. What do the symbols in our lives represent, and how do they shape identity? The session will deal with “The relationship between form and content,” and how the two elements will serve us when we come to carry out change. Understanding that the backdrop is not a negative aspect of action, that publicity is important. How can one enlist public opinion and the media and attract their attention. A pre-activity progress report, and a discussion of the anticipated difficulties, a search for solutions within the group. Session 8: Topic: Tzedek and tzedaka [Justice and charity] A discussion of Talmudic texts dealing with the subject of tzedek [justice] and tzedaka [charity]. What is an act of tzedaka? What are the various levels of tzedaka? Learning about the statistics for poverty and unemployment in the State of Israel, about the distribution of resources. Meeting people who did something in order to bring about change. What is communal food distribution – how can one leave the vicious cycle of poverty? At this stage we will start the real study of the stages of preparation necessary in order to do something meaningful: setting a goal, preparing the tasks, noting the difficulties, possible solutions and types of action, allocating roles in the group in order to begin work. Session 9: Topic: Learning how to bring about change Each group will carry out the activity that it chose and planned. Documentation of the activity in order to study it afterwards – both each group for itself and in the general forum. Session 10: Topic: Summing up Presentation to the general forum of the social action activities, examining the implications of the activity, drawing conclusions and learning from the successes and the disappointments. A summing up of the entire program