PresenTense Year in Preview 5770

PresenTense Year in Preview 5770 (2009/2010)1

PresenTense Year in Preview 5770 (2009-2010)

-An experiment in transparency for the sake of collective learning and improvement-

Introduction:

The PresenTense Group is a grassroots organization dedicated to upgrading theJewish People’s operating system – that is, putting into place the processes and resourcesthe Jewish People and their organizations need to continue to serve their purpose in theworld. With such a grand goal, we have determined to hold ourselves to the higheststandards in terms of planning. reporting and transparency – and we have determined thatthe publication of this compendium of our project plans will provide the open-sourceframework for our community to not only understand where we are devoting ourenergies, but also to help us improve our processes and operations so as to increase ourimpact on the world.In this document you will find project plans developed by individuals heading upPresenTense’s efforts, for PresenTense’s major programs and initiatives in the field.Seeing as how we have over 300 non-staff community members actively engaged in thework of PresenTense, these plans make up only a few of the frameworks where wedevote a majority of our time. Items such as FedHeads (workshopping for Federationprofessionals), 2048 (a marketplace of ideas about the future of the Jewish People), theNYC Hub, among others, are not directly reflected simply due to lack of resources tocodify in a formal proposal. We hope that, with time, these too will be reflected in thisannual Year in Preview.It should be noted that plans developed by the PresenTense Group’s subsidiarycompany, PTLogistical Services, are reflected here alongside the PresenTense Group’sown operations, seeing as how part of PTL’s operations are enacted for the sake of PresenTense, and thereby fulfill PresenTense’s exempt mission. Some of these planswere proposed in Hebrew, and they have been translated to create a unified language tothis compendium. Hebrew versions are available upon request.Finally, it should be noted that this is the first time PresenTense is publishing acollection of project plans – and as such there is a lot we can learn. Formulating the bestpossible format was a challenge - especially since there aren’t many other examples of such transparency in our market sector – so we hope the format we chose will be clearand available. We look forward to your comments and suggestions.

Overview:

The PresenTense Group in 5770 (2009/2010) is focused on improving uponprevious years of operations, and extending one of our core products into new markets.As such, whereas previous years were more about research-through-action, this year isone devoted to development and testing additional improvements to our models.The project proposals reflected here cover:Community Division...............................................................................................3PresenTense Magazine Business Development......................................................11The Jerusalem Hub................................................................................................18Jerusalem Fellowship ............................................................................................28

PresenTense Year in Preview 5770 (2009/2010)2Boston Fellowship.................................................................................................35General Management.............................................................................................42Development Division...........................................................................................48The order of these project proposals is intentional: as PresenTense has learned, one mustgather and connect to a community before being able to inspire creativity, and onlythrough a creative environment can one find pioneers to equip and launch.It should be clearly noted that all of the plans below will certainly change andevolve over the next year – these plans were developed and proposed over the course of August-September 2009, and already, as of this writing, elements have changed. Thatsaid, these plans are still valuable for providing targets over the course of the next year –and for understanding the direction the PresenTense Group intends on going.A final item to keep in mind is organizational lifecycle. Internally, PresenTenseGroup has started transitioning from the self-image of start-up to that of a small nonprofitwith a wide footprint; PresenTense currently has, as of this writing, 9 staff members,which makes 7 full time equivalents – but PresenTense’s real power comes from the over300 contributing community members on the seven different steering committees thatdevelop and determine programming for the Group around the world. Whereas thecommunity is the provider of content to our activity, the staff provides the platform andlogistical support to enable these committed individuals to fulfill an aspect of themselvesthrough the Jewish People. Developing that model further – and improving the supportour staff can provide to our community – is a core mission of the organization as a whole,and can be understood as the subtext in many of these proposals. In other words, thecommunity is an asset so very apparent in the minds of our division leaders that itsometimes goes without saying.As mentioned in the introduction, the project plans below reflect only a portion of PresenTense’s operations – but a significant enough portion to begin this inaugural yearof our Year in Preview with a view into what we are doing in the here and now toupgrade the Jewish People’s Operating System.Looking forward to hearing your comments,Ariel BeeryCo-Director, PresenTense Group

PresenTense Year in Preview 5770 (2009/2010)3

Community Division

Developing a supportive community to foster the next generation of Jewish pioneers

Proposed by: Deborah Fishman, Associate Director, Community Division

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Project Summary:

PresenTense has inspired young Jews around the world, through the Institute,Magazine, Creative Zionism and our core values. How can more young Jewsaccess and become a part of PT’s global conversation? For those who havepreviously been involved, what is the added value of remaining a part of ourcommunity? The PT Community Division will work with both young Jews whohave been involved with our network as well as any young Jews with ideas andenthusiasm about the future of Jewish innovation to further a global marketplaceof ideas that inspires, supports, and produces action that can change the world.

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Project Goals and Objectives:

Goals:

o

To lower the barrier to entry for young Jews to allow them to voice theirideas in the global conversation on Jewish identity and innovation in theDigital Age

o

To empower young Jews with the tools and resources they need tobroadcast their voice, their initiatives, and their creativity, to ensure theyhave the support they need to be successful

o

To facilitate conversations on innovation in the Jewish world, and tocreate connections between innovators within and beyond their fields

o

To

build local communities that support and foster innovators andJewish leaders, where some will go on to be involved with other PTDivisions as Fellows, writers, etc.Objectives:

o

To sustain

ongoing Circles and other PT activities

(minimum monthly)

in 8 cities, producing in-depth explorations that lead to action throughthe generation of

pioneer guides and handbooks (one per quarter)

Target cities: NY, Chicago, Boston, Toronto, London, DC, Tel Aviv

o

To use the PT Network to build local leadership, ultimately generating

City Teams

(target for this year: 2 “model City Teams”)

, who will drivethe above activities as well as identify local innovators