Birthright Israel Foundation Blog

Two weeks after the October 7th terrorist attack in Israel, I took to a stage in Miami and in front of 500 people screamed into the microphone, “My name is Julia Pratt and I am proud to be Jewish.” The events of October 7th shook me to my core. It was only two weeks after the bloodiest attack on the… Read More 

Birthright Israel Onward launched a volunteer program, the first of its kind, to assist Israel's food rescue operations during the Israel-Hamas war. Young Jewish adults, ages 18-40, are volunteering for two-week periods on Israeli farms and in agriculture centers. Within the first two weeks of launching the program, thousands of young Jewish adults applied. Many of the applicants are Birthright… Read More 

Just a few months ago I was in Israel for the semester during a fraught time in Israeli history with the democratic debate and protests surrounding judicial reform. You see, participating in Birthright Israel inspired me to live and study in a Jewish environment that met how I identify with Judaism: an Israel that is bright, boisterous, and confident. Birthright… Read More 

On Tuesday, November 14, 2023, the Jewish community in the US had a monumental display of support for Israel. The March for Israel, the nation's largest pro-Israel rally, was organized with the firm conviction to remind the world about the kidnapped hostages and to confront antisemitism head-on. An impressive crowd of nearly 300,000 individuals convened at Washington, DC's National Mall,… Read More 

I've participated in and staffed dozens of trips and missions to Israel. This last one — a Birthright Israel Solidarity Mission that I staffed as part of my work as Israel Liaison for Birthright Israel Foundation — was the most meaningful of them all. We visited the South of Israel on the Gaza Border Region, which is today a closed… Read More 

Birthright Israel hosted a life-changing Solidarity Mission from November 6-8, 2023, bringing together 18 community leaders and supporters from the Birthright Israel family across six countries: the United States, France, Mexico, Uruguay, Canada, and Italy. It was an incredibly special and unique experience for those who participated. The Mission began with a warm welcome from Gidi Mark, CEO of Birthright… Read More 

NEW YORK — After sending 850,000 Diaspora young adults on free educational trips to the Jewish state, Taglit-Birthright Israel has invited alumni to return to Israel in order to harvest crops in the country’s center, the organization announced Monday. With the infrastructure to register masses of volunteers already in place, Birthright is recruiting alum for kibbutzim and moshavim in need… Read More 

Birthright Israel alums have been standing up for the Jewish community and showing their solidarity with Israel in many ways. It was no surprise to us to learn that when Magen David Adom Israel sought volunteers from the United States to assist with the war in Israel and help best equip the country’s needs through IL-USDocAID, that three out of… Read More 

Eve Karlin, a resident of Los Angeles, Birthright Israel alum, and multi-time trip staffer felt compelled to help Israel following the October 7th terrorist attack. As a personal trainer in the Los Angeles area, Eve wanted to use her skills and network to make an immediate impact in Israel. After speaking with many Israelis, whom she met through her various… Read More 

Teddy Raskin, a Birthright Israel alum and trip staffer along, is a co-founder of Worldwide Friends Foundation, a 501c3 uniquely positioned to efficiently and effectively deliver humanitarian aid and protective tactical gear as worldwide crises arise. After the attacks on October 7th Teddy, along with his other co-founders, quickly launched Israel Friends, operating under Worldwide Friends, and is committed to… Read More 

Recent events at leading universities are shameful dismissal and abandonment of the core American value: 'that the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance." Once centers for intellectual honesty, reflective discourse, freedom of thought, human dignity, and unwavering moral clarity, some of America's most revered academic institutions have now shown themselves as hotbeds… Read More