Conference in Boston.

Last week, The David Project held a four day activism training session right outside of Boston, MA. Hasbara Fellowships Campus Coordinator Elana Lichtenstein attended the conference in an effort to synergize the efforts to create a pro-Israel atmosphere on campuses everywhere. Speakers included former Sudanese and Mauritanian slaves who spoke about Muslim oppression, and Jeff Jacoby, columnist for The Boston Globe, who spoke about media bias and working with news outlets to promote Israel. The workshop was wonderful and Hasbara Fellowships is excited to work with students and The David Project this year!

My flight arrived at 6:30 this morning. Despite an exhausting summer at camp and an overnight flight from the West Coast, I have a feeling that the exhaustion isn't going to kick in for a while. Living in New York City(exactly where is still TBA) and doing the work I love, I'm pretty excited. From the sounds of everything, we're in store for a great year on Canadian campuses. The school year hasn't started and already the wheels are in motion. Hasbarah fellows made a great impression at the Canadian student leaders conference this past weekend. So many Hasbarah fellows have stepped it up and are playing large roles on Canadian campuses.
So get pumped up for the year, Eillot Chodoff is speaking at the University of Western Ontario on September 21...stay tuned for more events coming to your campus.
There's lots to do and I'm just getting started...I'll be in touch soon!
Gordon Brandt,
Canadian Campus Cooridnator

Pnina Levitz is engaged!

Hasbara Fellowships Program Coordinator Pnina Levitz is engaged to Jacob Baim from Los Angeles, California! Many Hasbara Fellows have met Jacob, as although he doesn't work for Hasbara Fellowships, he has always been on hand to help out with various activites, such as airline tickets, and waiting in Israir's terminal for endless hours. You can check out their pictures and post a mazel tov on onlysimchas.com

Comings and Goings in the office...

As the school year begins the staff here at Hasbara Fellowships is excited and gearing up for their campus visits with lots of hustle and bustle going on in our New York office. After a wonderful summer and over 150 new Hasbara Fellows to work with,we are invigorated and can’t wait to get to work with each and every one of you. Elana Lichtenstein, Campus Coordinator for the Northeast, just got back from a great advocacy workshop in Boston at The David Project. She’s been working on some great events in the New York area. Natalie Lascar, Campus Coordinator for the South and Midwest is spending her time these days preparing for her upcoming trip to Florida. After that she’s making her way to Chicago, Michigan, and good old Texas. Talk about a whirlwind tour! I have been spending my time organizing my upcoming trip to Arizona and Colorado. The next week I’ll be making my way to Pittsburgh. And just three weeks later you will find me sneaking in some sun while I’m in California. We hope that all of you are getting into the swing of the new semester and thinking about Israel programming ideas because you can be sure that we are !



All of the best and can’t wait to see all of you!!



Rachel Svinkelstin

Campus Coordinator, West Coast

Hear our Israel Sessions Live!

Now you have the oppurtunity to hear the classes from the Hasbara Fellowhips program in Israel. Just click Live sessions to hear!

Alex Cowan is engaged!

Our beloved madrich, Alex Cowan, orginally from the UK, is engaged to Rochelle Rostkier and "she is an Aussie" ( in his own words. You can check them out and tell them mazel tov on onlysimchas.com.

Hillel Leaders Assembly

Campus Coordinator Natalie Lascar attended the Partners Fair Conference at Hillel Leaders Assembly last Thursday at Camp Ramah Darom in Georgia. She was incredibly impressed with the number of students and the excitement and initiative that all of them demonstrated. There was a mad rush to the Hasbara Fellowships table to find out more about the program in Israel and all the things that we do on campus. Students had questions about the Israel program, the speakers, the campaigns, and many of them showed interest in screening Relentless on their campuses. Three Hasbara fellows from the recent summer trip, Ross Diamond, Lesley Patterson, and Lauren Skiba, were talking about the trip non stop and due to their sheer excitement, got a number of students interested in the Israel program. It is always important for students and professionals to be in communication as well as for students to see all the resources that they have available to them from the Jewish community. This fair was a great way to convey to students just how much is available to them. A special thanks goes out to Hillel for putting together such a great fair as well as a dynamic leadership conference for college students.

Back from Israel

Back in the States, we're gearing up for an exciting year on campus! After spending the past couple of months in Israel - learning the ins and outs of the Old City, touring the North and South, hearing from moving and influential speakers and brainstorming together in workshops and activism training sessions, we are revved up for the semester and excited to be working together to spread the positive messages of Israel.

It has been a significant and momentous week in the history of the State of Israel, and, no doubt, there are many different viewpoints and perspectives. It's vital that we use the events of today as part of our overall Hasbara message- Israel wants peace and is willing to compromise for that peace.

In many ways, the current situation is extraordinarily uplifting: soldiers and settlers are sharing the pain of the withdrawal. This is a true example of "ahavat chinom" - the love between neighbors and brothers.

Gaza Pullout

Good ol' NY Times. They couldn't even give Israel a day to deal with their monumental internal struggle. As Israel takes a step that would have been unthinkable a mere two years ago, the NY Times smells blood and is out for more. In today's editorial entitled "Only the Beginning", the NY Times immediately jumps on Israel to continue their dismantling of Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria. This is unbelieveable. As Israel is in the middle of making the most far reaching compromise and creating immense internal stress, the NY Times wants more. If anyone thought Israel would have a chance to bask in the glory of their noble actions, think again.