Guest post by Itai Divinsky, Israel emissary, JEWISHcolorado

JEWISHcolorado and Ramat HaNegev have joined an innovative program designed to bring young adults from both communities together, virtually and in person, throughout the year.

The 248 initiative, which was created by the partnership department of The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), is a global network of Jewish young professionals—and the next generation of Jewish leaders—including young adults from Colorado, Toronto, Minneapolis, and Rehovot and Eilat Aylot in Israel.

During the course of the 10-month program, a select group of young local professionals who are community-minded, collaborative, entrepreneurial, and have some experience developing social initiatives will gather regularly for workshops and discussions, led by JEWISHcolorado shaliach, or Israeli emissary, Itai Divinsky. Topics will include Jewish identity, our shared Jewish future, and our connection to Israel and the global Jewish people.

The group will devise and launch Jewish-themed projects with the goal of making an impact in and on our local community. In addition to that work, participants will learn virtually, alongside peers in Ramat Hanegev and other cohort members in North America and Israel.

A global gathering, planned for January 2022 in Israel, will feature a visit to Ramat HaNegev, where the Colorado cohort will be hosted by their counterparts before coming together with the other participating global communities for a summit. The first yearlong 248 session will culminate with the Ramat HaNegev cohort visiting Colorado, where they will be hosted by our community and when they will have an opportunity to explore what it means to be Jewish here in Colorado and to deepen the connections between our two communities.