Wor ld Dark Horizon At UJA Financial concerns underscore General Assembly. Jacob Berkman Jewish Telegraphic Agency Jerusalem W hen the United Jewish Communities began plan- ning last year for its 2008 General Assembly in Israel, the goal was to highlight and strengthen the federation system's support for philanthropic efforts in the Jewish state. But, as more than 3,000 federation lay and professional leaders from North America gathered last week in Jerusalem, their attention seemed more focused on the economic gloom and doom back home. On the face of it, this year's G.A. was very much about highlighting the programs that the federations help finance in Israel, with a dual emphasis on attracting young, "Next Generation" donors and the upcoming elec- tion for Israeli prime minister. The reality, however, is that many federation officials and lay leaders are supremely worried about the financial cri- sis, which is forcing serious concern about budget crunches at best and threatening their existence at worst. It was the constant topic of conversation among delegates for the four-day G.A.- as well as among participants in the previ- ous week's UJC Lion of Judah Conference on women's philanthropy in Tel Aviv. The major fear is a drop in donations coinciding with a sharp rise in charitable need. Such a combination would pose significant challenges to a network of Jewish federations that collectively raised more than $2 billion last year for local and international Jewish causes — more than $900 million through their annual fund- raising campaigns, the rest from endow- ments and capital campaigns. Hallway conversations at the G.A. revealed difficult times. The federation in Atlanta is $2 million off its pace; small federations are in serious trouble; the fed- eration in Washington has cut the salaries of its top employees and is facing layoffs; the Las Vegas federation is looking at hard times due to the collapse of both the real estate market and the gaming industry. The UJC, the system's umbrella, is trying to remain optimistic and realistic. Many of Next Generation "This might be your grandparents' federation system, but now it should belong to you." That was essentially the message organizers of this year's United Jewish Communities General Assembly were hoping to hammer home by programming an entire day aimed at "Next Gen" participants. The effort drew about 800 participants. "We need to broaden our donor base," said CJF Chairman Joe Kanfer. "It's a lot better if they participate and build this on their own than if we try to sit in our old rocking chairs and try to figure it out for them in traditional ways that may have worked perfectly the system's largest federations already have had their first Delegates listen to the G.A. proceedings. major fundrais- ers for the 2008-09 end Dec. 31 may be in serious trouble. campaigns and done well, the UJC's presi- Compounding the concern is the impact dent and CEO Howard Rieger said at a of the down-spiraling stock market on news conference. federation endowments. Federations Still, while initial total numbers for earned approximately $1.5 billion last pledges may have increased, the number year from their endowments in new con- of donors has dropped significantly, Rieger tributions and returns on investments. acknowledged. Endowments almost uniformly have been There is optimism that large federations hit hard in recent months. most likely will come through 2008 reason- While most federation-raised money ably well because their fiscal years ended in goes to help Jews in North America, about late summer or early fall. Small federations 33 percent is used for overseas causes. In with campaigns of $3 million or less that Detroit, the figure is closer to 50 percent. ❑ for our parents' generation, may have worked very well for us, but may not work as well for these next genera- tions." The day dedicated to the younger participants started off at Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial with a series of speeches from UJC officials and young federation leaders - most of whom are in their 40s - as well as an address by Edgar Bronfman. The UJC then loaded up 19 busses and headed out to various sites that the organization felt would resonate with the participants - most of whom were Americans already in Israel on programs affiliated with the Jewish Agency's MASA initiative, Hillel and groups such as Kol Dor. Participants paid nothing for par- ticipating. The Bronfman Foundation, which kicked in $100,000, and other funders footed the bill at $75-per-per- son for those who took part only in the "Next Gen" day, and $300 for those who attended the rest of the four-day G.A. Several admitted they did not know what a G.A. was and were in atten- dance only because their programs recruited them. The UJC acknowledg- es the problem, but officials say that they are working on new ways to teach younger generations about the work the federation system does - because old tactics simply are not working. Campaign Trail Israeli candidates stump before U.S. Jews. Urlel Heilman Jewish Telegraphic Agency Jerusalem W bile America just completed an election about the future, Israel is entering an election campaign that seems mired in the past. The three leading candidates for prime minister are two men who already have held the post and a woman who had the premiership in her hands last month but failed to assemble a governing coalition, A30 November 27 • 2008 3N prompting new elections in February. Israel has been unable to demonstrate concrete progress in its peace talks with the Palestinians, unable to thwart the Iranian nuclear threat and unable to offer up a candidate who represents a break with the policies of the past. It was against this backdrop that the three major Israeli candidates for prime minister — Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud, Tzipi Livni of Kadima and Ehud Barak of Labor — presented themselves last week to American Jews at the annual General Assembly of the United Jewish Communities. "We are living in tough times in a tough neighborhood; Barak, Israel's defense minister, said in his plenary address. "For Israel to survive in this corner of the world means to stand firm, open-eyed, ready to Benjamin Netanyahu stretch its hand, preferably the left hand, to find — to open any door, any window — to try to find a way ing finger close to the trigger, ready to pull to make peace. it whenever ifs necessary. That's the situa- "At the same time, we should have the tion that dominates our lives." other hand, the right hand, with the point- The appearances of the three major-