Professional Team

Rabbi Inbar Bluzer Shalem is one of the founders and the CEO of Rashut Ha`Rabim. Previously, Inbar founded and directed Haifa Hillel and was the first Hillel shlicha to the University of Massachusetts; she holds a BA in economics and an MA in humanitarian affairs through a joint program of Israelis and Palestinians in Italy. Inbar is the alumna of six pluralistic Batei Midrash programs in Israel.

Ordained as Rabbi from Hebrew Union College. She also received an MA in pluralistic Jewish education from Hebrew University. Inbar is married and lives in Jerusalem with four of the most amazing children in the city.

Born in Be’er Sheva, Bat-El currently lives in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Kiryat HaYovel with her husband Jonathan and their four children. Bat-El is a social worker and a dance-movement therapist, and is also a student in Public Administration and Policy. She managed the education and training department at the organization Aharai! following years of work in the field with the alumni association  and the vvolunteers of the national service program in preparation for the army. Bat-El managed the Southern and Central District of the Beit Midrash for Social Leadership for Me’Mizrach Shemesh. She strongly believes in dialogue among people of all ages, genders and affiliations. “And you shall love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18) is Bat-El’s guiding principle.

Sarit was born in Kiryat HaYovel in Jerusalem and has been rooted in the neighborhood all her life. She is married to Yossi and a mother of three. She worked for many years in administrative management and financial operations in the private sector, until she decided to transfer her skills to the nonprofit sector and help organizations to grow and thrive. She believes that when you smile, the world smiles back at you. Her motto is, “As face answers to face in water, so does one man’s heart to another.” (Proverbs 27:19)

Born in Jerusalem and a mother of two, Jenny is an integrative creator who moves in the worlds of midrash and art. She is a member and instructor at Beit Midrash “Zohar Chai,” a founder and teacher in “Midrash T’nua,” a home for midrash and movement, and a Ministry of Culture-certified curator.

Esther made Aliyah from Holland in 1997 and has lived in Jerusalem ever since.  She has worked as an environmental educator, facilitating community building with people of all ages, and from diverse religious and cultural backgrounds. Previously she worked with the Society for Protection of Nature and collaborated with the Community Council with the support of the Municipal Environmental Department.
She joined the Jerusalem Green Fund team in 2019, working on various projects related to urban agriculture and community sustainability.
She has been active resident in Kiriyat Yovel for the past 9 years, taking part in a variety of forums and initiatives in the neighborhood.
Her main project is managing the Bustania community garden, creating a platform for environmental education, social events and community gardening.

Noam is a native of Jerusalem who is studying for a degree in art at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design. A graduate of the High School for the Arts in Jerusalem; Telem, the Reform Movement’s youth movement; and Midreshet Shiluv Natur, a beit midrash for Jewish Renewal. She is an artist and designer, active in the fields of philosophy and poetry, and edits and publishes books and articles. She s a member of the staff of Maarag, a journal for graduates of Midreshet Shiluv Natur. She has experience in education and group leadership, and she loves books, people, and a dogs. 

Shani Ben-Or is the first Israeli to become a Reform ordained cantor. Her home congregation is Kehilat Kol HaNeshama in Jerusalem. She has served in cantorial roles in Israel and around the world: as the cantorial soloist of the United Jewish Congregation in Hong Kong and as student cantor of Central Synagogue in New York. Shani received her dual ordination as a cantor and rabbi from Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem and New York. Shani is an active member of the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ), both as a professional and lay leader. In 2013, she established T’lamim, a community of young Reform Jewish adults in Israel, and led their minyan in Jerusalem. Together with Boaz Dorot, she is the co-founder of the Nigunim Ensemble, a pioneering ensemble that creates, arranges, and performs sacred music to accompany religious services throughout Israel. Today Shani runs the contemporary track of Ashira Tehilot at the Schechter Institute Rabbinical School, a hub for community leaders focused on prayer and music. Shani aspires to establish a thriving liberal cantorate in Israel: one that is authentic and relevant to the multi-cultural climate of Israeli society, fluent in the musical treasures of Ashkenaz and Mizrachi Jewish traditions, and creates music for a variety of sacred spaces and occasions that are unique to eretz Yisrael.

Sharon Brick-Deshen is the CEO of Kolech – Religious Women’s Forum. Kolech is an Orthodox feminist organization that advances religious feminism, women’s leadership and equality in religious communities. She held a senior position at Aluma, an organization that helps young religious Zionist women during their IDF service. She was a board member of the Ramban Synagogue for a decade, working with R’ Benny Lau to integrate women in Orthodox synagogues.

Sharon has a BA in criminology and psychology, and an MA in organizational consulting, from Bar Ilan University. She lives in Jerusalem with her husband and four daughters, and is passionate about systemic change that strengthens connections between diverse sectors in Israeli society.

Born and raised at the religious kibbutz and chose to live in Jerusalem, married to Or and mother to 3 kids and the manager of Hadar in Israel.

Orit holds a Bachelor’s Degree in psychology and Tanakh, a teaching certificate from Bar Ilan University, and a Master’s degree in nonprofit management from the Hebrew University. She is a graduate of the High Beit Midrash for Women in Migdal Oz. Orit has professional experience in development and management of social programs, development of partnerships and fundraising, as well as communication management and development of tools for evaluation and measurement in social organizations.

Shira is the director and founder of the Gesher Leadership Institute, which trains Israeli leaders to create connection and unity between different groups of the Jewish people in the State of Israel and in the Diaspora. Shira is responsible for all programs and staff at the institute, including leading delegations to Jewish communities in the Diaspora.

She is a Group facilitator and holds a master’s degree with honors in managing non-profit organizations from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She also holds an International NLP Practitioner Certificate.  She coordinates the “Tevel Forum”, a forum for managers of leadership programs with delegations to the Diaspora.

Shira believes in the need to connect different people, from the perception that we are one people, one society and must be able to live together. She was born and raised in Jerusalem, and she has been a member of the “Rashut Ha’Rabim” forum since it was established. She is a social activist in the city, married and a mother of three sons and a daughter.

Rabbi Mass is one of the foremost leaders of the World Movement for Humanistic Secular Judaism. She is also the initiator and chairman of the Israeli network of activities “Secular Judaism” (https://www.israeli-judaism.org.il/), a forum for the activities of secular Judaism in Israel.  Rabbi Mass has served as dean of the International Institute for Secular Humanist Judaism “Tmura Israel”, the institute for training humanist secular leadership and rabbinate, since its establishment.

Michal Muszkat-Barkan is an Associate Professor of Jewish Education in the Parallel Track at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. She is the Director of the Department of Education and Professional Development at the HUC-JIR Jerusalem campus. She heads the Rikma MA program in Pluralistic Jewish Education in partnership with the Melton Center for Jewish Education at Hebrew University. Michal is the founder and head of the “Teachers’ Lounge” in memory of Shira Banki , a professional development program for Arab and Jewish educators in Jerusalem. Her fields of research include professional development for teachers and rabbis. She is a teacher in ideologies and pluralism in Jewish education.

Tom is a native Jerusalemite. She holds a BA in Politics and Government and Gender Studies from Ben Gurion University. Tom is currently studying for a master’s degree in Creative Writing at the Department of Hebrew Literature at Ben-Gurion University. Tom began her professional career in social change as spokesperson for the Association of Rape Crisis Centers. Later she became involved in communications and production, especially in the cultural and music arenas. Tom writes, plays music and sings. She believes that music is among the most important connecting and healing forces.

Sophia made Aliyah in 2014 from the U.S. where she grew up in a Conservative Jewish congregation. She was very active in her Jewish community at home. Since her aliyah, she has worked for youth movements in Israel and abroad. Sophia holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theater and Yiddish from the University of Michigan, and is currently completing a degree in informal education at the Beit Berl Academy in Kfar Saba. Sophia currently resides in Kiryat Yovel.

A Jerusalemite by birth. Has a bachelor’s degree in social work and is currently an MBA student in the entrepreneurship and strategy division at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Tali comes from the world of non-profits and welfare and has rich experience in managing various projects and courses in Israel and around the world. She worked extensively with children and youth in the fields of education and entrepreneurship and was an integral part in establishing conversations between young people in Israel and the countries of the Abrahamic Agreements: the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. Graduated from the first batch of training for “network influencers” at the Israelize association to change the international image of the State of Israel on social networks. Participated in the pilot program for young managers for success with meaning of the TLI Foundation. Motto for life: try to see the good in a person.

Meirav Shuiki Fishman has been developing content and educational tours for groups from North America for many years. Her extensive experience includes excursions for groups of rabbis, leaders of Jewish Christian and Muslims communities, campus fellows, students and others. In her volunteer activities, Meirav has initiated the “Green Pilgrimage” tour programs – a journey that seeks to create a new message coming out of Jerusalem, which connects between people, their historical heritage and the natural environment, in a way that leaves a “positive footprint” within themselves and in their surroundings.

Meirav is a graduate of the “Rikma” MA program – a master’s degree in pluralistic Jewish education from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hebrew Union College and a bachelor’s degree from the Hebrew University in Jewish philosophy and Art History. Meirav is the eighth generation of her family in Jerusalem, married and a mother to a son and two daughters.

One of the founders of Rashut HaRabim Heli is a member of the Executive Committees of several social action organizations, and member of the Committee on Society and Culture of the Jerusalem Municipality. Hali began her career at Hillel in 1999 and went on to direct Hillel Jerusalem for 13 years. She holds a BA in Jewish History from the Hebrew University. She is the founder of the Beit Midrash for Israeli Singers, an interpretive commentator on the educational television series Ibn Gabirol and Yehuda Halevi, an advisor to the Mifal Hapayis Arts and Culture Council and a member of the steering committee of the site “Invitation to Piyut”. She is currently setting up the “Jewish Holiday Project – Setting Dates for Generations”.  Heli is married and the mother of six. She lives and works in Jerusalem.

Rani is a doctoral student in Jewish thought at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Be’er Sheva. Her research is in the representation of women in the male discourse in the Babylonian Talmud. She holds a BA in History of the Jewish People and the Middle East and an MA in Jewish Education from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Rani is a lecturer and facilitator in educational and cultural projects on Israeli Jewish topics. She worked for 17 years in the educational system, of which she was a member of the management of the Experimental High School in Jerusalem. She served as the Director of the Beit El Midrash, where she co-founded the Beit Midrash network with the directors of other organizations, and initiated the establishment of a network of civil society organizations in Jerusalem. In cooperation with the Jerusalem City Council member, Rachel Ezaria, Rani founded the Association for the Preservation and Restoration of the Old Synagogue and headed the Education and Culture Division of the National Library for a year and a half. She is married and the mother of three.

Eli is the executive director of Alliance-Kol Israel Haverim (KIAH) and the founder and editor of the “Daily Sage” initiative. He served as the director of Memizrach Shemesh, Beit Midrash and Center for Jewish Social Activism and Leadership, managed Beit Hillel at the Hebrew University, and worked as executive director of PANIM: The Association of Jewish Renewal Organizations in Israel, and was the chair of the network of Batei Midrash in Israel.

Former Member of the Knesset, Chairman of the Knesset Reform Committee, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem and Member of the City Council. Azaria has led and participated in over fifty campaigns and movements for social change. Her book, The Guide to Revolution, which teaches how to make social change, was published in 2020 by Kinneret Zmora Dvir.  It is the first book in its field in Hebrew.

Azaria teaches social change in a variety of institutions and organizations, and imparts the knowledge to the general public and social activists. Azaria has led social change in a variety of areas including religion and state, environment, democracy, young families, feminist struggles, and in the field of Jewish renewal. Azaria is a publicist at Haaretz and serves as chair of Life and Environment, the umbrella organization of environmental organizations in Israel, which includes 130 organizations.  She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Hebrew University.

Today, Azaria is leading a social change on the issue of democratic renewal, and an attitude towards animals. Azaria is a graduate of the School of Educational Leadership in Mandel, with a bachelor’s degree with honors in psychology, and a master’s degree in conflict resolution, both from the Hebrew University. Azaria is married, a mother of 4, and lives in Jerusalem.

Shlomit is a native Jerusalemite. She has an extensive background in promoting Jewish pluralism and culture in Israel. Shlomit founded and managed the Itim Center – Resources and Advocacy for Jewish life – where she dealt with issues of religion and state. She has appeared before the religious courts on issues of conversion, marriage, divorce and more. In addition, Shlomit founded and managed Sha’arim – a pluralistic Beit Midrash of Yeshivat  Ma’aleh Gilboa, she worked with the Israeli Ministry of Education to train educators that focus on pluralistic Judaism and Israeli identity and culture, and she sat on the board of the religious feminist organization ‘Kolech.’  Shlomit served as a commander in the IDF and studied law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where she received both an L.L.M. and an L.L.B. Shlomit lives on a kibbutz near Jerusalem with her husband and five children.

Laura Gilinski is VP of Philanthropic Partnerships at Start-Up Nation Central. In this capacity, she is responsible for all Start-Up Nation Central’s development related issues including partner cultivation, retention, and support. Prior to Start-Up Nation Central, Laura served as Deputy Director for Development and International Relations at the Israel Museum (IMJ), where she was responsible for development operations including cultivation and growth of 16 international friends’ organizations; and direct fundraising from foundations, and individuals.

Hadassah is a Jerusalemite, studying for a Master’s in Clinical Social Work at the Hebrew University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in social work and specializes in supporting employment and career development for youth at risk, as well as leading workshops for young people. She has extensive experience building partnerships and community relations in order to develop diverse initiatives and find solutions for youth.

Hadassah, who came from a background without support, grew and developed thanks to hard work and dedication to a goal. Today she gets to give the young people the help and push they needed.

Shira is an eighth-generation Jerusalemite, studying sociology, anthropology and geography at the Hebrew University, in the Urban Planning Department. Has training in UXUI studies at the Bezalel Continuing Education Program. She is a graduate of Beit Midrash Migdal Oz and the Bronfman Fellowship program and loves Israeli literature, art and architecture

Her motto for life: Speak to me with feelings