First Ever IPF Atid Group Departs for Israel, West Bank

For Release: Sunday, July 14, 2019

IPF Atid, the young professionals community of Israel Policy Forum, embarked on its inaugural seven-day delegation to Israel and the West Bank.

Starting today, the cohort of 15 emerging leaders (ages 25-36) is meeting with Israeli and Palestinian senior officials, experts, and activists from across the ideological spectrum in both societies. They will be traveling to key strategic locations throughout the trip: meeting residents on the Gaza border, leaders in Ramallah and Hebron, political officials in West and East Jerusalem, and many other activists, entrepreneurs, artists, and contemporaries from across Israel and the West Bank.

Delegation participants were hand-selected during a highly competitive application process earlier this year. The cohort, led by Israel Policy Forum staff and IPF Atid regional chairs, comprises representatives from Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC.

The delegation will be posting updates on social media throughout the week and sharing their experiences in their communities and nationally through a variety of outreach activities in the months following.

For additional press inquiries about the trip, contact Martin Irom.

Chelsea Andrews graduated in 2015 from Liberty University, the largest Christian university in the world, where she served as the Senior Class President. Chelsea now operates as the Director of Strategic Engagement at Passages, an organization that takes thousands of Christian college students to Israel each year. As a founding team member of this company, Chelsea consults to multiple departments and focuses on rhetoric used around the political conversation. With a personal vested interest in civil discourse, she trains others in how to facilitate and navigate difficult conversations. As a “Red Moderator” in Chicago for Better Angels, an organization that brings Democrats and Republicans together at a city-based level, Chelsea finds a passion in common ground. She attended the inaugural Philos Leadership Institute trip to Poland, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Territories with the Philos Project, an organization that works to promote positive Christian engagement in the Middle East and enjoys working with Middle Eastern Christian communities. Chelsea received the “Ally of the Year” award from AIPAC at the 2019 Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. Within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Chelsea hopes to serve as a third-party conduit for conversations between Jewish and Arab communities.

Sheridan Bahar is of Persian Jewish descent and was born in Tehran. He grew up in a secular home with a strong connection to Israel and the miracle of Zionism. While he considers Los Angeles home, he has spent time living in different cities such as New Orleans and Vancouver. He spent two years of his early 20s doing community-service with low-income homeowners and residents in New Orleans and New York City. Sheridan has a degree in Government and Liberal Studies from the Georgetown University and is currently working toward his graduate degree in Security Policy at the George Washington University. Sheridan is also the Programs Manager at A Wider Bridge where he advocates for LGBTQ equality in Israel and for Israel. He presently considers Washington D.C. and New York City home where he splits his time between school and work. He is an alum of the AmeriCorps, Avodah, and Taglit Fellows.

Ethan Felder is an in-house counsel for the Service Employees International Union. When not practicing law, Ethan is a community activist in Queens where he grew up. He became active in pro-Israel politics as a student at Cornell University.

Brianna Goodlin is an Associate Consultant at Clareo, a growth and innovation strategy consulting firm, where she helps larger companies on startup methodologies, innovation mindset, and capabilities to deliver innovation performance. She has worked alongside senior executives at large companies in industries including oil & gas, consumer packaged goods, building materials, mining, food and agriculture, healthcare, energy, and insurance. Brianna is also the Program and Design Specialist for the Development Partner Institute, a global organization whose purpose is to support the mining industry in becoming an integrated and proactive development partner, delivering on economic, environmental, and social shared purpose. Brianna received her AB in Social Studies from Harvard University with a focus in Genocide in Modern Europe and a minor in Jewish Studies. While at Harvard, she spent 2 years working on an interdisciplinary honors thesis exploring rising anti-Semitism in Denmark. She spends her free time traveling, reading, and volunteering with Year Up.  She was a Co-Chair of the inaugural 2018 Charles Bronfman IPF Atid Conveners Summit.

Isaac Hasson is originally from New York and studied Political Science at Northwestern University. He currently works on the strategy and operations team at Google X where he helps find technology to support new moonshot projects and augment existing ones. Previously, Isaac comes from a government background and has a strong interest in national security. Previously, Isaac worked on both the Google and Facebook Election Teams, on Capital Hill and on a presidential campaign. Isaac is also a passionate fly fisherman and advises social enterprises in the Middle East in his spare time. He was a Co-Chair of the inaugural 2018 Charles Bronfman IPF Atid Conveners Summit.

Andrew Hirsh is a Senior Writer at Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Greater Boston’s Jewish Federation. As a member of CJP’s creative team, he works on a wide range of projects, including donor reports, event scripts, and long-form articles. Prior to joining CJP, he spent four years as a freelance journalist, covering the war in Syria, international development in South America, and the National Football League (NFL). Andrew is a graduate of Elon University and a native of Atlanta, Georgia.

Doron Hindin is an attorney at Covington & Burling in Washington D.C. whose practice focuses on international trade, public policy, and business and human rights. After attending Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston, NJ, Doron immigrated to Israel to participate in a five year Hesder program, combining Jewish studies at Yeshivat Har Etzion and military service in the Israeli Paratroopers, 101st Airborne Battalion. Thereafter, Doron pursued degrees in law and political science at Bar Ilan University and then practiced law for four-and-a-half years in the International Law Department at Herzog Fox & Ne’eman in Tel-Aviv. Doron returned to the United States in 2015 to pursue a Master’s degree in international law at Columbia Law School, focusing on trade and human rights. Throughout his legal career, Doron has striven to identify and implement constructive solutions with respect to various aspects of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. For example, Doron helped negotiate and draft the rules and procedures for the Jerusalem Arbitration Center, an apolitical arbitration tribunal designed to resolve Israeli and Palestinian business disputes. He routinely assists multinational corporations navigate legal and political risks as they pursue business opportunities and benefit stakeholders in the region. And currently Doron is actively engaged in two projects that seek to generate energy- or water-resources through collaborative efforts between Israelis, Jordanians, and Palestinians. As a relatively new member to Israel Policy Forum, Doron is greatly looking forward to uncovering and pursuing new opportunities together with Israel Policy Forum for promoting Israeli-Palestinian co-existence and Middle East peace and security.

Jonathan Kamel is a business development professional at Teads, the global media platform that powers advertising efforts for the world’s largest brands. He is pursuing a Masters Degree in Integrated Marketing & Communications from Northwestern University and also received a Bachelors degree in Political Science from Northwestern. Jonathan is deeply involved in the Chicago Jewish community, serving in leadership roles within Israel Policy Forum, AIPAC, and AJC. He is a regular volunteer on Democratic local and national campaigns and was recognized as one of Chicago’s 36 under 36 Jewish communal leaders in 2017. Jonathan is passionate about securing a Jewish & democratic Israel, one that embodies its own Declaration of Independence and finds peace with its neighbors.  He is Chair of IPF Atid Chicago.

Julien Lederman is a Fellow at the World Economic Forum, the international organization for public-private cooperation, where he has the opportunity to explore his passion of finding ways to bring groups together to address global challenges. Julien also worked at Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and consulted a number of start-ups. Outside of work, Julien is involved with the American Jewish Committee and Israel Policy Forum. He enjoys reading, learning about mindfulness, and doing triathlons. Julien grew up in New York and California, but has spent most of his post university life abroad in France and the UK, until moving to New York City.  He is Chair of IPF Atid New York.

Adena Philips is an organizational consultant and executive coach based in New York. She works with Fortune 500 companies, start-ups, and non-profits in areas including leadership, strategic planning, and change management. She’s passionate about her work with Jewish non-profits that are asking big questions. Adena is also a facilitator for Resetting the Table, an organization dedicated to strengthening dialogue on Israel within the Jewish community, and an executive coach for UJA’s Rabbinic Fellowship. Prior to starting her own practice, Adena worked in the strategy and operations group at Deloitte Consulting. Adena is past Co-Chair of ACCESS Global, the American Jewish Committee’s Young Leadership, serves on the boards of AJC, the Council of Young Jewish Presidents, and the advisory committee for the Jewish Religious Equality Coalition. She is on the board of the Israel Policy Forum and is the National Chair of IPF Atid.

Lauren Post is an activist and writer devoted to combating antisemitism, racism in the US, and Ashkenormativity within the Jewish community. She is researcher with StandWithUs, an AJC ACCESS Board member, and social media manager for the Progressive Zionists of California. You can find her online moderating her feminist empowerment group #ladyboss, playing with her dog Pici, or on the hunt for the perfect taco.

Alexandra Stabler is a Senior Global Marketing Manager at Endeavor (WME-IMG) in Los Angeles. Previously Alex worked in Washington D.C and New York City advising high stakes communications strategy for political and entertainment clients. Alex has supported additional communal organizations including AIPAC and the Los Angeles County Art Museum (LACMA) in a young professional capacity since 2011. She is Chair of IPF Atid Los Angeles.

Mary Ann Weiss is a Program Officer at the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation in Washington, DC. Her portfolio of grants primarily focuses on supporting vibrant and inclusive Jewish life and advancing nuanced Israel engagement. Mary Ann received a BA in American Studies from Skidmore College and her MPA from the George Washington University’s Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration. Mary Ann also serves as a steering committee member of the Washington, D.C. Chapter of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy.

Adina Wollner works in third party risk management at Apple. Before attending university at UC San Diego, she served in the Israel Defense Forces, Nachal brigade for two years as a lone soldier. Currently, Adina is involved in encouraging more women to join the cybersecurity community, is a member of the San Francisco Federation Fellows Cohort, and is active starting an IPF Atid community in the Bay Area as a 2018 Charles Bronfman Convener.

Adam Basciano is the IPF Atid National Director at Israel Policy Forum, based in New York City. In this role, he oversees the activities of Israel Policy Forum young professional chapters in New York, Washington, DC, Chicago, Los Angeles, and in additional communities across North America. He also manages the Charles Bronfman IPF Atid Conveners Program, a new network of emerging Jewish communal and policy leaders working in support of the two-state solution. Prior to joining Israel Policy Forum, he interned on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the Mayor of Tel Aviv’s International Relations team, and at AIPAC. He also served as a Research Assistant for two years on the book, Thou Shalt Innovate: How Israeli Ingenuity Repairs the World.

Shanie Reichman is the Strategic Initiatives Associate at Israel Policy Forum. In this role, she coordinates and helps oversee the programs and partnerships of IPF Atid, the organization’s young professionals network with chapters across the country. Previously, she served as the third committee intern at the Mission of Israel to the United Nations, focusing on human rights issues. She also served as a dialogue facilitation and social change fellow at the Center for Ethnic, Racial, and Religious Understanding.