Limmud FSU (Former Soviet Union) is an international Jewish education organization that focuses on educating young Jewish adults that have roots in the Former Soviet Union about their Jewish identity and culture. It was developed in 2006 by Chaim Chesler, founder (Israel); Sandra F. Cahn, co-founder (United States). Limmud (from the Hebrew word meaning "to learn") was originally a British-Jewish educational charity, which produces a large annual winter conference at Warwick University and several other events around the year in the UK on the theme of Jewish learning.
History Limmud FSU holds educational conferences in United States, Israel, Europe, Ukraine, Australia, Canada, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova. Limmud FSU engages with young Jewish adults of Former Soviet Union backgrounds, offering them the tools to gain a better understanding of their Jewish identity and if they wish, to assume leadership roles in their local communities.
Limmud FSU events present Jewish learning and culture in its broadest sense through pluralistic, egalitarian volunteer-run conferences covering traditional subjects like the Bible and Talmud, to history, politics, Israel, the Middle-East conflict, theater, music and dance, the arts, literature and poetry, to Jewish cuisine, humor and folklore and much more.
Limmud ("study" in Hebrew), the volunteer-driven Jewish learning experience, started in the United Kingdom in 1980 and since then has spread to over 80 Jewish communities across the world, awakening inspiration in tens of thousands of participants. In the words of The Jerusalem Post, "Every place that has Jews should have its own Limmud."
In adapting the Limmud model to the special requirements of Jewish audiences from the Former Soviet Union world-wide, Limmud FSU has developed a unique approach to cultural and educational activities, through lectures, presentations and workshops specially designed for the needs of young Jewish adults who were deprived of the opportunity to learn about their culture during 70 years of Communist rule in the Soviet Union.
Organizational structure Limmud FSU is governed by an International Steering Committee (ISC), which approves its programs and budgets. The ISC has representatives from supporting organizations, donor foundations and sponsors, as well as individuals who actively promote Limmud FSU’s educational and cultural work.
An Executive Committee sets operational policy for Limmud FSU, authorizes budgetary adjustments between ISC sessions and sets guidelines for the preparation of the annual work plan. Currently, its members include: Matthew Bronfman, Chairman; Aaron Frenkel, President; Sandra Cahn, Co-Founder and Chair of the FRD Committee, and Chaim Chesler, Founder, Limmud FSU, and Chair of the Executive Committee.
A professional project manager and staff in each country reports to the Executive Director, Natasha Chechik.
Funding Limmud FSU International Foundation is registered in the United States as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Limmud FSU follows a policy of gradual incremental rises in the level of participation fees to ensure appropriate payment for a quality program. The aim is to bring each community to a level of 80 percent of the direct costs of their conferences. Currently, a global network of private individuals and partner organizations funds annual Limmud FSU conferences and volunteer training sessions.
Limmud FSU Labs Limmud FSU Labs is a joint project of Limmud FSU and the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs of the State of Israel, established in 2019. The goal is to create a meaningful and ongoing platform for varying forms of Jewish expression among different communities of young Russian-speaking Jews around the world, in order to promote a sense of national, collective and personal identity with the Jewish people and with the State of Israel.
Through the project, regional "Laboratories" are being created to provide comprehensive support, both professional and financial, for the development of educational and community initiatives among young Jews with roots in the FSU. It operates in the 11 centers where Limmud FSU annual conferences currently take place, with an aim to provide an ongoing Jewish experience between the main Limmud FSU events. However, initiatives can be realized not only in the cities where Limmud FSU events have already occurred, but also in any other city in the following countries and centers: Ukraine, Moldova, Australia, Canada, United States and Western Europe.
Timeline Below is a timeline of Limmud FSU's key conferences:
Year City 2006 Moscow (Russia) 2007 Moscow (Russia) 2008 Moscow (Russia) Leadership Training Ashqelon (Israel) Yalta (Ukraine) 2009 Moscow (Russia) Jerusalem (Israel) Hamptons (New York) Birobidzhan (Far East Russia) 2010 Jerusalem (Israel) Hamptons (New York) Moscow (Russia) Truskavets (Ukraine) Odesa (Ukraine) New Orleans – 5th Anniversary 2011 Moscow (Russia) Beersheba (Israel) Vinnytsia (Ukraine) St Petersburg (Russia) Odesa (Ukraine) Global Leadership Summit (Jerusalem, Israel) 2012 Moscow (Russia) Princeton (US) Chișinău (Moldova) St Petersburg (Russia) Uzhhorod (Ukraine) Nazareth Illit (Israel) 2013 Princeton (US) Moscow (Russia) Vitebsk (Belarus) Odesa (Ukraine) St Petersburg (Russia) Jerusalem (Israel) New York – 7th Anniversary 2014 Parsippany New Jersey (US) Moscow (Russia) Toronto, Ontario (Canada) - Deerhurst Chișinău (Moldova) Global Leadership Summit (Jerusalem, Israel) 2015 Toronto, Ontario (Canada) - Blue Mountain Resort Melbourne (Australia)Moscow (Russia)Lviv (Ukraine)Kibbutz Ginossar (Israel)New YorkChișinău (Moldova) Sydney (Australia)Kazan 2016 Toronto, Ontario (Canada) - Schwartz/Reisman Centre Sydney (Australia)Moscow (Russia)New YorkMinsk (Belarus)Eilat (Israel)Los Angeles Lviv (Ukraine)Saint Petersburg (Russia) 2017 Windsor, Berkshire (United Kingdom)Toronto, Ontario (Canada)Moscow (Russia)New York San FranciscoOdesa (Ukraine)Saint Petersburg (Russia)Chișinău (Moldova)Eilat (Israel) 2018 Sydney (Australia)Toronto, Ontario (Canada)Moscow (Russia)Warsaw, Poland - Global Leadership SummitNew York - Columbia University Lviv (Ukraine)Jerusalem (Israel)2019Saint Petersburg (Russia)Moscow (Russia)Minsk (Belarus)New YorkChișinău (Moldova) Odesa (Ukraine) Ashdod (Israel) 2020Vienna (Austria)2021MoscowNew YorkPalo AltoKazan (Russia)Lviv (Ukraine)Kibbutz Shefayim (Israel)2022New YorkTorontoBaku (Azerbaijan)BostonSydneyMelbourneTiberias (Israel)Warsaw2023BerlinBakuLublinTel-Aviv2024UzhhorodBakuTbilisiUzhhorod (2nd event)TorontoTel Aviv2025BakuKhmelnik (Ukraine)LvivZikhron Ya'akov (Israel)2026Canada (Limmud At Sea)BakuIsrael Camp (Jerusalem)
See also Limmud Limmud International Limmud South Africa
References