Ben-Gurion, Begin, Rabin and Lesser-Known Israeli Leaders (56:37)
A panel of educators studies Israel’s past and present for examples of people who showed how to make tough decisions, take people where they need to go and sometimes defy the crowd.
Lessons From the Remote Learning Front Lines (39:33)
A rabbi, a day school educator and a Federation/JCC executive reflect on the changes, for good and bad, to Jewish life since the COVID-19 shutdown.
UAE-Israel-Bahrain Agreement (Abraham Accords), Ken Stein and Nachman Shai (46:02)
CIE Founding President, Professor Ken Stein and Visiting Israeli Scholar, Dr. Nachman Shai, who served in the Israeli Parliament for 10 years, explain the context and implications of the Abraham Accords for Israel and the Middle East.
American Jews and the 2020 Election – Context and Consequences, Lauren Henderson, Patricia Murphy, Lynn Sweet, Alan Abramowitz, Ken Stein, (1:13:00)
A four-person panel of journalists and scholars focuses on multiple aspects of the 2020 U.S. presidential and congressional elections in this 75-minute video recorded Sept. 3, 2020.
Teaching Diversity With Israel’s Music Mix, Dr. Eli Sperling (52:57)
In a July 1, 2020, session of our annual educator workshop, CIE’s Eli Sperling programs a youthful, entertaining video playlist to bring Israel’s religious, cultural and ethnic variety into the classroom.
The Progression of Israeli Culture, Dr. Eli Sperling, (1:01:00)
Upon its inception, Zionism needed more than political and financial solutions to actualize a Jewish home in Palestine. It was necessary for the architects of the Zionist enterprise to cultivate a “new Jew” to lay…
Defining and Responding to Antisemitism (55:10)
Incidents of anti-Semitism or Jew-hatred are rising on and off line, on and off campus. What is happening and why? How is hate speech protected? When does criticism of Israel become something sinister?
Religion and State in Israel, Professor Michael Berger (video, 1:02:00)
Even as Israel, like America, guarantees religious freedom, it has been connected from its inception to Judaism, the religion of the Jewish people. Nevertheless, that connection has been fraught with tension, from accommodation of religion…
6 Schools of Zionist Ideas for Today’s Torchbearer Generation (video, 46:40)
Speaking June 29, 2020, to our conference of Israel educators, historian Gil Troy provides insights into his expansion of the classic “Zionist Idea” document book into the more complex, more nuanced, more diverse “The Zionist Ideas” and explains why Zionism remains vital to students in today’s torchbearer generation.
Leaders in Israel Who Made Historic Decisions: Tracing Their Journey (1:05:13)
What lessons can we learn from some of Israel’s leaders about Jewish sovereignty, peoplehood, and compromise? Panelists Rachel Fish, Nachman Shai and Gil Troy highlight some key individuals, including David Ben-Gurion, Menachem Begin, and Henrietta…
Tips for Teaching at a Distance (22:23)
Stand, stretch, jump up and down, and tap into real-world examples of how to make the most of the online classroom.
Israel in Context: How did the Zionists Make the State: 1882-1949? Professor Ken Stein (48:32)
Using archival and published sources, including materials from the CIE website, CIE President Ken Stein identifies six factors as reasons for the Zionists’ success: Zionist political action, the impaired socio-economic condition of the Arab population,…
Israeli Politics in a Moment of Crisis, Dr. Nachman Shai (51:18)
Former IDF Chief Spokesperson and member of Knesset Nachman Shai shares insights into the current state of Israeli politics with CIE Vice President Rich Walter.
Gulliver’s Troubles: America in a Violent and Dysfunctional Middle East, Aaron David Miller (audio only, 1:07:44)
March 3, 2020 Aaron David Miller analyzes the evolving role of the United States in Middle Eastern and Israeli politics and diplomatic processes. Miller currently serves as vice president for new initiatives and a distinguished research…
Trump Plan for the Middle East: Context and Implications (43:32)
The analysis summarizes the declaratory or aspirational Trump Plan for a Palestinian-Israeli settlement, outlining proposals on final status issues, and the proposed economic development package, with a hope for a two state-solution. Maps are used to show how Palestine’s and Israel’s borders have changed over the last 150 years. (Video or audio)
Religious Zionism, Professor Michael Berger (video, 57:00)
During the 2019 CIE/ISMI Educator Workshop on Modern Israel, Emory University Professor Michael Berger traces the evolution of religious Zionism from its roots in Europe to its participation in current Israeli politics.
The Haredim and the State of Israel, Professor Michael Berger (1:01:30)
During the 2019 CIE/ISMI Educator Workshop on Modern Israel, Emory University Professor Michael Berger discusses how Hasidism was one of the most important Jewish innovations of its time, the evolution of ultra-Orthodoxy, and the status of Haredim within Israel today.
Arab Minority and the Challenge of Integration, Professor Yitzhak Reiter (video, 1:03:22)
During the 2019 CIE/ISMI Educator Workshop on Modern Israel, Professor Yitzhak Reiter of Ashkelon Academic College discusses Israel’s Arab minority. The talk focuses on the factors that impact relations between Israel’s Jews and Arabs, the impact of the 2018 Nation State Law, and the conflict between civic and national identities.
Previewing the 2019 Bahrain Economic Summit (video, 38:32)
CIE President Ken Stein speaks with David Makovsky, the Ziegler distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy on June 19, 2019. The major focus of the discussion was on the upcoming US led Peace to Prosperity workshop which was held in Bahrain June 25 and 26, 2019 at which Makovsky was an observer. Stein and Makovsky discuss, in-depth, the economic summit, the Trump administration’s Middle East Peace Plan, and the prospects for success.
How Israeli Politics and Culture Intersect (30:13)
CIE Vice President Rich Walter speaks with Eli Sperling, Academic Research Coordinator of the Emory Institute for the Study of Modern Israel and a Visiting Professor for the Tam Institute of Jewish Studies at Emory University about the influence of politics in Israeli culture.
40th Anniversary of the Egyptian-Israeli Treaty, Ken Stein and Michael Jacobs (44:57)
March 26, 2019 From 1967 forward, Arab-Israeli negotiations began in earnest. First under the Nixon and Ford administrations, then under the Carter administration, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli prime ministers implemented the political trade-offs…
Asher Susser: Consequences for Middle Eastern States Since the Arab Spring (video, 51:36)
Professor Asher Susser describes the neighborhood of the Middle East, Arab nationalism, and the changing relationships of the region’s states with Israel.
Religious Pluralism in Israel: Challenges and Opportunities, Eli Sperling (video, 14:53)
ISMI’s Eli Sperling presented this discussion on Religious Pluralism in Israel for the Anti-Defamation League on October 25, 2018.
Sharing Sacred Spaces in Jerusalem: Contestation and Tolerance, Professor Yitzhak Reiter, (45:34)
This presentation addresses the changing practices within shared holy places in Jerusalem between conflict and contestation with special focus on the Temple Mount compound and the Western Wall. It discusses strategies of stakeholders and conflict management methods that have been used in order to mitigate disputes as well as the incentives for tolerance and coexistence. Presenter Yitzhak Reiter, ISMI visiting scholar, is a Professor of Islam, Middle East and Israel Studies. He chairs the Department of Israel Studies and is the head of the Research Authority at Ashkelon Academic College.
