Fall 2015
Thursday, September 17
An Environmental and Urban Revolution in an Israeli/Palestinian Water Basin: The Example of the Yarqon/Aluja Basin
Join us for a discussion with Master Architect Liora Meron to discuss the new master plan as a breakthrough in Israeli/Palestinian cooperation around socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental issues. This is a joint event with the Blum Center and the Berkeley Water Group IdeaLab.
6:00 PM
B100 A/B Blum Hall
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Gett : The Trial of Viviane Amsalem
Film Screening and discussion with Co-Director Shlomi Elkabets and Professor of Law Ori Aronson.
6:30 PM Reception, 7:00 PM Film
100 Law Building
Dinner will be provided.
Tuesday, October 13
Do You Have a Plan for Saving the World? Ben Ferencz Does
Reception and Lecture with Ben Ferencz, former Nuremberg War Crimes Prosecutor, Chief Prosecutor for the United States in The Einsatzgruppen Case
Joint event with the HRC, International Human Rights Law Clinic, and Miller Institute for Global Challenges and the Law
12:45-2:00PM
132 Law Building, UC Berkeley
Monday, October 26
In Conversation with Ari Shavit
Conversation with Ari Shavit and Rabbi Adam Naftalin-Kelman, Executive Director of Berkeley Hillel.
Co-Sponsored Event with Berkeley Hillel and Berkeley Haas
6:00 PM
Berkeley Hillel, 2736 Bancroft Way
Tuesday, October 27
To The Moon and Beyond
Student Lecture
Yonatan Winetraub
Co-Founder of Space IL
5:00-6:00 PM
C250, Haas School of Business
Wednesday, October 28
Israel Facing a Changing Middle East
Reception and Lecture
Itamar Rabinovich
President of the Israel Institute, former Israeli Ambassador the the United States
Reception 5:15 PM, Lecture 6:00 PM
Bancroft Hotel, Great Room
Thursday, November 5
Identity Inside Israel and Out: A Conversation Through Movement
Public Performance
The Miriam Engel-Angela Dance Company, will perform “De-parts” a contemporary dance piece that relates to the connection between identity and land.
Joint event with Berkeley Hillel
7 PM Reception, 7:30 PM Performance and Conversation
Berkeley Hillel
Monday, November 9
Diaspora and Group Rights: The Jewish Constitutional Moment
Reception and Lecture with Willy Forbath, a legal and constitutional historian.
Joint event with the Center for the Study of Law & Society
5 PM Reception, 5:30 PM Lecture
Golberg, Room 295 Law Building
Tuesday, November 17
The Golem of Hollywood: A Conversation with Author Jesse Kellerman
Student Conversation with local author Jesse Kellerman to discuss his recent novel, a suspenseful murder-mystery thriller with a Jewish subtext which weaves together old and new and fuses story lines from Genesis, to 16th Century Prague, to modern-day Los Angeles.
6:30 PM
Goldberg Room, 297 Law Building
Thursday, November 19
From Secular Judaism to Jewish Renewal in Israel – A Personal Story and Public Point of View
Reception and Lecture with Ruth Calderon, former Knesset Member (2013-2015), Talmudic Scholar, Founder of ALMA Home for Hebrew Culture, and Shalom Hartman Faculty Member
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
5:30 PM Reception, 6 PM Lecture
Spring 2016
Wednesday, January 27
Film Screening: “Manpower”
Join us for a free screening for students and faculty of the Israeli film “Manpower” directed by Noam Kaplan. The film is the first part of our student series “Snapshots of Immigration and Asylum Inside Israel and Out”
6:30 PM Reception, 7:00 PM Lecture
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
Thursday, February 4
Ethnic and Religious Diversity in Israel: Changes, Inequality and the Quality of Life
Public lecture with Calvin Goldscheider, Ungerleider Professor Emeritus of Judaic Studies and Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Brown University
5:30 PM Reception, 6 PM Lecture
Warren Room, 295 Law Building, UC Berkeley
Thursday, February 11
The Local Jewish Press & Careers in Journalism
Student talk with Rob Eshman, EIC of the Los Angeles Jewish Journal on working for the Jewish Press and Careers in Journalism.
5:00 PM
Room 10, Boalt Hall
Wednesday, February 17
In Conversation with Noah Alper: Founder of Noah’s Bagels and Bread & Circus
The Israel Innovation & Entrepreneurship DeCal is proud to present: Noah Alper, founder of Noah’s Bagels and Bread & Circus, has almost four decades of business experience. He is a serial entrepreneur, whose experience includes concept creation, marketing, retailing, food service and sales management.
5:00-6:00 PM
C250 Haas
Friday, February 19
Lunchtime Lecture with Ambassador Felix Klein
Join us as we welcome Ambassador Felix Klein, Special Representative of the German Federal Foreign Office for relations with Jewish organizations and Anti-Semitism issues to discuss his experiences with students and faculty over lunch.
Tuesday, February 23
Rape as Torture and the Responsibility to Protect
Student Talk with John K. Roth, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College
Co-sponsored by the Boalt Hall Committee for Human Rights
12:45-2 PM
297 Law Building
Tuesday, February 23
The Failures of Ethics: Confronting the Holocaust, Genocide, and Other Mass Atrocities
John Roth
Edward J. Sexton Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College
Co-sponsored with the Human Rights Center, the Human Rights Clinic and the Human Rights Program
5:30 PM Reception, Warren Room, 295 Law Building
6 PM Lecture, Room 100, Boalt Hall
Thursday, February 25
Israel Facing a Major Crossroad: Challenges and Opportunities
Avishay Braverman
Former President, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; Knesset Member (2006-2015); Economist; Former Senior Official, World Bank
Co-Sponsored by the Masters in Development Practice
5:30 PM Reception, Warren Room, 295 Law Building
6 PM Lecture, Room 100, Boalt Hall
View Photos Here
View Video Here
Thursday, March 3
Reporting on the Holy Land: Israel Through the Lens of a Foreign Correspondent
Student Talk with Tim McGirk, former bureau chief and war correspondent for Time Magazine, on his experiences
reporting on Israel and the Middle East.
5:00-6:00 PM
Morrison Foester Room, 298 Law Building
Dinner Provided
Tuesday, March 8
Building the Solar Revolution in Frontier Economies: Supporting Sustainable Development in Israel and Africa
Yosef Abramovitz
President and CEO of Energiya Global Capital, co-founder of the Arava Power Company
Co-Sponsored by the College of Natural Resources, and the Blum Center for Developing Economies
5:30 PM Reception, 6:00 PM Lecture
Blum Center, Plaza Level
View Photos Here
View Video Here
Tuesday, March 15
A-WA Live in Concert, Performance at the SFJCC
Join the Institute as we head across the bay to the SFJCC for A-WA’s west coast debut!
email mshemtov@law.berkeley.edu for ticket information
FREE TICKETS for the first 10 students to email!
8:00 PM
SFJCC, 3200 California Street, San Francisco, CA
Thursday, March 17
Defining Neighbors: Religion, Race, and the Early Zionist – Arab Encounter
Jonathan Gribetz
Assistant Professor of Near Eastern Studies and Judaic Studies at Princeton University
5:30 PM Reception, 6 PM Lecture
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
Wednesday, March 30
Toward a Disability Critique of Torts: Case Studies from the U.S. and Israel
Sagit Mor
University of Haifa Faculty of Law, Israel, Visiting at University of Washington
Co-sponsored by the Center for Law and Society and the HIFIS Disability Cluster
4:00-6:00 PM
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
Wednesday, April 6
Hi-Tech Hubs: Silicon Wadi & Silicon Valley
Bruce Taragin, Blumberg Capital, Managing Director
Efrat Turgeman, Silicon Valley Bank, Director
Gal Eschet, MoFo, Head of Israel Desk
6:15 PM
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
Thursday, April 7
A Look in the Mirror: Reflections on the Social and Economic Issues Facing Israel Today
Avi Weiss
Executive Director, Taub Center for Social Policy Studies in Israel
Co-Sponsored by the Economics Department
5:30 PM Reception, 6:00 PM Lecture
Warren Room, 295 Law Building
Tuesday, April 12
Jewish Scholars and the Study of Islam: Reflections on Modern Jewish Identity
Susannah Heschel
Eli Black Professor of Jewish Studies at Dartmouth College
Co-Sponsored by the Robbins Collection
5:15 Reception, 6:00 PM Lecture
Bancroft Hotel, 2680 Bancroft Way
Thursday, April 21
A REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: The Pitfalls and Rewards of Writing about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Janine Zacharia
Standford Lecturer and Journalist
5:00 PM
Goldberg Room, 297 Law Building