The Institute’s student programs are open to all students, faculty, and UC Berkeley staff.
Spring 2021
Monday, April 19th, 2021
Exploring the Boundaries of Anti-Semitism: A 
Conversation with Journalist Batya Ungar-Sargon
Please join us Monday, April 19th for a discussion with Journalist Batya Ungar-Sargon, Deputy Opinion Editor of Newsweek and former Opinion Editor at The Forward. Ungar-Sargon will be speaking about the definitions and boundaries of antisemitism, the role that context plays, antisemitism on campus, and more.
Friday, March 19th, 2021
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE SYSTEM FAILS? 
The Case of Israel and Greece
Please join Dr. Roy Peled and Dr. Ioannis N. Grigoriadis in a comparative discussion of Israeli and Greek elections and electoral systems. They will discuss the transition from old political lines to new ones, public confidence in electoral systems, and the impact of corruption.
Tuesday, March 16, 2021
Latin and Jewish Film Series: 
Conversation on “Esclavo de Dios”
Centered around the film and the historical context surrounding the A.M.I.A. bombing, our event’s goal is to spark a conversation between Professor Adriana M. Brodsky and Director Joel Novoa about how the film illustrated the tensions that lead up to the bombing and its connection to the experience of Jews in Argentina at that time.
Wednesday, February 10, 2021
COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution in Israel
Israel is currently leading the world in per-capita COVID vaccine distribution—over one fourth of the population has already received a vaccine. However, there is still much that remains unknown. Join us to learn more about the Israel’s COVID-19 vaccination plan, and discuss the challenges that may lie ahead, such as new variants, access to care, and the potential impacts of Israel’s upcoming election.
Tuesday, February 2, 2021
The Role of Hope in the Israeli-Palestinian 
Conflict
Dr. Oded Adomi Leshem, political psychologist from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, will join us to speak about his research around the pivotal role that hope and hopelessness play in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Leshem will be sharing the findings of The Hope Map Project, which he spearheaded along with Palestinian researcher Obada Shtaya in 2017.
Fall 2020
Thursday, November 19th, 2020
Student Conversation: “Where do we go from here?” David Horovitz on the 2020 Elections in the US and Israel
Join us for an intimate conversation with David Horovitz sharing a perspective on the 2020 elections, Israel/US relations, and the current political moment from his vantage point as the founder and editor at Israel’s leading English Language newspaper.
Monday, November 16th, 2020
The Forgotten Jews of South America: A Conversation with film director Gabriela Böhm
Join us for an interview and discussion with Gabriela Böhm, the director of The Longing, a film about a small group of South Americans who long to affirm their faith. Their ancestors were forced to convert during the Spanish Inquisition and now, isolated in Catholic countries, they battle to become Jews regardless of the consequences.
Böhm will discuss her documentary film on the topic of crypto-jews during the Spanish Inquisition in the 15th and 16th century and the research that went into the film’s creation with moderator, Analucia Lopezreverado.
Thursday, November 12th, 2020
Mizrahi Identity in the US
Wednesday, October 16th, 2020
Diversity Training: How to Build Inclusive Spaces
Facilitators: Shekhinyah Larks, Program Coordinator and Diversity Trainer, Be’chol Lashon, and Bezawit Abebe
Workshop on how to talk about race, ethnicity and identity while engaging in Jewish and Israel-related programming (limited capacity).
Thursday, October 8th, 2020
Comparative Election Laws: Israel and the US
Speakers: Roy Peled, Koret Visiting Professor in Israel Studies
Jay Footlik, Special Assistant to President Clinton in the White House
A comparative view on Israeli and US election law as we conclude a year in which Israel had not one, but 3 election cycles, and the US approaches it’s Nov. 3 presidential elections. The event will compare the legal context in each country, and provide an analysis of the benefits and drawbacks of each case. Some topics that will be touched upon include procedural fairness, inclusion (universal suffrage) and equality (in funding and other means between the contestants).
Wednesday, September 30th, 2020
Racial Justice, Jews of Color, Jewish Community: A Talk with Ilana Kaufman
Thursday, September 10th, 2020
Black Power, Jewish Politics: Reinventing the Alliance in the 1960s
Marc Dollinger joins us to share the story of Black and Jewish relations from the Civil Rights Era alliances to Black Lives Matter today. Undermining widely held beliefs about Black-Jewish relations, Dollinger describes a new political consensus, based on identity politics, that drew Blacks and Jews together and altered the course of American liberalism and discusses the challenges that remain today.