In Geneva, the World Jewish Congress has held a recruitment event to attract new members ready to participate in its Jewish Diplomatic Corps (JDCorps) program.
Two dozen young Jewish professionals attended the gathering at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in the Swiss city, coming from a large variety of different professional backgrounds: specialized doctors (radiology and neurology), a PhD candidate, lawyers, financial advisors, a project specialist at the World Economic Forum, a journalist, an accountant and an urban planner
Following welcome drinks, Arielle Godin-Weinstein, the Jewish Diplomatic Corps Coordinator for Europe, the FSU Region, Israel and Africa, and Lauren Rose the WJC's UN Geneva representative introduced the WJC and the WJC-JDCorps program to the young Jewish professionals.
Guest speaker Brian Frenkel, Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs officer at the Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations, gave an insight into the world of the United Nations and more specifically into Israel’s position among the other nations. He stressed the importance of demonstrating the “positive image” of Israel. He told the audience: "You are not formally engaged, but nonetheless, you may have a similar agenda. Therefore you can endeavor to show positive things from a different perspective, in a less exposed way. Nonetheless, you can be ready to react when needed, and once again, without representing formally Israel, but rather as civil society, showing concern and adding another voice”.
The young Jewish Professionals also heard from another keynote speaker, David A. Chikvaidze, head of cabinet of the director-general of the United Nations Office in Geneva and vice-president of the Swiss Foreign Policy Association. He addressed the audience on “Eurasia in Turmoil: Implications for the Middle East and Beyond”.
Chikvaidze provided a broad historical overview of the current situation in Eurasia, from the demise of the bipolar world twenty-five years ago to the current unsettled, constantly evolving and increasingly insecure lay of the land, which is yet to arrive at a semblance of world order, or a form of equilibrium.
Jewish Diplomat Yariv Nornberg from Israel shared his experience as a Swiss-Israeli JD who has been a member of the WJC-JDCorps since 2007.
The WJC-JDCorps Team of the WJC Geneva office found the young Jewish professionals highly motivated and interested in the WJC-JDCorps program and is looking forward to continuing to work with them and engaging the next generation of young Jewish leaders, as well as having a core group of JDs in Geneva/Switzerland with whom the WJC-JDCorps team can engage with on a regular basis.
