Jewanced

Ahead of Israeli Independence Day (Yom Ha'atzmaut), we recorded a special episode of Jewanced with superstar tech entrepreneur, acclaimed speaker and author Inbal Arieli . In it, she talks to us about her unique insights on life, society, the miracle of Israel's thriving tech scene, and the incredible impact it’s having on the world, as well as uncovers the secret behind how Israeli parents are ra...

Jewanced commemorates Yom Ha’Shoah – Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day - with the inspirational and shocking true story of John Daly’s incredible tale of Jewish survival - transforming and escaping from life as a closeted Jewish Neo-Nazi commander in the USA to living in Israel.  Legitimately unlike any other story Dan nor Benny had ever heard before, John Daly’s riveting recounting of the d...

It’s almost inevitable that you've scrolled past a sweaty selfie of a friend, co-worker, or high school classmate bragging about their WOD and professing their love for CrossFit. What is Crossfit exactly? CrossFit is a global exercise phenomenon that started in the US about 20 years ago and has since spread across the world. There are roughly 13,000 affiliated gyms in 120 countries with countless...

The NEW ISRAEL FUND and the Israeli Left – Few other NGO’s in Israel conjure up stronger feelings than the NIF. Subversive anti-Israel front or patriotic agent for social change and justice? What really is the NIF (apart from one of the best examples of ‘Jewance’ that we can think of) and what does the organization truly stand for? Moreover, as we just had our 4TH ELECTIONS in Israel this week, wh...

WE HOPE YOU’RE HUNGRY! In today’s episode, we explore a RICH & DIVERSE culinary and cultural Jewish heritage as we take a journey through the heart of Jewish Syria, Iraq, Iran, Morocco, India, Turkey, and beyond with JENNIFER ABADI, a Sephardic & Judeo-Arabic recipe preserver & cookbook author. Together, we explore the diversity of the North American Jewish experience, discuss our feel...

Israel’s 4 th (yes, 4 th !) elections in 2 years are nearly here.  Like with every election in the world’s only Jewish democracy, Israel’s elections come with tons of questions. What are they about? Who’s running? Why are there always so many new parties running in every election?!  What do polarizing terms like ‘left’ and ‘right’ mean in Israel anyways?! Are you new to Israeli poli...

IS IRAN HEADED TOWARDS THE BOMB? With President Biden at the helm, will the US reenter the JCPOA (the ‘Iran Deal’)? If so, would that be good or bad? Would it be good or bad for Israel?  What should Israel do? Are all options really on the table?  With all the back and forth taking place over the past decade + about ‘the Iran deal’ and its politics, it’s easy to lose sight...

On this episode of Jewanced, Dan & Benny sit down with Rabbi Alon Meltzer, an amazing Sydney-based Jewish community builder and leader to learn about the Jews of Australia and New Zealand. On the way, they discuss some of the unique challenges and features of life that come with being part of the world's furthest-most’ Jewish community, and wrap up with a fascinating conversation on the origin...

On this episode of Jewanced, Dan & Benny sit down with Steven Shalowitz, real-life explorer and host of The One Way Ticket Show & JNF-USA’s IsraelCast podcast to talk about podcasting, radio, the power of travel, Israel, NYC, and so much more.  “If I gave you a one-way ticket to anywhere, past, present, or future, where would you go?”  That’s the question that Steven Shalowitz as...

Ruth Wasserman Lande is a Member of Knesset from the Blue & White party. Raised in South Africa, she is the founder and CEO of Ruth – Global Innovative Advisory, a diplomat, lecturer, columnist, and social activist particularly focused on the Arab population in Israel.  She is also a Middle East affairs expert and commentator for various media outlets around the world. Wasserman Lande ser...

Laura Kelly is a reporter for The Hill in Washington D.C. where she writes about the politics and policy surrounding U.S. foreign affairs, covering Capitol Hill, the White House, and the State Department. Laura began her journalism career in Israel in 2012 working for The Jerusalem Post and lived in the country until 2016. Her reporting has taken her all over the world covering conflict, cult...

Join us on Jewanced for a very special BONUS EPISODE of Jewanced – MEET THE EMIRATIS - where Benny and Dan host a panel of truly amazing Emiratis to learn about life in the UAE and their feelings about their country’s new normalization with Israel under the Abraham Accords.  This episode of the podcast was produced as a Jewanced LIVE! event, co-sponsored by the Minneapolis Jewish Federation a...

Dan and Benny engage in a candid discussion with Professor Gil Troy , one of the world’s leading US Presidential historians, about the critical moment facing the United States, the world, and democracy as we transition from the Trump to the Biden White House. No less important, we also talk about American Jews and Zionism, the state of Israeli democracy, and co-authoring his most recent book...

On this episode of Jewanced, Dan and Benny sit down with Dr. Natan Davidovics, Ph. D ., Director of R&D at the game-changing Jerusalem-based biotech firm BrainQ and Covid-19 data scientist and dig through the data to better understand the trajectory of Coronavirus in Israel and the United States. Dr. Davidovics breaks it down for us and provides a bit of much-needed positivity about the i...

In this episode of the podcast, Benny & Dan have perhaps one of their freest flowing conversations yet with visual artist and illustrator Roy Margaliot in which they embark on a deep journey into an artist’s mind.  On the way, they explore the philosophy of the physical, metaphysical, and spiritual realms – including the source of creativity inside us, how to be ok with the uncertainty of...

Dr. Daniel Gordis is Senior Vice President, Koret Distinguished Fellow, and Chair of the Core Curriculum at Shalem College. Previously the vice president of the Mandel Foundation in Israel and director of its Leadership Institute, Gordis was also the founding dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles. Author of numerous books, a regular columnist fo...

MK Michal Cotler-Wunsh is a parliamentarian serving in Israel's parliament - the Knesset - representing the Blue & White party. She entered the Knesset less than a year ago as part of Israel’s implementation of the controversial ‘ Norwegian Law ’ when the recently-fallen National Unity government between her party and the Likud was formed. In a relatively short period of time, Cotler-Wuns...

Ranked by the Jerusalem Post as one of the world’s top 50 most influential Jews, Russell Robinson is the iconic CEO of JNF-USA , one of the Jewish world’s largest and leading philanthropic organizations. Under his leadership, the JNF has proven over and over its influence and impact in Zionist advocacy and education, Jewish community development, environmental work, developing the Negev and the Ga...

Chanukah O' Chanukah! This episode on Jewanced, we take a deep dive into everything Chanukah with Rabbi Prof. Jeffrey Woolf as we dig into real story behind how and why Jews celebrate the iconic 8-day festival of lights and the holiday’s fascinating evolution throughout the ages. We also ponder its meaning as we find parallel themes between the uncertainty and unrest of its ancient era to our...

This week on the podcast, we’re joined by the amazing Melanie Maron Pell , the Managing Director of AJC’s network of 24 regional offices across the United States. Together with Ben & Dan, Melanie reflects on over 20 years of advancing AJC’s global mission, the rising significance of subnational diplomacy, the challenge of maintaining authentic nonpartisanship in a highly partisan world, the sh...

Join us for a thought-provoking conversation with serial entrepreneur and investor Saar Wilf. Saar Wilf is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor. Over his career, he has founded several technology ventures, his first back in 1997. Most notably, he founded Fraud Sciences (acquired by PayPal/eBay for $169m), where he served as CEO and Chief Scientist. He also co-founded ClarityRay (acqu...

This week, we’re bringing you an extra special episode of the podcast with former FBI Special Agent Raymond Holcomb , president and managing director of 1 st Watch Global.  Ray has over 30 years’ experience as a law enforcement and intelligence officer. He served for over 23 years as an FBI Special Agent; 8 as a Strategic Planner with the US National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), and 4...

Join Jewanced for an unforgettable conversation as Benny and Dan host a panel of young, influential Emiratis to learn about life in the UAE and their feelings about their country’s new normalization with Israel under the Abraham Accords. Following the ratification of the Abraham Accords, what can we anticipate for the people of Israel, the UAE and Bahrain, as well as for the broader Middle East? T...

Are the news and the weight of the world getting you down? Got a case of the grumps? Join us this week on Jewanced as we sit down for a super optimistic conversation with Michael Dickson, Executive Director of StandWithUs Israel and Dr. Naomi Baum, a pioneering psychologist in the field of resilience research and treatment, together the authors of the new book, ‘ISResilience – What...

Join Jewanced for an unforgettable conversation as Benny and Dan host a panel of top Middle East experts from around the region to explore how perceptions and world views are shifting as history unfolds before our very eyes. Following the ratification of the Abraham Accords, what can we anticipate for the people of Israel, the UAE and Bahrain, as well as for the broader Middle East? Topics covered...