Aligning Priorities Across a Whole City: Hineni Houston
When former community philanthropy leader and former community organizer Renee Wizig-Barrios began her tenure as Jewish Federation of Greater Houston’s new CEO she committed to begin by listening to the very diverse community that is Jewish Houston. Some 40,000 Jews live in a region larger than the state of New Jersey.
The goal: Bring over 1,000 members of the community into conversations and experiences so they can know one another’s minds and hearts and set the vision for the future.
To bring this vision to life, Federation and Insyte convened a Listening Lab made up of 60 individuals representing almost every geographic and demographic pocket of Greater Houston, including: young people, Jewish professionals, parents, lay leaders, Israelis, Latino Jews, and Russian Jews, rabbis and teachers from every denomination from Orthodox to Reform to “just Jewish.” We held a workshop focused on building the shared capacity to listen to people’s stories and help them discover their own aspirations for Jewish Houston.
In just a few months, 1221 Jewish Houstonians participated in 47 Listening Forums, 26 Home Gatherings and 110 Dialogue Interviews. The group aligned on 8 major priorities for the future of Jewish Houston:
- Shalom Y’all: Activate And Navigate Jewish Life In Greater Houston
- Live Proudly And Openly As Jews
- Broaden The Big Tent
- Foster Lifelong Jewish Learning
- Connect To Jewish Experiences Across Age, Stage, And Place
- Unite As One Community Through Collaboration
- Prioritize Affordability And Access In Jewish Life
- Lead Jewishly From Strength To Strength
The Lab concluded with a sense of pride in the concrete results it had produced, along with powerful feelings of deep connection and ownership. Listen to the Lab members share about their experience in this video produced by Federation.