American Jewish World Service Inc

WE WORK TO REALIZE HUMAN RIGHTS AND END POVERTY IN AFRICA, ASIA, LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN.

PROGRAMS DIVISION: THE PROGRAMS DIVISION (PD) OVERSEES AND IMPLEMENTS AJWS'S INTERNATIONAL GRANTMAKING. IN FY2023, AJWS AWARDED 658 GRANTS TO 542 HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS WORKING TO DEFEND CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS, ADVANCE SEXUAL HEALTH AND RIGHTS, PROTECT LAND AND WATER RIGHTS AND PROMOTE CLIMATE JUSTICE, AND RESPOND TO DISASTERS. AJWS FOCUSED ITS CORE WORK IN 17 COUNTRIES AND SUPPORTED AN ADDITIONAL 24 GRANTEES IN 10 ADDITIONAL COUNTRIES VIA A DONOR-ADVISED FUND. IN PARTICULAR, THE PROGRAMS DIVISION CONTINUED YEAR EIGHT OF A 10-YEAR INITIATIVE TO END EARLY AND CHILD MARRIAGE IN INDIA; SUPPORTED INDIAN PARTNERS TO CREATE A MEDIA CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTING WOMEN'S EXPERIENCES IN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, (SEE SCH. O) WHICH WON THE PRESTIGIOUS LAADLI MEDIA AWARD FOR GENDER SENSITIVITY. THE PROGRAMS DIVISION ALSO ENGAGED IN DOMESTIC AND GLOBAL ADVOCACY FOR HUMAN RIGHTS. THE WASHINGTON, D.C.-BASED GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS TEAM BROUGHT PARTNERS FROM SEVERAL OF AJWS'S PRIORITY COUNTRIES (E.G. HAITI) TO ADVOCATE TO U.S. LAW MAKERS FOR THE PASSAGE OF LEGISLATION THAT PROVIDES CRITICAL HUMAN RIGHTS FUNDING AND HOLDS GOVERNMENTS ACCOUNTABLE FOR CORRUPTION AND HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS; SUCCESSFULLY INFLUENCED MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO BLOCK LEGISLATION THAT WOULD HAVE SEVERELY HARMED MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES, PARTICULARLY WOMEN AND THE LGBTQI+ COMMUNITY; AND WROTE SEVERAL LETTERS SIGNED BY HUNDREDS OF LEADERS IN THE AMERICAN JEWISH COMMUNITY TO U.S. POLICYMAKERS ON KEY ISSUES AFFECTING PARTNERS ACROSS THE GLOBE. THE DIVISION ALSO PROVIDED HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE SUPPORT TO PARTNERS FACING NATURAL DISASTERS OR PUBLIC HEALTH CRISES IN THE COUNTRIES WHERE WE WORK. GRANT SUPPORT WAS ALLOCATED TO IMMEDIATE RESPONSE AND PREPAREDNESS AND MITIGATION EFFORTS. SPECIFIC HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE EFFORTS INCLUDED SUPPORT FOR THE DROUGHT AND FOOD CRISIS IN EAST AFRICA, HURRICANE JULIA IN CENTRAL AMERICA, AND HURRICANE FIONA IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. FINALLY, THE PROGRAMS DIVISION COLLABORATED WITH THE STRATEGIC LEARNING, RESEARCH AND EVALUATION (SLRE) DIVISION TO MONITOR AND EVALUATE THE PROGRESS OF AJWS'S GRANTEES USING THEMATIC AND REGIONAL STRATEGIES, COLLABORATIVE MULTI-YEAR BENCHMARKS, AND CASE STUDIES.

COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION: THE COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION IS RESPONSIBLE FOR COMMUNICATING ABOUT AJWS TO DIVERSE AUDIENCES IN ORDER TO RAISE AJWS'S PROFILE ON THE NATIONAL AND GLOBAL STAGE. IN FY2023, COMMUNICATIONS STAFF MEMBERS MAINTAINED AND DEVELOPED THE AJWS WEBSITE AS A VEHICLE FOR EDUCATING AND MOBILIZING OUR AUDIENCE, CONDUCTED ONLINE FUNDRAISING AND ADVOCACY INITIATIVES, SUPPORTED AND PROMOTED VIRTUAL EVENTS TO EDUCATE AND INSPIRE OUR COMMUNITY, AND PROMOTED AJWS THROUGH TRADITIONAL MEDIA RELATIONS AND THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. COMMUNICATIONS ALSO PRODUCED AND DESIGNED AN ARRAY OF CONTENT AND PUBLICATIONS INCLUDING AN ANNUAL REPORT AND STORIES THAT HIGHLIGHTED AND ADVANCED THE WORK AND IMPACT OF OUR GRANTEES AND ACTIVISTS. (SEE SCH. O)WE USED THESE STRATEGIES TO AMPLIFY THE IMPACT OF OUR GRANTEES' WORK IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD, INCREASE AWARENESS OF HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES AMONG THE AMERICAN JEWISH COMMUNITY AND GENERAL PUBLIC, INSPIRE ACTIVISM TO PROMOTE SOCIAL CHANGE, AND POSITION AJWS AS A THOUGHT LEADER IN THE HUMAN RIGHTS ARENA AND IN JEWISH COMMUNITIES. COMMUNICATIONS ACCOMPLISHMENTS:IN PARTICULAR IN FY2023, COMMUNICATIONS WAS INTEGRAL TO RAISING FUNDS TO RESPOND TO THE GLOBAL HUNGER CRISIS AND OTHER EMERGENCIES; SUPPORTED AJWS'S INITIATIVE TO END CHILD MARRIAGE IN INDIA; PROMOTED AJWS'S GLOBAL JUSTICE CHAVURAH MOBILIZING JEWISH CLERGY FOR SOCIAL CHANGE; AND CREATED A NEW AJWS HAGGADAH TO INSPIRE AMERICAN JEWS TO TAKE ACTION ON GLOBAL JUSTICE ISSUES.COMMUNICATIONS ALSO SUPPORTED AJWS'S THOUGHT LEADERSHIP AND AMPLIFIED THE VOICES OF OUR GRANTEES BY WRITING AND PLACING ARTICLES IN THE U.S. MEDIA ABOUT PRESSING HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES AND CRISES, INCLUDING PROMINENT OP-EDS ON THE DEMOCRACY CRISIS IN HAITI AND THREATS TO LGBTQI+ PEOPLE IN KENYA. ACROSS OUR WHOLE PORTFOLIO, COMMUNICATIONS WORKED CLOSELY WITH DIVISIONS THROUGHOUT AJWS TO ENSURE THAT OUR MESSAGES ACCURATELY REFLECTED HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES, THE SITUATION IN EACH COUNTRY, AND THE WORK OF OUR GRANTEES; AND ADVANCED THE ORGANIZATION'S REPUTATION, BRAND AND MISSION.

STRATEGIC LEARNING, RESEARCH AND EVALUATION (SLRE): THE STRATEGIC LEARNING, RESEARCH AND EVALUATION DIVISION IS RESPONSIBLE FOR YIELDING NEW INSIGHTS THAT CAN BE USED TO STRATEGICALLY IMPROVE AJWS'S WORK TO ADVANCE HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE 17 COUNTRIES WHERE WE WORK. SLRE GUIDES ONGOING STRATEGY MANAGEMENT AND INVESTIGATES KEY QUESTIONS ABOUT AJWS'S STRATEGIES INCLUDING HOW WE CREATE SUSTAINED HUMAN RIGHTS CHANGE AND WHAT IMPACT WE HAVE HAD. IN ADDITION TO DESIGNING RESEARCH AND EVALUATION THAT ANSWERS THESE QUESTIONS, SLRE ALSO HELPS AJWS'S PROGRAMMATIC STAFF SEEK AND APPLY LESSONS LEARNED AND CREATE INNOVATIVE, EVIDENCE-BASED INITIATIVES. (SEE SCH. O)STRATEGIC LEARNING, RESEARCH AND EVALUATION ACCOMPLISHMENTS:IN FY2023, SLRE HAS FURTHERED ITS WORK IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS OF REPORTING, MONITORING, EVALUATION, LEARNING AND RESEARCH: IN FY2023, SLRE SUPPORTED PROGRAMMATIC STAFF TO FINALIZE THEIR NEW FOUR YEAR STRATEGIES. SLRE WORKED WITH STAFF TO MAKE SURE THEIR STRATEGIES PROVIDED CLEAR RATIONALE AND PATHWAYS OF CHANGE REPRESENTED BY SPECIFIC AND REALISTIC TEN YEAR GOALS, FOUR YEAR OUTCOMES, AND ANNUAL MILESTONES. SLRE ALSO ANALYZED STRATEGIES TO UNDERSTAND ALIGNMENT WITH OUR VALUES AND TO EXPLORE SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES ACROSS PORTFOLIOS. THIS ANALYSIS WILL INFORM CONTINUED STRATEGIC CONVERSATIONS AND DECISIONS.SLRE HAS CONTINUED TO ENSURE TIMELY OUTCOME MONITORING, DATA ANALYSIS AND DISSEMINATION, AND SUPPORT FOR BIANNUAL REFLECTION SPACES FOR LEARNING AND ACTION. SLRE ENGAGED ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP AND BOARD IN THE UNDERSTANDING OF AJWS'S PROGRAMMATIC WORK BY SHARING DATA FROM OUR MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS, AND IN FY2023 SUPPORTED A BOARD LEARNING AGENDA FOCUSED ON PROGRAMMATIC STRATEGY.SLRE CONTINUED ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH INSTITUTIONAL GIVING AND PROGRAMS TEAMS TO FULFILL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR INSTITUTIONAL GRANTS AND TO SEEK ADDITIONAL FUNDS TO SUPPORT OUR WORK IN PRIORITY COUNTRIES. OUR SUPPORT INCLUDED PREPARING QUARTERLY MONITORING REPORTS FOR EXISTING GRANTS, FACILITATING PROJECT DESIGN CONVERSATIONS FOR NEW PROPOSALS, AND COMMISSIONING AN ENDLINE EVALUATION.SLRE SUPPORTED AN EVALUATION FOCUSED ON AJWS'S STAFF-LED TACTICS AND BETTER UNDERSTANDING THE CONDITIONS AND EXTENT THAT AJWS'S COMBINATION OF TACTICS ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE PROGRESS SOUGHT BY OUR THEORY OF CHANGE. THE EVALUATION USED A PARTICULAR CASE STUDY OF OUR WORK TO LEAD POLICY AND LEGAL CHANGE IN WASHINGTON, D.C. THE EVALUATION WAS DESIGNED TO COMPLEMENT OUR ONGOING STRATEGIC LEARNING AND MONITORING OF OUR CORE GRANTMAKING AND ACCOMPANIMENT AND WILL ALLOW US TO UNDERSTAND A WIDE RANGE OF OTHER STAFF-LED TACTICS.SLRE SUPPORTED AN EVALUATION TO ASSESS PROGRESS TOWARD OUR STRATEGIC GOALS WITHIN OUR ADOLESCENT GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN PORTFOLIO IN INDIA THAT INCLUDED PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION WITH ADOLESCENT GIRL PARTICIPANTS. SLRE ALSO SUPPORTED ANALYSIS OF A LARGE-SCALE SURVEY OF GLOBAL GRANTMAKERS TO UNDERSTAND DRIVERS AND THE EFFECTS OF HOW THEY FRAME THEIR WORK ON CHILD, EARLY, AND FORCED MARRIAGE.SLRE ADVANCED THE WORK TO FURTHER OUR UNDERSTANDING OF OUR ACCOMPANIMENT MODEL. AN INTERNAL WORKING GROUP WITH AN EXTERNAL EVALUATOR DEVELOPED A FRAMEWORK AND GUIDANCE DOCUMENT THAT DETAILS OUR MODEL'S OBJECTIVES, CLARIFIES OUR TERMINOLOGY, AND OUTLINES A DRAFT TOOL TO SYSTEMATICALLY CAPTURE THE SUPPORT WE PROVIDE TO OUR GRANTEE PARTNERS. THIS TOOL WAS PILOTED WITH AJWS STAFF IN FY2022. PILOTING CONTINUED IN FY2023 AND WILL CONTINUE INTO FY2024. THE DATA WILL BE ANALYZED TO FURTHER OUR UNDERSTANDING OF OUR PARTNER NEEDS, ACTIONS TAKEN TO ADDRESS THEIR NEEDS, AND THE CHANGES THAT RESULT TO INFORM AND IMPROVE OUR PRACTICE. WE ARE SHARING KEY LESSONS FROM THIS WORK FOR OTHER FUNDERS IN OUR PAPER TITLED "TRANSFORMATIVE SHIFTS: FROM CAPACITY TO MOVEMENT POWER"AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE.SLRE, IN COLLABORATION WITH THE PROGRAMS DIVISION, FURTHERED OUR WORK TO REFINE OUR SOCIAL MOVEMENT TOOL AND DEVELOP A PARTICIPATORY METHODOLOGY FOR USE WITH MOVEMENT ACTORS. AN EXTERNAL ADVISORY BODY WAS ESTABLISHED TO SERVE AS A POINT OF REFLECTION, EXCHANGE AND JOINT LEARNING. IN FY2023, SLRE (WITH AN EXTERNAL CONSULTANT) HELD THE THIRD PILOT OF OUR TOOL AND PARTICIPATORY METHODOLOGY WITH MOVEMENT ACTORS. THESE ACTORS HELD A JOINT DISCUSSION AROUND THE RESPONSES TO THE TOOL AND IDENTIFIED WAYS THEY CAN MOVE THEIR MOVEMENT FORWARD. THE TOOL WAS ALSO LAUNCHED WITH AJWS PROGRAMS STAFF TO REFLECT ON AJWS GRANTEES' MOVEMENTS AS ONE INPUT TO INFORM STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT. IN FY2024, THE TOOL AND METHODOLOGY WILL CONTINUE TO BE IMPROVED BASED ON FURTHER PILOTS WITH ADDITIONAL SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND ANALYSIS AND FEEDBACK FROM AJWS STAFF. WE HAVE MADE THE TOOL AVAILABLE FOR OTHERS TO DOWNLOAD VIA OUR WEBSITE AT AJWS.ORG/SMT.SLRE HAS DEEPLY PRIORITIZED DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION (DEI) AND TAKEN STEPS TO BUILD STANDARDIZED ROUTINE SPACES FOR DIVISIONAL EDUCATION, REFLECTION, AND CONVERSATION THAT SUPPORT OUR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL GOALS TO BE MORE INCLUSIVE AND ANTI-RACIST. SLRE TEAM MEMBERS SUPPORT THREE ORGANIZATIONAL SUBGROUPS THAT HAVE BEEN FORMED TO ADDRESS ACTION STEPS NAMED IN THE ORGANIZATIONAL DEI ROADMAP. SLRE STAFF WERE INSTRUMENTAL LEADERS IN DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING AN INTERNAL TRAINING ON BIAS AND MICROAGGRESSIONS FOR ALL STAFF. SLRE CONTINUED ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH THE DIRECTOR OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION TO SUPPORT DEVELOPING ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING AROUND SPECIFIC INITIATIVES AND PROGRESS TOWARDS OUR DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ROADMAP. SLRE REGULARLY DESIGNS, ANALYZES AND REPORTS ON DATA THAT IS USED TO IMPROVE THE WORK AND DOCUMENT PROGRESS.SLRE HAS REPRESENTED AJWS'S WORK IN EXTERNAL SPACES FOCUSED ON IMPROVING MONITORING AND EVALUATION. STAFF GAVE AN INVITED PRESENTATION AND PRESENTED AT A CONFERENCE ON APPROACHES TO DECOLONIAL AND FEMINIST RESEARCH.