A significant generational gap has long hampered collective action in Jewish communities worldwide. Veteran donors and leaders typically work through established organizations, while younger Jews often seek alternative engagement paths. This disconnect complicates addressing crucial issues like antisemitism and Israel advocacy. Adam Milstein, an Israeli-American philanthropist, has pioneered methods to close this divide by creating cross-generational spaces that leverage strengths from all age groups.
Analyzing the Generational Disconnect
Jewish organizational participation gaps emerged well before October 7, 2023. Traditional Jewish institutions struggled to attract younger participants, while youth-initiated projects often lacked resources and operational expertise to grow effectively. Research consistently revealed declining participation in conventional Jewish organizations among younger demographics, despite many maintaining strong Jewish identities.
“Our post-Holocaust generation(s) lived in a time of newfound Jewish engagement,” Milstein wrote in Hadassah Magazine in March 2025. “Organizations like the Jewish Federations of North America, ADL, and AJC thrived.” Nevertheless, he acknowledged that younger Jews often sought different avenues for expressing Jewish commitment, frequently feeling alienated from these established structures.
Creating a Collaborative Framework: The Impact Forum
Milstein’s landmark innovation for connecting generations came through the Impact Forum, which he co-founded in Los Angeles in 2017. This initiative unites Jewish philanthropists across age demographics to jointly support nonprofits working to uphold American values, foster U.S.-Israel relationships, and fight prejudice.
“The Impact Forum has seen unprecedented growth since October 7,” Milstein notes. “Young Jews are gathering not just to show solidarity but to take meaningful action.”
The Impact Forum’s distinctive feature lies in its deliberate cross-generational structure. Rather than establishing separate venues for different age groups, the forum encourages collaboration across generational boundaries. Senior philanthropists contribute financial support and institutional memory, while younger participants bring contemporary insights, digital proficiency, and fresh networks.
This approach resolves a fundamental disconnect in Jewish community organization. Established donors frequently lack awareness of innovative smaller groups making significant impacts, while emerging leaders often struggle to secure the resources needed for scaling their initiatives. The Impact Forum facilitates connections benefiting both groups while advancing common objectives.
Media Advocacy and Fighting Disinformation
Another focus area in Milstein’s cross-generational work involves challenging antisemitic narratives in traditional and social media. He specifically criticizes media bias regarding Israel, funding organizations that monitor reporting and correct misleading narratives.
The Milstein Family Foundation supports groups like HonestReporting and Palestinian Media Watch. These organizations work to ensure accurate and contextualized coverage of Israel and Jewish issues.
In an article for The Jerusalem Post, Milstein discusses how the media portrays so-called “pro-Palestinian” protests, which are often “drenched in antisemitic rhetoric, anti-Jewish venom, or stereotypical tropes.” This includes support of Hamas and Hezbollah as well as chants of “from the river to the sea,” a phrase widely regarded to mean “the complete annihilation of the Jewish state,” says Milstein.
This media monitoring work connects generations through their complementary skills. Older activists often bring historical context and institutional relationships, while younger participants contribute digital literacy and social media expertise – creating more effective responses to antisemitism online.
Merging Digital Tools with Jewish Tradition
Another aspect of Milstein’s bridging work involves integrating modern technology with traditional Jewish values. While older generations typically emphasize established organizational structures, younger Jews frequently utilize digital platforms for organizing and communication.
Milstein embraces technological capabilities while ensuring they serve substantive purposes. His foundation backs initiatives using digital tools to combat online antisemitism, document incidents, and coordinate community responses. This approach validates younger generations’ technological comfort while directing it toward shared community priorities.
The fusion of technology and tradition became evident following Hamas’ October 7 attack. While established organizations mobilized conventional resources, younger activists created digital campaigns reaching new audiences and generating unprecedented engagement. Milstein’s connecting work helped ensure these complementary approaches strengthened rather than competed with each other.
Education and Campus Advocacy
Milstein has been particularly vocal about antisemitism in educational settings, from high schools to universities. The ADL reported a 135% increase in antisemitic incidents in both public and private K-12 schools from 2022 to 2023, highlighting the urgency of addressing this issue.
“Most antisemitic attacks on Jewish students go unreported,” Milstein points out in his writings. He notes that teenagers are “particularly impressionable, deeply affected by social dynamics of their peers”.
Through his foundation, Milstein supports organizations like StandWithUs, which works with teens on their high school campuses and empowers them to educate their peers about Israel and combat antisemitism.
His approach aims to target the dangerous narratives at the heart of contemporary antisemitism. He wants to actively address the “danger of DEI and CRT” in high schools, “which are often packaged as Ethnic Studies” – a controversial curriculum that promulgates progressive frameworks that separate peoples into oppressed and oppressors.
Building Diverse Coalitions
Perhaps most distinctive in Milstein’s methodology is his emphasis on building alliances across religious, ethnic, and political divides. Rather than limiting outreach to natural allies, he advocates engaging with any group willing to oppose antisemitism, regardless of disagreements on other issues.
“The Jewish community should work holistically with common allies left and right of center across the entire spectrum,” Milstein wrote in The Jerusalem Post in December 2024. This practical approach stems from his belief that fighting antisemitism requires broad support, transcending partisan divisions.
Through his foundation, Milstein funds organizations bridging Jewish-Christian relations, including Christians United for Israel and Israel Christian Nexus. He also promotes partnerships with other minority groups facing discrimination, recognizing how antisemitism connects to broader struggles against bigotry.
This coalition approach contrasts with strategies limiting outreach to ideologically aligned groups. Milstein argues that such limitations weaken antisemitism resistance by reducing potential allies and reinforcing political divisions.
From Crisis Response to Sustained Engagement
After October 7, Jewish communities worldwide experienced unprecedented engagement across generational boundaries. The challenge now, as Milstein recognizes, involves converting this crisis response into sustainable intergenerational collaboration.
His methodology emphasizes several principles for maintaining momentum:
- Establishing permanent frameworks for intergenerational collaboration rather than temporary responses
- Highlighting shared values
- Incorporating both innovation and tradition when addressing community challenges
“The resilience and determination I have witnessed since October 7 should infuse the Jewish people with hope and optimism for the future,” Milstein writes. “And we must not waste this moment”.
Looking Forward
As Jewish communities navigate an increasingly complex landscape of threats and opportunities, Milstein’s approach offers a model for effective cross-generational engagement. By creating spaces where different age cohorts can combine their complementary strengths, he helps ensure that Jewish responses to antisemitism and other challenges benefit from the full spectrum of community resources.
“Too many young Jews remain glued to their phones, doomsurfing,” Milstein observes in his Jerusalem Post writing. “Now is the time to step up: to get involved, support effective initiatives and fight for our future”.
His emphasis on action over anxiety, collaboration over competition, and pragmatism over partisanship provides a roadmap for Jewish communities seeking to bridge generational divides in service of shared goals. As antisemitism continues to evolve and present new challenges, this intergenerational approach may prove essential for developing effective, sustainable responses.
