Tel Aviv Review

Professor Alon Tal, the Chair of the Department of Public Policy at Tel Aviv University and the founder of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, discusses his new and acclaimed book, “The Land is Full: Addressing Overpopulation in Israel,” a myth-busting plea for a sustainable future for Israel. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Rachel Pear, a teaching assistant at the School of Education at Bar-Ilan University and a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Haifa, gives us a breakdown of the great variety of Jewish Orthodox attitudes to Darwin's theory of evolution over the years. (Previously aired on 4/10/2014)

Dr. Guy Laron, a senior lecturer in international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, discusses his new book, “The Six Day War: The Breaking of the Middle East,” in which he analyzes the momentous 1967 Arab-Israeli war from a Cold War perspective. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Jonathan Spyer, a Middle East analyst, journalist, and author, discusses his new book, “Days of the Fall: A Reporter’s Journey in the Syria and Iraq Wars,” a first-person account from behind the scenes of the top news story of this decade. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Yifat Gutman, a senior lecturer in sociology and anthrolopology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, discusses her book, “Memory Activism: Reimagining the Past for the Future in Israel-Palestine,” which analyzes new modes of engaging in conflict resolution and political change in Israel and Palestine. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Fahima Abbas, a postdoctoral fellow in geography at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, discusses the migration patterns of young and professional Arabs from Arab communities to predominantly Jewish urban areas and what impact it has on them, their communities of origin, and Jewish-Arab relations in Israel. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Eli Cook, lecturer in American history at the University of Haifa, discusses his new book, “The Pricing of Progress: Economic Indicators and the Capitalization of of American Life,” a critical history of the emergence and establishment of economic metrics as the gold standard (no pun intended) of progress. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Gwen Ackerman, a veteran American-Israeli journalist, discusses her debut novel, “Goddess of Battle,” a story of an unlikely friendship between two women, a Jewish-American immigrant to Israel and a Palestinian. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Israeli novelist Assaf Gavron discusses his book, “The Hilltop: A Novel,” and explains why a secular Tel Avivian chose to set the plot in a remote Jewish outpost in the West Bank. More broadly, where do the personal and the political overlap, and what is the role of literature in articulating the two? This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Rafael Medoff, the Founding Director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies in Washington, D.C., discusses his co-edited book, “Cartoonists Against the Holocaust,” which offers a comprehensive panorama of how editorial cartoons in newspapers across the United States perceived the rise of Hitler and the world’s reaction to it. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Jupp, Salomon (Sally) Perel’s Nazi alter ego, which he had to play to survive in the Second World War, hasn’t left him more than 70 years on. Perel’s hair-raising story, and the baggage that he carries to this day, have been the center of “4 x Sally,” a thought-provoking art installation co-created by Shimon Lev, an Israeli, and Friedmann Derschmidt, an Austrian, and put on display at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Growing up is the pits in the best of times. Growing up Muslim in America has special complexities. Being Muslim in America, diagnosed with bipolar disorder, coming of age during and after September 11, and becoming a public speaker on the religion and culture of Islam could be a formula for collision. Haroon Moghul, Fellow in Jewish-Muslim relations at the Shalom Hartman Institute, has many: with the world, with God, with himself. His book weaves together stories of personal, political, and religious development, and answers questions about Islam for the perplexed of any faith. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

Dr. Brian Dolbert, an assistant professor of communication at California State University, San Marcos, discusses his book, "Media and Culture in the US Jewish Labor Movement: Sweating for Democracy in the Interwar Period." This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

Lewis Glinert, a professor of Hebrew Studies at Dartmouth College, discusses his new book, “The Story of Hebrew,” a detailed biography of 3,500 years of life, presumed death, and resurrection. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

David Benkof, a columnist at the Daily Caller, writes from a conservative Republican gay Orthodox Jewish perspective about why he voted for Hillary Clinton and moved to Israel as a Trump refugee, what counts as Presidential racism or anti-Semitism, and why religious pluralism in Israel is bad, but a peace with the Palestinians is good. Not your typical conversation, but one of healthy disagreement and topical relevance. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.  

Omer Bartov, a professor of European history at Brown University, discusses his forthcoming book, "Anatomy of Genocide: The Life and Death of a Town Called Buczacz," which offers an intricate analysis of the catastrophic fate of a centuries-old Jewish community, incorporating archival material as well as personal testimonies. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

After fighting apartheid for forty years and surviving a bomb attack in the process, in the early 1990s, Albie Sachs found himself helping to draft the constitution that would become the foundation of the democratic South Africa. After the first free elections, Nelson Mandela appointed him as a justice on the first Constitutional Court in the new South Africa. Albie Sachs offers incomparable insights about law and justice, society and humanity, and South Africa's historic transition in his book, "We, the People: Insights of an Activist Judge." This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

Dr. Sara Yael Hirschhorn, a lecturer in Israel Studies at Oxford University, discusses her book City on a Hilltop: American Jews and the Israeli Settler Movement, which attempts to explain why American-born Jews are disproportionately represented among immigrants who settled in the West Bank. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

Yaakov Katz, the editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post newspaper, discusses his book Weapons Wizards: How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.

Dr. Ethan Katz, an associate professor of history at the University of Cincinnati, discusses his book, "The Burdens of Brotherhood: Jews and Muslims from North Africa to France," which recounts the tumultuous relationship between two of France's most significant migrant groups throughout the 20th century. This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel. Tel Aviv Review is also supported by the Public Discourse Grant from the Israel Institute, which is dedicated to strengthening the field of Israel Studies in order to promote knowledge and enhance understanding of modern Israel.