International
Elisheva Madar is the Policy and Impact Manager at the New Israel Fund (NIF) Australia, leading policy advocacy and community engagement for the largest non-government funder of Israeli civil society and human rights organisations. Raised in the Sydney Jewish community to two Israeli parents, her family roots span Germany, Czechoslovakia, Yemen, and British Mandate Palestine. Before joining NIF, she worked at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in wartime crisis response and in management consulting. She holds a double degree in Law and Political Science from ANU, interned with the Israel Religious Action Centre in Jerusalem, and topped her cohort at the Hebrew University for a paper on Australian Native Title law and Bedouin land rights in the Negev.
Session 1
Is Zionism still relevant today?
Zionism is a word that evokes complex history, strong emotions, and a myriad of political viewpoints. This panel will explore three different perspectives on the contemporary relevance of Zionism across local and global contexts.
Joint session with
Session 2
How do we save Israeli democracy? A real-life Giving Circle dilemma
From judicial overhaul to the growing influence of religious nationalism on all segments of society, Israel is at a crossroads - and the outcome will shape the lives of all its citizens. What is the role of the diaspora in championing the voices of pro-democracy organisations? This interactive session will invite participants to grapple with real-world giving dilemmas through the work of the New Israel Fund and its civil society partners, and collectively decide how to allocate a live $1,800 grant to organisations working to protect and strengthen Israeli democracy from within.
Session 2
Israelis You Haven't Heard From: Voices from the People's Peace Summit
In April 2026, 5,000 people gathered in Tel Aviv for the 21st It's Time People's Peace Summit – the largest gathering of Israel's peace movement in years. Israeli media almost entirely ignored it. Drawing on coverage and voices from the Summit, this session asks: who are these people, what are they actually saying, and why should we care? A session for people who want to understand Israel beyond the headlines, answer the question ‘What happened to the Israeli left?’, and hear from Jews and Palestinians working to change the country from within.