Shaping the future of Jewish Australia together

Jewish community” are two words that we use often, almost casually. Yet behind them lies a question that matters: in Australia, are we a Jewish community in name only, or a living, breathing network of shared purpose?

Jewish community has long been a topic of interest for some of our greatest thinkers. From Hillel to Rav Joseph Ber Soloveitchik, our sages have noted that Jewish people exist as individuals, but also as members of a community.

In a world of heightened antisemitism, of ubiquitous social media commentary, of protest and grievance, it is timely to ask what binds us as individuals to our community? And what do we – as community leaders – need to do to continue to nurture a strong and vibrant Jewish community?

Nina Bassat, one of our longest serving community leaders and a Holocaust survivor, notes we are all bound together as Am Yisrael. Regardless of our political inclinations, level of religious observance, or migration story, we all share a connection as members of Am Yisrael.

While this is a useful shorthand tool to help us define our community, we also know there are key attitudes that much of the Australian Jewish community shares:

• 90 per cent per cent of Australian Jews attend a Pesach seder each year;

• 92 per cent of Australian Jews have visited Israel;

• 84 per cent of Australian Jewish men have had a bar mitzvah;

• Nearly 80 per cent of Australian Jews say donating money to charity is an important part of their Jewish identity.

So, we could summarise these findings, gathered from the Gen17 Australian Jewish community survey, to develop a case that our Australian Jewish community is committed to key religious traditions, connected to Israel and believes in helping those less fortunate.

These findings help local Jewish with community planning – what can we do to support Jewish people to celebrate key festivals beyond attending a Pesach seder? How can we continue supporting travel to Israel? What do we need to do to ensure the ongoing relevance of bnei mitzvah programs to keep high numbers of Jewish young people transitioning through this important lifecycle event?

We also know that around 16 per cent of Jewish Australians do not feel connected to communal life and that 19 per cent of Australian Jews say they are struggling to get by financially.

These difficult to hear findings also help with community planning. What do we need to do to welcome those who are not currently connected to community life? How can we develop innovative programming, nurture new voices or take communal activities to new locations? And how can our community raise up those who are struggling financially? Do we need to support those who need to retrain or reskill? Do we need more affordable housing near Jewish communal life?

In early 2026, we’ll ask every Jewish Australian to contribute. You won’t be asked for money, but something even more valuable: your voice. Gen26, our next major attitudinal survey, will help us understand who we are and where we’re heading.

As in 2008 and 2017, Jewish Australians will be asked to contribute their responses to our community’s groundbreaking Jewish attitudinal survey, this time called Gen26.

The survey has been designed by demographer Dr David Graham and Jewish studies scholar Dr Adina Bankier-Karp, with the support of the Monah University Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation and the Jewish Communal Appeal. The Jewish Community Council of Victoria is proud to be a key partner in Gen26.

The data will be used to better understand the make-up, values and wishes to help us shape the future direction of the Australian Jewish community.

We need all Jewish people – old and young, married and single, Australian-born and overseas-born, those who live in Caulfield or Dover Heights as well as those who live in Castlemaine or Dubbo – to give of their time and their voice.

As well as providing a snapshot of our community after the seismic shake of the October 7 attacks and the unprecedented rise in local antisemitism, Gen26 will also allow us to track where our community is changing. It will add a third huge data set to that already captured in 2008 and 2017. This will allow us to see whether initiatives introduced in response to earlier surveys have shifted the dial. It will also give us insight into where we need to work harder.

As our sages have taught, community is an imperative of Jewish life. But community is not static, it evolves with us. When Gen26 arrives, let’s take the chance to shape the future of Jewish life in Australia together.

Naomi Levin is the CEO of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV).