SAN FRANCISCO, California (Press Release)– Building on the global success and momentum of Character Day 2015, in which hundreds of thousands participated and viewed the films The Making of a Mensch and The Adaptable Mind, Emmy-nominated filmmaker Tiffany Shlain’s nonprofit Let it Ripple this year will broaden the initiative’s reach that uses film and discussion materials to create a global conversation about the importance of character-building in today’s 24/7 world–developing strengths like creativity, humility, grit, courage, compassion and empathy. Thousands of groups have already signed up to participate in Character Day 2016, set for September 22. Let It Ripple is encouraging groups (schools, organizations, companies, camps, congregations, JCCs, museums, and communities of any size) to sign up–the first 10,000 groups to sign up will receive a free printed discussion package. Watch a just released 1 min trailer about Character Day and sign up at www.characterday.org.
Groups that register for Character Day can create an event that works best for their community, anytime on September 22, anywhere in the world. In addition to the discussion materials, hosts choose from a suite of award-winning short films, including
The Making of a Mensch, which explores character through a Jewish lens by reinvigorating the ancient Jewish teachings of Mussar, making the wisdom and practices accessible and engaging for a 21st century audience. Groups are then invited to join a global Q&A conversation that unifies all the screenings and invites discussion about character with experts from all different perspectives. Leading up to Character Day, Shlain’s team is also offering monthly webinars with participants from previous Character Days to share best practices.
A new $1.5 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation to Let it Ripple will help expand Character Day through 2017. In addition to The John Templeton Foundation, other generous supporters of Character Day and the specific films and resources include Steven Spielberg’s Righteous Persons Foundation, Covenant Foundation, Roselyn Chroman Swig, Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah, PJ Library, Natan Fund, Schusterman Family Foundation and the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles. Let it Ripple continues to seek more funding to expand the conversation around character and Mussar across even more Jewish communities.
“We are incredibly grateful and excited to receive this grant from the John Templeton Foundation,” says Director Tiffany Shlain, named by Newsweek as one of the ‘Women Shaping the 21st Century. “The foundation supports projects at the intersection of spirituality, science, and the goodness and potential of humankind. We strive to explore all of these concepts with Character Day—and to make them personally meaningful for a wide range of audiences.”
One of the new offerings this year is a revamped online resource portal that will bring to life resources such as the “Periodic Table of Being a Mensch”– a breakdown of 24 different Jewish qualities, or Middot. “I believe people are craving conversation around character — we’re seeing it through the wonderful reemergence of Mussar across the Jewish spectrum,” Shlain adds, “and that there is great power in bringing these conversations together from different perspectives, from science to business, from secular education to Jewish wisdom. At the core we’re really talking about the same thing: developing our character to bring more joy, meaning, and purpose to our lives.”
In addition to dozens of major partners involved in Character Day, The U.S. State Department is expanding their involvement by inviting embassies and educators around the world to participate. Last year, people tapped in from over 125 countries and 3000 cities, and The Making of a Mensch was translated into 14 different languages.
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Preceding provided by the Let It Ripple organization