On this Jerusalem Day, like past Jerusalem Days, we will probably hear the usual catchphrases “Jerusalem is a united city”, “Jerusalem will never be divided again”, “Jerusalem is a united city and divided population” and so on.

While it cannot be denied that Jerusalem is a place of many contradictions and conflicts, perhaps from this very place of combustion we can spark the hope for a better, shared future.

For while you may have in your mind the that the secular, ultra-orthodox, East Jerusalem Arabs, and new immigrants live in constant tension, I will let you in on a little secret. The Jerusalemites are just getting on with it. They are on the light rail together, they shop together, and they are starting to work together. They may not be having deep interactions, but they are tolerating and accepting the other.

And it is within this context that the changemakers of Jerusalem, the social entrepreneurs who live and breathe this city, incubate this change.

On this Jerusalem Day, we at PresenTense Israel are looking forward to the final stretch of the 4th cohort of Yazamim – our flagship community-based entrepreneurship program in Jerusalem.

15 ventures, 15 solutions, 15 sources of hope.

These incredible people stemming from the mosaic of Jerusalem’s diverse populations will launch their ventures on the 23rd of June. They are addressing the needs of youth at risk, children with autism, ultra-orthodox looking to combine Torah study and work, immigrant families learning about their Jewish heritage, Arab youth who want access to sport facilities and more.

Inc. magazine is a personal favorite. I like to pick up a copy at the airport so I can read on the plane when electronics are turned off. (I'm not trying to cause any Baldwin-esque scenes...) Inc. is a great way to stay updated with the latest tech companies and glean some pertinent business development insights and inspirations. 

I just rediscovered the October edition of Inc., which focused on the presidential candidates' views on economic stimulation and support for startups and small businesses. As I re-read the articles, I started thinking about the parallels in the Jewish Community Entrepreneurial ecosystem. I am not going to delve into the differences of Mitt Romney and Barack Obama's opinions because that conversation is already dated, but rather focus on the issues of governance and systematic support for Jewish Communal Entrepreneurship. For the sake of this exploration, please assume that Jewish startups and entrepreneurs are important, and many are worthy of the Jewish community's resources. If you disagree, don't worry - stay tuned for another blog piece.

While imperfect, the United States has a robust infrastructure to support startups which not only encourages but also protects entrepreneurs and their emerging businesses. For example, university sponsored research is often translated and developed through tech transfer offices. There are a handful of incubators that provide intensive resources, funding and networks to a select few startup companies, whether aligned with university research or independent like YCombinator and TechStars. 

At PresenTense, we believe that a business should be sustainable. The funding model in which a social business relies solely on philanthropy is problematic, to say the least. When the economy crashes, the first money cut back is, unfortunately, the “extra” money people have – their donations. This leads to situations where some of the social organizations that are actually needed most during times of financial crisis can’t provide for their community. In order to avoid such scenarios, we teach our fellows how to create a Social Business Model.

PresenTense utilizes the logic model, which is made up of 4 parts: inputs, activities, outputs and outcomes. The inputs are all of the resources one needs to reach an objective. Activities include the actions and steps necessary in order to propel the initiative. Next, the output is the product itself, and, finally, the outcome is the end result. A social venture aims to achieve its bottom line. The order seems to be simple, but to really understand the concept involved, we flip the model, starting from the end and moving backward. 

The first step is to clarify the bottom line: what outcome is desired? This is the Promised Land. To get people to march, they need certain tangible products or services – “milk and honey” – and these are the outputs. The tangible products or services a social business provides are what allow for the social business to make money on its own. There is no reason that just because a business is social, it should give away its quality products or services for free.

2013/5773 Yom Hashoah eve and I am thinking of my two grandparents, Miloch and Gucca Spigelman, may their memory be blessed, who survived the Shoah with a baby turned toddler (my dad).

When I was in 10th grade at Moriah College in Sydney, Australia, we participated in a family history essay competition called the Hans Kimmel Prize. I wrote about the incredible survival story of my father and grandparents. Writing their story raised so many questions in my 16 year-old brain.

One question was - why do all the survivors I know have such amazing stories?

In each story, one little thing could have changed – the SS officer who found my grandmother on the train, in the compartment reserved for the Germans, could have actually checked her papers – rather than just believing that she was German because of her perfect language, blond hair and blue eyes. Or at the weekly ‘selection’ for deportation to the camps, the officer could have said ‘left’ rather than ‘right’ and they may not have survived.

But they did survive. Was it just statistics? A certain percentage were just bound to survive, right?

Well the “Final Solution” was a deliberate act, the most menacing deliberate act ever committed against humanity, and many stories of survival were not accidents – but deliberate acts as well. People understood their dire situation, and decided to do something about it.

And they had to be inventive, they had to innovate.