1) What qualities make the nominee deserving of the Z3 Bridge Builder Award?

Moshe Samuels embodies the values at the heart of the Z3 Bridge Builder Award. His personal journey reflects the very bridge he works to build between Israeli and American Jewry, driven by a deep sense of passion rooted in his own identity. As an Israeli with deep lived experience in North America, Moshe possesses a rare hybrid cultural fluency that allows him to translate between cultures, challenge assumptions on both sides, and design encounters that are as honest as they are transformative.

After working for two decades in the field of Israel education, Moshe identified a critical gap in the field: while significant resources were being invested in helping American Jews understand Israel, little was being done to help Israelis understand American Jews. That insight, and his courage to act on it, marked the beginning of a new chapter. With creativity and entrepreneurial drive, Moshe co-created The New Jew, a groundbreaking TV series that introduced the vibrancy and complexity of American Jewish life in a compelling, accessible format. Moshe and Guri Alfi, the star of the series, held a screening of the TV show at the Oshman JCC during the Z3 conference in 2022. Following its success, the show’s sequel, The New Jew: Days of War, exposed Israeli audiences to the ways in which American Jews experienced October 7th and its aftermath, once again fostering empathy across distance. The series and the movie became a widely recognized and influential platform for introducing American Jewish diversity to Israeli audiences.

Building on that vision, Moshe co-founded Shazur / Interwoven to reimagine the relationship between Israelis and American Jewry. Shazur works to shift prevailing attitudes, from indifference, ignorance, or even condescension, toward mutual responsibility and a shared Jewish future. What sets Shazur apart is its rigorous, high-impact strategy: it invests in populations with significant impact on Israeli society - public servants, civil society leaders, educators, and young influencers - and designs immersive, pluralistic encounters that allow them to experience American Jewish life firsthand. These mifgashim are not one-off events; they are long-term processes that change worldviews, deepen empathy, and spark lasting commitments to Jewish Peoplehood. In just a few years, Shazur has emerged as a model for fostering durable cross-communal ties and building a stronger, more interconnected Jewish world.

Throughout all of this, Moshe’s personal qualities are the engine behind his work. His sensitivity and people skills allow him to earn trust and speak the "language" of both communities. His strategic thinking focuses efforts where ripple effects will be largest. And his unwavering dedication, evident in over two decades of sustained commitment to Jewish unity, makes him uniquely deserving of this award.

2) In what ways has the nominee demonstrated exceptional leadership and commitment to their work in bridging divides?

Moshe Samuels is both a visionary and a builder. He identifies what is missing in the Jewish world and takes bold steps to create what is needed. His leadership combines cultural understanding, entrepreneurial drive, and the courage to tackle complex challenges.
This leadership grew from two decades of work with American Jewry, from small Jewish communities such as Birmingham, AL to the most established ones, like Manhattan’s Upper West Side. These encounters left a deep impression: Moshe saw how creative American Jews are in shaping their Jewish identity, inspiring his own personal journey and strengthening his sense of belonging and commitment to the Jewish future. He understood that by meeting Jews in America who are dedicated and intentional about their Jewishness, Israelis would become more proactive in shaping their own identity and practice, and restore a sense of appreciation for Jews living outside of Israel. Realizing that the easiest way to reach a critical mass was through mass media, this conviction led to his most ambitious project: The New Jew.

To bring this vision to life, Moshe recruited Guri Alfi, one of Israel's most beloved TV personalities, known for his unique blend of humor and storytelling, to lead the series. He secured both funding and a national network platform, took on the role of chief researcher and later deputy editor, and even stepped in front of the camera to help deepen the storytelling. To date, the series has been viewed by over 1.5 million Israelis and serves as a testament to Moshe’s initiative, creativity, and adaptability.

After October 7, Moshe stepped forward again, creating The New Jew: Days of War, a film that explored how American Jews experienced the war in Gaza, rising antisemitism, and their relationship with Israel. Airing in Israel and premiering in the United States at Z3, it reached an additional 500,000 Israeli viewers and created space for reflection and connection.

Beyond his work in media, Moshe’s leadership is most evident in the creation and growth of Shazur. As its co-founder and driving force, he has personally curated and led transformative mifgashim and educational workshops for Israel’s current and future leaders. His programs are designed to reach individuals who hold influence and the potential to create meaningful ripple effects across Israeli society. From settlement leaders in the Shomron to university students in Tel Aviv, Moshe has introduced diverse Israeli changemakers to the richness and complexity of American Jewish life - through encounters with artists, authors, journalists, clergy, educators, and elected officials from across the religious and ideological spectrum. His ability to build trust-based partnerships, navigate institutions, and inspire personal and collective growth has positioned him as a unique and respected leader in the field of Jewish Peoplehood.
In a fractured and uncertain moment, Moshe offers a model of leadership that is steady, inclusive, and visionary. His ability to foster trust across lines of difference, to navigate complexity with clarity and resolve, and to bring people together with purpose is not only exceptional, it is urgently needed.

3) How has the nominee's work impacted the Jewish community and beyond?

In addition to the remarkable reach of The New Jew, which has engaged over two million viewers in Israel and the U.S., Moshe aims to reshape how Israelis perceive and engage with the broader Jewish world. Rather than viewing the Diaspora through outdated assumptions, thousands of Israeli leaders now see American Jews as essential partners in shaping our shared Jewish future. Through powerful, firsthand experiences designed and facilitated by Moshe, stereotypes give way to empathy, and distance gives way to connection.

Through Shazur, he has led 45 immersive mifgashim for over 1,100 Israeli changemakers, including 351 civil society leaders, 131 government officials, 119 young adults, and 302 educators, each returning home with tools and motivation to bring Jewish Peoplehood into their spheres of influence. Alumni have launched new initiatives, reformed curricula, and shaped communal programs grounded in a more expansive understanding of global Jewry.

Moshe’s reach extends to key figures shaping Israeli society: from Birthright educators to Israeli diplomats, shlichim, and political leaders. A central aim of his work is to broaden the Jewish Peoplehood conversation by engaging demographics that traditionally do not interact with liberal world Jewry, and often hold strong ideological narratives that negate the relevance or legitimacy of Diaspora Jewish life. One powerful example is Shazur’s recent domestic mission for educational leaders from Samaria. Moshe brought together a cohort of Orthodox, right-wing educators, many with little to no prior exposure to Jewish life outside of Israel, and immersed them in dialogue with a diverse cross-section of American Jews. In one particularly moving evening, they shared dinner and a facilitated conversation with rabbinical students from HUC, JTS, and Pardes. What began with visible tension gradually transformed into an open, vulnerable exchange about values, identity, and the challenges of living Jewishly in vastly different contexts. Participants later reflected that they “didn’t want the conversations to end,” and many have already begun integrating these insights into their schools and communities.

Alongside these encounters, he has played a key role in constructing and integrating a 10‑class curriculum on American Jewry now being taught in Israeli schools. This combination of immersive experiences and formal education marks a cultural shift: for the first time, thousands of young Israelis are learning about American Judaism in a structured and meaningful way. This work nurtures shared identity and mutual respect where fragmentation might otherwise grow.
The outcomes speak for themselves: 96% of participants say that strengthening Israel–Diaspora ties is now essential, 84% feel inspired to continue learning about global Jewry, and 74% report actively sharing their new perspectives with others. Moshe’s work changes hearts and minds, which in turn, shape classrooms, municipalities, and broader public discourse.

At a time when polarization and isolation are threatening the fabric of global Jewish connection, Moshe is building something lasting: a generation of Israelis equipped with knowledge, empathy, and responsibility to carry our shared story forward.