UpStart

Reaching Up to bring bold Jewish ideas to light. Together, we’re creating a more just, vibrant, and inclusive future.
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Our mission is to inspire and empower leaders to dream, build, and grow bold initiatives that enhance the vitality of Jewish life. UpStart partners with innovators to redesign the experience and expression of Jewish life. Subscribe to our newsletter at https://upstartlab.org/

08/24/2026

We’re excited to celebrate the ventures selected for our most recent UpLift Early-Stage Grants! UpLift is a three-month virtual sprint for entrepreneurs in the early stages of building their ideas. The competitive grant provides selected UpLift alumni with funding to put toward what matters most in their work to positively impact the Jewish community.

Mazel Tov to our 2026 cohort:
Areivut, Art/Lab, Bikirbecha, Community Language Project, House of Sages, International Centre for Collective Resilience, Music By Heart, Olam Market, Princeton Institute for Hasidic Thought, The Amen Center, and Yiddish Brewskis Brewing Company.

Mazel Tov to our LA cohort:
Der Nister Downtown Jewish Center, FromSoil2Soul, LA Jewish Events, Maaleh Hayim, Maman Nonprofit, Mish Mish LA, Nosei LA, and The Kol Project.

We're so proud of the breadth and ingenuity of the ideas across these two groups, and can't wait to see how this funding fuels their next chapter of innovation!

08/17/2026

For nearly two decades, UpStart has worked alongside bold leaders to turn new Jewish ideas into lasting impact. Along the way, we built a shared language for innovation: repeatable, measurable, and proven across Jewish life.

Now we're ready for what comes next.

Our new three-year strategic plan lays the foundation for Jewish social innovation and entrepreneurship. Over the next three years, we'll document this shared language, teach it, and embed it in the institutions Jewish life depends on, so the whole field can build together.

Explore the plan at https://www.upstartlab.org/strategic-plan/

08/07/2026

May this Shabbat bring you moments of peace and reflection.

07/22/2026

What does it take to keep rebuilding?

Tisha B'Av (the ninth of Av) gathers the moments that could have ended the Jewish story: the destruction of the Temples, the expulsions from England and Spain, the Holocaust.

Each time, Jewish life needed to be rebuilt by communities willing to ask: what comes next?

UpStart carries that tradition forward, supporting and uplifting the leaders who shape the Jewish future.

07/10/2026

The work continues, and we couldn't be more energized about who's leading it. Warm welcome to Stefan Teodosic as he steps in as UpStart's new Board Chair. Here's to what's next.

07/09/2026

We are so grateful to Kate Holsapple for her years as UpStart's Board Chair. Her commitment to this mission, and to the people doing this work, has shaped UpStart in ways we'll carry forward for a long time.

06/29/2026

Meet UpStart's Fiscal Sponsorship Projects.

These projects are doing vital work for the Jewish community — and we're proud to support them. Through UpStart's Fiscal Sponsorship Program, we provide the infrastructure, expertise, and financial management so bold ideas can focus on what matters most: their mission.

06/26/2026

We're hiring a Senior Director for our Finance team! This is a senior leadership role spanning financial oversight, compliance, and organizational strategy. This role owns the full financial reporting function, including audit, grant tracking, and board-level reporting, and oversees our outsourced accounting firm. If you're a finance leader who thrives in a mission-driven environment and wants to help build the infrastructure that enables Bold Jewish Ideas to grow, we'd love to hear from you.

Learn more and apply at upstartlab.org/about/careers

06/23/2026

We’re thrilled to announce the eight ventures selected for UpStart’s Capacity Building Grant: Earned Income. While each organization will receive a $20,000 grant to strengthen and grow its earned income strategy, this opportunity is about more than funding. Together, these leaders will participate in a learning cohort designed to foster collaboration, peer support, and shared problem-solving as they build sustainable models for the future.

Mazel Tov to Ammud: The JOC Torah Academy, Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW, Jewish Kids Groups, JQY INC, Libenu, Matan, No Shame On U, and Urban Adamah! We can’t wait to see what they’ll build together.

06/19/2026

Juneteenth is a day of hard-won joy, reflection, and renewed commitment. At UpStart, we believe building a vibrant Jewish future is inseparable from the work of building a more just world for all.

May we continue the work of creating communities where more people can belong, thrive, and be free.

Address

1111 Broadway, 3rd Floor
Oakland, CA
94607

Website

http://www.upstartlab.org/

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