Philanthropy and Voluntarism Among the Jews

This document was part of the Multicultural Philanthropy Project, funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. A series of fourteen guides examine the ways in which various gender, ethnic, cultural, religious and racial groups use their gifts of time, money, and talent. They reflect the ways giving and voluntarism are embedded in American life and challenge the notion that philanthropy is the exclusive province of elites. The guides include discussion topics, research questions, and literature overviews with annotated bibliographies. They were developed both to integrate the study of philanthropy into the curricula at colleges and universities, and to provide a tool to nonprofit professionals in the area of development and fundraising. Each volume provides background information on a selected community that will help practitioners work effectively with these groups. This guide introduces the reader to the religious?cultural and historical origins of modern American Jewish philanthropy and voluntarism, and includes excerpts from traditional religious texts that provide the foundation of the Jewish philanthropic tradition. It considers the centrality of philanthropy and voluntarism to the history of Jewish institutions and cultural movements in American society. It will be of particular use to those seeking to understand Jewish philanthropy and the communal institutions that depend on it. In doing so, the author offers insight into the ties between generosity, theology, and religious structures

Glacial sedimentation, fluxes and erosion rates associated with ice retreat in Petermann Fjord and Nares Strait, north-west Greenland

Petermann Fjord is a deep (>1000 m) fjord that incises the coastline of north-west Greenland and was carved by an expanded Petermann Glacier, one of the six largest outlet glaciers draining the modern Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). Between 5 and 70 m of unconsolidated glacigenic material infills in the fjord and adjacent Nares Strait, deposited as the Petermann and Nares Strait ice streams retreated through the area after the Last Glacial Maximum. We have investigated the deglacial deposits using seismic stratigraphic techniques and have correlated our results with high-resolution bathymetric data and core lithofacies. We identify six seismo-acoustic facies in more than 3500 line kilometres of sub-bottom and seismic-reflection profiles throughout the fjord, Hall Basin and Kennedy Channel. Seismo-acoustic facies relate to bedrock or till surfaces (Facies I), subglacial deposition (Facies II), deposition from meltwater plumes and icebergs in quiescent glacimarine conditions (Facies III, IV), deposition at grounded ice margins during stillstands in retreat (grounding-zone wedges; Facies V) and the redeposition of material downslope (Facies IV). These sediment units represent the total volume of glacial sediment delivered to the mapped marine environment during retreat. We calculate a glacial sediment flux for the former Petermann ice stream as 1080–1420 m3 a−1 per metre of ice stream width and an average deglacial erosion rate for the basin of 0.29–0.34 mm a−1. Our deglacial erosion rates are consistent with results from Antarctic Peninsula fjord systems but are several times lower than values for other modern GrIS catchments. This difference is attributed to fact that large volumes of surface water do not access the bed in the Petermann system, and we conclude that glacial erosion is limited to areas overridden by streaming ice in this large outlet glacier setting. Erosion rates are also presented for two phases of ice retreat and confirm that there is significant variation in rates over a glacial–deglacial transition. Our new glacial sediment fluxes and erosion rates show that the Petermann ice stream was approximately as efficient as the palaeo-Jakobshavn Isbræ at eroding, transporting and delivering sediment to its margin during early deglaciation

Identifying the need for good practices in Health Technology Assessment : summary of the ISPOR HTA Council Working Group Report on Good Practices in HTA

The systematic use of evidence to inform healthcare decisions, particularly health technology assessment (HTA), has gained increased recognition. HTA has become a standard policy tool for informing decision makers who must manage the entry and use of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and other technologies (including complex interventions) within health systems, for example, through reimbursement and pricing. Despite increasing attention to HTA activities, there has been no attempt to comprehensively synthesize good practices or emerging good practices to support populationbased decision-making in recent years. After the identification of some good practices through the release of the ISPOR Guidelines Index in 2013, the ISPOR HTA Council identified a need to more thoroughly review existing guidance. The purpose of this effort was to create a basis for capacity building, education, and improved consistency in approaches to HTA-informed decision-making. Our findings suggest that although many good practices have been developed in areas of assessment and some other key aspects of defining HTA processes, there are also many areas where good practices are lacking. This includes good practices in defining the organizational aspects of HTA, the use of deliberative processes, and measuring the impact of HTA. The extent to which these good practices are used and applied by HTA bodies is beyond the scope of this report, but may be of interest to future researchers

Omecamtiv mecarbil in chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, GALACTIC‐HF: baseline characteristics and comparison with contemporary clinical trials

Aims: The safety and efficacy of the novel selective cardiac myosin activator, omecamtiv mecarbil, in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) is tested in the Global Approach to Lowering Adverse Cardiac outcomes Through Improving Contractility in Heart Failure (GALACTIC‐HF) trial. Here we describe the baseline characteristics of participants in GALACTIC‐HF and how these compare with other contemporary trials. Methods and Results: Adults with established HFrEF, New York Heart Association functional class (NYHA) ≥ II, EF ≤35%, elevated natriuretic peptides and either current hospitalization for HF or history of hospitalization/ emergency department visit for HF within a year were randomized to either placebo or omecamtiv mecarbil (pharmacokinetic‐guided dosing: 25, 37.5 or 50 mg bid). 8256 patients [male (79%), non‐white (22%), mean age 65 years] were enrolled with a mean EF 27%, ischemic etiology in 54%, NYHA II 53% and III/IV 47%, and median NT‐proBNP 1971 pg/mL. HF therapies at baseline were among the most effectively employed in contemporary HF trials. GALACTIC‐HF randomized patients representative of recent HF registries and trials with substantial numbers of patients also having characteristics understudied in previous trials including more from North America (n = 1386), enrolled as inpatients (n = 2084), systolic blood pressure < 100 mmHg (n = 1127), estimated glomerular filtration rate < 30 mL/min/1.73 m2 (n = 528), and treated with sacubitril‐valsartan at baseline (n = 1594). Conclusions: GALACTIC‐HF enrolled a well‐treated, high‐risk population from both inpatient and outpatient settings, which will provide a definitive evaluation of the efficacy and safety of this novel therapy, as well as informing its potential future implementation

The Production of Philanthropy: A Case Study of the Imagery & Methodology of Jewish Fundraising

This document was part of the Multicultural Philanthropy Project, funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. A series of fourteen guides examine the ways in which various gender, ethnic, cultural, religious and racial groups use their gifts of time, money, and talent. They reflect the ways giving and voluntarism are embedded in American life and challenge the notion that philanthropy is the exclusive province of elites. The guides include discussion topics, research questions, and literature overviews with annotated bibliographies. They were developed both to integrate the study of philanthropy into the curricula at colleges and universities, and to provide a tool to nonprofit professionals in the area of development and fundraising. Each volume provides background information on a selected community that will help practitioners work effectively with these groups. This guide explores the role of emotions in philanthropic behavior and considers the conscious use of auditory and visual tools as emotional triggers in soliciting donations. Drawing on examples employed by American Jewish organizations, the guide analyzes the emotional structure of fundraising appeals. It will be of particular use to fundraisers, special events coordinators, and creative staff in thinking about ways to craft an effective appeal, and will serve to bring into the open the discussion of the role of emotions in moving the target audience. It is recommended that nonprofit professionals consider the salient issues relevant to their own communities or organizations, using the cases described in this volume as models for comparison, and as spring boards for developing appeals