How Kindness and Courage Create Real Change w/Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz

Welcome to Compassiviste Dialogues. I'm Ali, your host, and my mission with this podcast is to shed light on critical social and environmental issues worldwide, exploring avenues for positive change.

Today we’re joined by Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz, a Harvard-trained ethicist, Columbia PhD in Moral Development, and a moral architect of our time. Rabbi Shmuly is a relentless author of 30 books, an activist who has stood at protest fronts, dinner tables, refugee camps, all the way to Davos and the White House. He and his wife have even donated kidneys to strangers, a remarkable example of love and altruism.

In this powerful conversation, Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz reveals how everyday acts of compassion and moral bravery can lead to lasting social impact. From donating his kidney to standing up for justice in divided times, Rabbi Yanklowitz shows what it truly means to lead with heart.

ABOUT GUEST:

Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz is the President & Dean of Valley Beit Midrash, Founder & President of Uri L’Tzedek, Founder & CEO of Shamayim: Jewish Animal Advocacy, and Founder & President of YATOM: The Jewish Foster & Adoption Network.

Rabbi Yanklowitz’s writings have appeared in outlets as diverse as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Guardian, and the Atlantic among many other secular and religious publications. Rabbi Yanklowitz is a sought-after educator, social justice activist, and motivational speaker as well as the author of twenty-eight books on Jewish spirituality, social justice, and ethics.

As a global social justice activist and educator, Rabbi Yanklowitz has volunteered, staffed trips, and taught across the world, including Israel, Ghana, India, France, Thailand, El Salvador, England, Senegal, Germany, Switzerland, Ukraine, Argentina, South Africa, and Haiti. Rabbi Dr. Yanklowitz has also served as a rabbinic representative, facilitator, and speaker at the World Economic Forum in Geneva and Davos. Rabbi Shmuly's religious journey was filmed in the Independent Lens/PBS documentary "The Calling." 

Rabbi Shmuly earned a masters degree from Harvard University in Leadership and Psychology, another masters from Yeshiva University in Jewish Philosophy, and a doctorate from Columbia University in Moral Development and Epistemology. He obtained rabbinical ordination from the Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School and two additional, private ordinations in Israel. He has twice been named one of America's Top Rabbis by Newsweek. In 2016, The Forward named Rabbi Shmuly one of The Most Inspiring Rabbis in America. In 2016, the Forward named Rav Shmuly one of the 50 most influential Jews. In the same year, Yanklowitz was selected for the Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship in Cross-Cultural Leadership and Innovative Entrepreneurship at the University of Cambridge.

Rabbi Shmuly, his wife Shoshana, and their four children live in Scottsdale, Arizona. They are also foster parents.

KEY NOTES:

From Inner Growth to Outer Activism: How personal transformation drives social change
Inclusion vs. Tolerance: Redefining how we relate to others
Building Change One Human at a Time: The mission of Thrive by Character
Aligned in Purpose: Love, Compassion, and Partnership in Marriage
Why empathy is declining—and what we can do about it
Stories of moral courage and spiritual conviction
The role of faith, justice, and activism in our modern world

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Episode Trailer
02:07 - Intro
03:47 - From Inner Growth to Outer Activism  
08:28 - Where Has Inner Transformation Gone?  
13:14 - What Makes a Multi-Issue Activist?  
21:27 - Inclusion or Just Tolerance?  
31:27 - How Thrive by Character Seeks to Replace Division with Moral Clarity  
35:23 - Does Consumerism Erase Responsibility?  
39:11 - Growth by Unlearning  
44:21 - Thrive by Character: Building Change One Human at a Time  
51:11 - Aligned in Purpose: Love, Compassion, and Partnership in Marriage  
55:42 - If You Could Change the World  
01:00:14 - Outro  

THINGS MENTIONED IN THE PODCAST:

Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz's Website: https://www.rabbishmuly.com/
Thrive by Character links: https://www.youtube.com/@ThriveByCharacter
Thrive by Character Youtube:  ⁨@ThrivebyCharacter⁩  

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