UPJ Awards Nomination Form for Ner Atid Leadership Award

THE NER ATID LEADERSHIP AWARD

The online nomination form is at the bottom of this page.
Nominations for Ner Atid Awards for 2026 are open. Deadline is August 26, 2026.

The UPJ would like to recognise worthy individuals in the next generation whose leadership ensures Progressive Jewish values continue into the future for our communities. The Ner Atid (Future Light) Leadership Award was created in 2026 to recognise leaders between the ages of 21 and 35, who are members of a Progressive Jewish community and have shown leadership and made a considerable impact for the Jewish Community, Australian Society, and/or Israel. They have the personal characteristics to continue to have an impact after receiving this award. The nominees may have previously held positions in Netzer and be currently involved with AUJS and/or Tamar, but this is not a requirement. The nominee can be serving the Jewish or wider community in other ways, such as in board positions, committees, teaching, mentoring others, project leadership, or in religious activities.

If you have such a worthy candidate, please submit a nomination outlining the detailed reasons for giving such an award.  Once completed, you can forward it to the UPJ Executive Manager. It will be assessed by the 2025 Awards Committee, which is comprised of three regional representatives selected by the President of the UPJ.  All nominations are confidential, and submissions should not be discussed with the nominees.

The criteria are as follows:

1. The nominee must be between the ages of 21 and 35 when the nomination is submitted.
2. The nominee must be a Progressive Jew
3. They must have shown leadership in the community by serving as a project coordinator, teacher, religious leader, mentor, member of a recognised board of management or show leadership in another way.
4. The nominee should have the characteristics to continue to serve in various capacities in the future.
5. The nominee may be a paid employee of the nominating congregation / organisation, but their leadership must be in another capacity outside their paid employment.

The above criteria will be used by the committee, representing the geographic spread of the UPJ, and appointed by the President or Co-Presidents of the UPJ, to assess the nominations. The committee will remain anonymous, but will provide feedback for unsuccessful nominations.  All applications must be typed on this form. No hand-written nominations.

It is the responsibility of the nominator to provide sufficient detail in a clear and concise manner to judge the application.