Reboot Ideas Presents Never Forget: The American Jewish Response to the Refugee Crisis

Last month, Reboot Ideas partnered with the creative team behind Jewish American Heritage Month to produce a virtual panel featuring Anne-Marie Grey, Executive Director and CEO of USA for UNHCR, and Sloane Davidson, founder and CEO of Hello Neighbor. The two were in conversation with Juliet Simmons, creator of the “What Would You Bring?” Refugee Storytelling Initiative, and Noam Dromi, Managing Director of Reboot Studios. During the chat, they explored the ways in which the American Jewish community has taken an active role in refugee resettlement and support services, as well as the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead.

In honor of World Refugee Day (which is celebrated each year on June 20) we’re re-sharing this important conversation.

Anne-Marie Grey is the Executive Director and CEO of USA for UNHCR. Appointed in September 2014 to lead the organization and enhance its programs and resources, Anne-Marie is committed to mobilizing efforts in support of the 82.4 million men, women and children that have been forced to flee their homes around the world. Prior to joining USA for UNHCR, Anne-Marie worked with UNHCR, Save the Children, UNICEF and Share our Strength in a variety of leadership fundraising and marketing positions. Before returning to the United States, Anne-Marie lived in Australia, where she led marketing and development programs for the National Museum of Australia and held several roles at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.

Sloane Davidson is the Founder and CEO of Hello Neighbor, a nonprofit organization that works to improve the lives of recently resettled refugee families by matching them with dedicated neighbors to guide and support them in their new lives. Prior to starting Hello Neighbor, Sloane worked for fifteen years across the intersection of philanthropy and digital marketing. She has worked with nonprofits, NGOs and for-profit businesses in a wide range of capacities including branding, business development, capacity building, communications, corporate social responsibility partnerships and campaigns, event production and fundraising.

Juliet Simmons is a Creative Producer with a background in marketing and event production. Based in London, she has worked with blue-chip clients around the world and now works across the creative industries with arts organizations and non for profits to help them make good things happen. She volunteers for a centre for refugees and asylum seekers and is a trustee of the Wellspring Project. Her grandfather was a refugee, moving from Vienna to London before the Second World War, and she often wonders what he did bring with him on that journey.

Noam Dromi is the Managing Director and Executive Producer of Reboot Studios, the content production arm of the arts-and-culture nonprofit Reboot. He is an Emmy® Award-winning veteran writer/producer, marketing executive and digital strategist, specializing in creative content, media production and brand development for entertainment companies, consumer brands and nonprofits. He won the first Primetime Emmy® for VR in 2015 for his work as Producer of the Sleepy Hollow Virtual Reality Experience with the Fox Broadcasting Company. He was nominated again in 2018 for his work as Executive Producer of the AMC digital series The Walking Dead: Red Machete. He is an active member of the WGA, PGA, and Television Academy and serves as an adjunct screenwriting professor in the School of Film and Television at Loyola Marymount University.

An official program of Jewish American Heritage Month. Produced by REBOOT in Partnership with JAHM and the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.