Peoples of Israel: Naava Shafner, the social entrepreneur ‘unicorn’

Naava Shafner is an Orthodox Jewish social entrepreneur in Jerusalem who advocates for abuse survivors, agunot, and career mothers. She founded Ima Kadima, won a 2016 Supreme Court case on mikvah rights, and officiated at an Orthodox wedding for two gay former lone soldiers. She now directs Ashoka Jewish World & Israel, connecting Israeli and Jewish changemakers globally.

Naava Shafner is an Orthodox Jewish social entrepreneur and activist based in Jerusalem, described as a 'unicorn' for combining seemingly contradictory identities: Orthodox and liberal, Zionist and activist, mother and community builder. She has advocated for survivors of abuse in religious communities, fought for women trapped in marriages by husbands who refuse a Jewish divorce (agunot), built a network of over 20,000 career-minded mothers through Ima Kadima, and officiated at the Orthodox wedding of two gay former lone combat soldiers. Her activism includes a 2016 Supreme Court victory on women's rights in state-run mikvahs. After October 7, she shifted from activism to social entrepreneurship, now serving as director of Ashoka Jewish World & Israel, where she connects Israeli and Jewish changemakers globally. The article frames her work as building alternatives to injustice rather than merely fighting it.