Founded in the wake of the Drumlanrig Accords – a landmark agreement establishing a framework for Muslim-Jewish collaboration – Yad aims to solve the "dialogue gap" on campuses, combat antisemitism and Islamophobia and nurture the next generation of leaders.
Yad Fellowship participants (Cumberland Lodge)[Missing Credit]
The programme was co-founded by Irfan Zaman, CEO of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), and Noah Katz, who works at the Board of Deputies looking after Jewish staff networks, and is supported by the government’s independent adviser on antisemitism Lord Mann.
Mann emphasised the importance of such initiatives. “At this moment of deep societal division, it’s more important than ever that diverse student leaders are brought together.”
The Yad Fellowship (Cumberland Lodge)[Missing Credit]
Participant Warwick University history and politics student Yusuf Amin, 21, found the experience transformative, he told the JC. “The day-long summit helped build my confidence in initiating uncomfortable conversations.”
An observant Muslim involved in student politics, Amin reflected on the impact of the event. “Being on a university campus with the war in Gaza, there is a lot of dogmatism from both sides, which is awful, but being at Yad was so uplifting.”
He returned to campus with new skills for fostering dialogue. “Start interfaith with a communal activity – food or charity – because communal activities build trust. Make the right spaces on campuses to ensure people can speak out in a safe and brave way.”
Since the summit, Amin has attended a Shabbat dinner organised by Warwick Jewish Society. “Me, a religious Muslim, had a great time. We talked about many topics that we wouldn’t normally discuss and ended up agreeing on stuff.”
He found that discussions about the war in Gaza revealed common ground: “Most of the Jewish students agreed with me about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – we all thought he wasn’t great.”
He also discovered shared experiences during conversations about family life and traditions – “annoying aunts and lots of cousins – we found a lot of commonality.”
Yad Fellowship co-Founders Irfan Zaman and Noah Katz (Cumberland Lodge)[Missing Credit]
Amin’s passion for interfaith dialogue was reinforced by the fellowship. “I’m big on Abrahamic unity,” he said. “I want to work with Christians and Jews – we are part of a monotheistic family.”
He said the summit had empowered him to challenge rigid narratives on campus and that he felt more confident about confronting discrimination. “I can utilise my agency more.”
Levy also left the summit with “practical takeaways that I can use in real life”, she said.
Leeds international relations and Spanish student, Emma Levy, said she took ten pages of notes during the summit (Cumerland Lodge)[Missing Credit]
One of her main takeaways was “the importance of being uncomfortable. We were told about the need to step out of our ‘comfort zone’ and into the ‘growth zone’ where you are halfway between feeling safe and unsafe.” This is where development happens, Levy said.
At universities, many students “retreated into their echo chambers”, according to Levy, but she hoped that Yad would give her the tools to lead discussions with people she disagreed with.
One idea she would like to see implemented is telling first-year students “that they should feel uncomfortable with ideas that they are confronted with on campus, and they will not agree with everything – and that is okay.”
Interfaith expert panel with Laura Marks CBE (left), Dilwar Hussain MBE, Dr Lindsay Simmonds, Zaynab Albadry, Noah Katz (Cumberland Lodge)[Missing Credit]
Rabbi Charley Baginsky, co-leader of Progressive Judaism and a signatory of the Drumlanrig Accords, who attended Yad, said: “On the heels of the Drumlanrig Accords, this groundbreaking initiative is precisely what is needed to act as a salve for the tensions we’ve been seeing on our campuses and in wider society.”
The chair of New Horizons in British Islam, Dilwar Hussain echoed this sentiment, saying: “I’m really happy to see universities play their part in developing mutual understanding between a new generation of Jewish and Muslim leaders. This is long overdue and can have a positive impact on social cohesion far beyond education and academic life.”
Participants also heard from Mitzvah Day and Nisa-Nashim founder Laura Marks, NUS vice president Saranya Thambirajah, Reverend Canon Professor James Walters, London School of Economics (LSE) students’ union general secretary Tito Molokwu and SAOS vice-chancellor Professor Adam Habib.
The summit was supported by the National Union of Students (NUS).
