Mitsui Collective offers embodied Jewish learning for both programs crafted entirely by Mitsui Collective and those infused into larger programs such as national conferences, professional trainings, regional convenings, fellowship seminars, and consultation on areas relating to our core areas of work.
Our work centers embodied Jewish practice and somatic antiracism. We also offer expertise in Jewish program design, community building, and experiential learning and leadership pedagogies.
We are available in-person and online, both locally in the Cleveland and Northeast Ohio area as well nationally and internationally.
Our core programs fall into two categories: external programs and engagements, which include workshops, speaking engagements, consultation, and faculty roles; and in-house work, which includes programs, partnerships, resource-development, and field-building through professional training and research & development.
Please contact us if you are interested in hiring us for an engagement and/or learning more about our work!
Mitsui Collective relies on workshop and speaking fees as a core component of organizational revenue. Our fees are based in-part on length of programs, whether in-person or online, size of the group, and the overall scope of work. We also offer a sliding fee scale based on the organizational budget of our clients. Contact us for additional pricing and information.
For more information on our areas of work, see our our Working Definitions and Mitsui Method pages. We also invite you to a selection of program descriptions below for a taste of prior programs we’ve run in the past.
Prior Program Highlights
- Creative Expression through Embodied Jewish Practice — Jewish tradition teaches that all humans are created in the image of the divine. In this session, we’ll explore how we put this into practice through creative expression in and through our bodies, utilizing embodied practices drawing from Jewish learning, wisdom, and tradition. You’ll have opportunities for movement, music, and stillness practices, connecting to breath, body, and spirit. Dress in comfortable non-restrictive clothing and set up in a space where you have some room to move, to the extent possible. This session is body-positive with lots of options and modifications available along the way. All bodies welcome! (PJ Library 2021 National Conference)
- Embodied Jewish Leadership and Building Antiracist Culture — This workshop for Jewish communal and professional leaders builds understanding of somatic responses to external conditions, and practices for building somatic awareness and responsiveness to stress. The workshop begins with a broad overview applicable to a wide range of contexts, then moves specifically into the context of addressing the impacts of racism and utilizing somatic awareness and practice to build antiracist culture in Jewish organizational and communal environments.
- Immersing Our Bodies in Joy — Bring the joyful spirit of the holiday into your body through embodied Jewish practice and learning that connects us to our bodies and souls. This session will use a combination of song and music, breathwork, sensory experience, and light physical movement to explore rituals of water drawing with joy and creative expression. (Mayyim Hayyim Simchat Beit HaShoevah Sukkot Water Drawing Festival, Fall 2021)
- Addressing Racism From the Inside Out — A workshop for Jews of all racial backgrounds utilizing a combination of somatic practices alongside “traditional” text- and content-based learning & discussion to more fully address both the impacts of racism and effective tools for moving towards antiracist practice. This workshop begins by rooting into personal bodies, stories, and identity; followed by an exploration into how racism impacts our relationships with ourselves, with others, within Jewish community, and within broader society.
- Somatics and Safety — A three-part series for Jews of Color to learn & practice somatic skills supporting resilience, resourcing, and presence in community conversations around safety and security. Our pilot session ran in early Fall 2021 and used an organizing framework of Reflection (slichot), Renewal (teshuvah), and Resource (sukkot) for pedagogical thematic grounding in the Hebrew calendar. Content focused on nervous system attunement and regulation alongside embodied practices for centering and grounding, rooted both in Jewish learning and Jewish communal contexts.
- Mind, Body & Breath: Embodied Practices for Wellness and Nourishment — Give your body a break through physical movement and breath practice centering joyful and creative expression inspired by Jewish tradition and meaning-making. You’ll leave this session feeling energized and open, with practical tips to incorporate low-key movement and breathwork throughout your regular daily work and personal life. (Jewish Federations of North America’s Spring 2021 FedPro conference)
- Etz Chayim Glee: A Tu Bishvat Embodied Morning Prayer Experience — a dynamic and nourishing embodied Jewish prayer experience for Tu Bishvat morning focused on gratitude, connection, and awakening. We’ll incorporate song, movement, chanting, meditation, and stillness practices inspired by the thematic structure of the morning Shacharit service to awaken our bodies, hearts, and souls as we enter the New Year for the Trees. (Collaboration between Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute and Mitsui Collective for the 2021 Big Bold Jewish Climate Festival)
- Us and Us – Centering the Margins of Racial Identity in the Jewish Climate Movement — As Jews, when we discuss “environmental racism,” conversations and learning often fall into the paradigm of framing the conversation as “Us” (Jews) and “Them” (People of Color). When this framing occurs, even if subconsciously, what assumptions are being made about who Jews are and where do Jews of Color fit in? Join Kristy Drutman (Brown Girl Green), Nate Looney (Avodah), and Yoshi Silverstein (Mitsui Collective) for a conversation on our experiences as Jews of Color working at the intersections of nature connection, environmental activism, farming, service, and Jewish education; and on how the Jewish climate movement must evolve in its relationships and practices both external and internal to Jewish community in order to actualize a green and equitable future. (Mainstage event at 2021 Big Bold Jewish Climate Fest)
Programs and Community Building for Multiracial / Multicultural Jews & Jewish Families
Mitsui Collective is open to all spiritual seekers while centering our work and community-building around those historically placed at the margins of Jewish life — including but not limited to Jews of Color and non-Ashkenormative Jews, LGBTQ, interfaith / intergroup families, and those of varied socioeconomic status. We view diversity and representation as a vital building block for vibrant, resilient community.
Locally (Cleveland) and regionally (Midwest) we are proud to work in partnership with Edot HaMidwest: The Jewish Midwest Regional Diversity Collaborative to focus a core subset of our work specifically on Jews of Color and Multiracial Jewish families. Mitsui Collective also works on a national level for both JOC-related consultation and JOC-centered movement & wellness programs. To see more please visit our programs page.
Programs specifically focused on these populations are generally listed on the events page with a note on target audience. Some programs are exclusively for JOC (or people of color involved in Jewish community). Others are more broadly for multiracial families and purposefully include white / non-POC family members. If you’re unsure about whether you fit into these more specifically defined groups, please be in touch! We’d love to chat about it.
And in general if you’d like to be involved and/or get connected with other JOC and Multiracial Jewish families in Cleveland and throughout the Midwest, please also be in touch so we can be sure to reach out.