Rabbi Andrew Baker Named Director of International Jewish Affairs

American Jewish Committee
Monday, 19 March 2001

Rabbi Andrew Baker has been appointed Director of International Jewish Affairs in the Office of Government and International Relations of the American Jewish Committee.

"Rabbi Baker's efforts in cultivating AJC's relations with the Jewish communities of Europe, especially in the former Soviet Union, have been outstanding," said Shulamit Bahat, acting executive director of the American Jewish Committee. "This new department head position reflects both the extraordinary reach of AJC in building a unique network of relationships with Jewish communities throughout the Diaspora, and our commitment to deepen our efforts, respond to the globalization of the Jewish agenda and address common Jewish issues and concerns."

The highlight of the American Jewish Committee's year-round programmatic activities interacting with foreign Jewish communities is AJC's annual International Leadership Conference, which brings Jewish leaders from over 50 countries for a week of discussion every May on ascending issues affecting world Jewry. Rabbi Baker has been the coordinator of this unique event since its inception nine years ago.

Rabbi Baker joined the AJC staff in 1979 and previously served as AJC's Washington Area Director. As AJC's Director of European Affairs since 1992, Rabbi Baker has coordinated the development of AJC's extensive projects across Europe, with a special emphasis on the Jewish communities of Central and Eastern Europe.

He has been responsible for the development of AJC exchange programs for emerging political leaders in Germany, Poland and other central and Eastern European countries.

Rabbi Baker has played a key role for AJC in Holocaust-related issues. He represents AJC on the board of the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany and is a member of its Executive Committee. He is a member of the National Historical Commission of Lithuania and a member of the Czech Republic Government Commission for the Redress of Holocaust Victims.

Rabbi Baker is a past president of the Interfaith Conference of Washington, a past president of the Washington Board of Rabbis, and a former Commissioner on the District of Columbia Human Rights Commission.

For more information, or to contact American Jewish Committee, see their website at: www.ajc.org