JDC (The Joint)

Founded in 1914 with a cablegram requesting aid for impoverished Jews in Ottoman Palestine, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee — known as JDC or “The Joint” — has grown into the world’s leading global Jewish humanitarian organization. Operating in over 70 countries, JDC puts Jewish values into action when the world needs them most: rescuing Jews in danger, providing aid to vulnerable Jewish populations, and responding to natural disasters and crises wherever they strike.

JDC’s work spans an extraordinary range of humanitarian efforts: providing emergency relief and disaster response, supporting hospitals, schools, and food distribution networks, and developing innovative welfare systems for elderly Jews and Holocaust survivors around the world. After the fall of Communism, JDC established cultural and educational programs to foster Jewish identity in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, demonstrating the organization’s deep commitment to Jewish continuity alongside physical survival.

In Israel, JDC partners with the government and local organizations to address the country’s most complex social challenges, developing groundbreaking solutions for its most vulnerable citizens. Globally, JDC’s reach extends beyond the Jewish community through high-impact disaster relief and development assistance, embodying the Jewish principle of tikkun olam — repairing the world.

Headquartered in New York City, JDC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has been a cornerstone of the organized American Jewish community’s response to global need for more than a century. Through its network of programs — including JDC Entwine for young adults and the JDC Archives — it continues to build the next generation of engaged Jewish leaders while preserving the historical memory of its century-plus of service.