Steven Eisenbach-Budner
Steve Eisenbach-Budner is the founder and Executive Director of Tivnu: Building Justice. Throughout his life, he has worked to create relevant and holistic Jewish communities that address the social, spiritual, and political facets of contemporary Jewish identity. He has worked in the construction field for over twenty years as a carpenter, general contractor and construction trainer. From 2002-2012, Steve worked with the at-risk young adults of Portland YouthBuilders, a job-training and life-skills program. He taught and mentored hundreds of students while they built homes for low-income families, developed leadership skills and, for some, experienced a supportive community for the first time. In 2012, Steve was awarded a Joshua Venture Group Fellowship, enabling him to fully focus on Tivnu.
Steve founded Tivnu: Building Justice to enable Jews from across the communal spectrum to integrate their Jewish identities with their commitment to social justice. Having been raised in an affordable housing complex in New York City, he knows first-hand the centrality of housing to family and community stability and cohesion. Steve and his family make their home in Portland, Oregon.