2024 Jain Leadership Forum By Mayur Shah, Dr. Manoj Jain, Chintan Shah and Soha Shah

“Jainism from Success to Significance”

The Long Range Planning (LRP) Committee, a committee of JAINA, the Federation of Jain Associations in North America, hosted the Jain Leadership Forum from April 5th-7th in Chicago, IL to bring together, in one place, new and experienced leaders to strategize on the future of the Jain community in North America. Under the leadership of Dr. Dipak Jain, former Dean of Kellogg School of Business, and Dr. Manoj Jain, 125 Jain leaders from across North America gathered to collaborate on leadership development, community engagement, and the formulation of strategic initiatives for the purpose of steering the Jain community towards a unified vision of Jainism in North America.

Attendees included leaders from various facets of the Jain community, including JAINA , Young Jains of America, Young Jain Professionals, JITO and numerous Jain Centers from across North America.

As with many minority communities, North American Jains face a myriad of organizational, generational, leadership, religious, and community challenges. Recognizing these challenges, the Jain Leadership Forum invited speakers who could ignite excitement and reach into each attendee’s passion to create engagement and synergy that will reverberate throughout the coming days, weeks, months, and years for the 200,000 Jains In North America.

Friday evening, the forum kicked off with a keynote address from former Dean of the Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University, Dr. Dipak Jain. Dean Jain is the first Jain dean at a North American academic institution of higher learning and he shared how the core Jain principles of Ahimsa (non-violence), Anekantvad (multiplicity of viewpoints), and Aparigraha (simplicity/non-possessiveness) enabled him to have a successful career and overcome numerous life challenges.

Dean Jain’s passion is summarized in his own words during his keynote address, “Excellence has no bounds, you can reach any height but there is always more to do. No challenge ahead of you is greater than the force behind you.”

Throughout the weekend, the participating Jain leaders heard from many different speakers, including educators, business executives, medical professionals, academics, students, and community leaders, both volunteer and elected, and many more. Current US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL) and former US State Representative (AZ) Dr. Amish Shah, both echoed the need for Jains to have voices heard in local, state, and national politics.

Saturday’s sessions provided an opportunity for the attendees to be active participants and take the first steps towards identifying challenges that the Jain community faces, and brainstorm multiple ways to address these challenges in order to help foster growth and strength while working with the local community. Round table discussions allowed attendees from around the US to share best practices and actively learn from one another on topics such as increasing Jain Center engagement and increasing awareness of Jainism in the broader North American population.

Sunday, as the Jain Leadership Forum’s last day began, the energy and excitement around the question of ‘when can I start implementing what I have learned?’ was palpable. Before participants enjoyed the last vegan meal of the weekend, there were over 20 Jain projects in varying stages presented to the captive audience.

For the attendees, JLF 2024 provided a solid foundation from which to build new initiatives, create synergies, expand on networking opportunities, and to define a clear picture of how to shape Jainism’s future in North America.

Each 2024 Jain Leadership Forum attendee traveled home with an expanded toolkit of how to inspire their local Jain communities to plan for the future and a broader network of Jain leaders to help strengthen the foundation of the large North American Jain community for future generations to come. The 2024 JLF attendees are the ambassadors for taking Jainism from success to significance!

About the Long Range Planning Committee

The Long Range Planning Committee is a committee of JAINA. Its mission is to develop a strong, sustainable strategy for JAINA to pursue its vision and initiatives. LRP supports this mission by promoting and sharing a Jain Way of Life by increasing awareness about the 3 As – Ahimsa, Anekantvad, Aparigraha, strengthening the Jain way of life, Jain Center, and Jain family connections, and working closely with YJA, YJP and local sanghs to develop young leaders within the Jain community.

For more information on JLF 2024, the JAINA LRP committee, various Jain projects, or JAINA and to share your interest in becoming more involved in shaping the future of Jainism, please visit www.jainleadership.org or email jlfinfo@jaina.org.