Prologue
People drive FOA’s mission. This month, we’re spotlighting Andrea Mifano, our Global Project Manager. Andrea leads our international projects and workshops, making sure every participant’s needs are met. She keeps our global operations running smoothly across time zones, languages, and cultures.
Andrea’s path to FOA is unique. She grew up in Brazil and built a career in corporate law and international business. Later, she turned her focus to fighting online antisemitism. Now in Israel, Andrea leads FOA’s global work with steady determination, taking on tough challenges and making them look easy.
Andrea is a member of the World Jewish Congress Jewish Diplomatic Corps and a strong advocate for Jewish communities worldwide. She brings professional expertise and personal commitment to everything she does. We spoke with Andrea to learn more about her journey, her work, and what drives her every day.
From São Paulo to FOA: A Family History That Shaped a Mission
Andrea, your background is in corporate law and international business — not exactly the most obvious route to becoming an online antisemitism warrior! How did FOA come into your life, and what made you say yes?
If I told you I also worked in construction and real estate development, it would seem even less obvious! I was born and raised in the Jewish community of São Paulo, and I’ve always been involved in volunteer work supporting Jewish communities and Israel. Beyond that, I grew up with a very clear understanding of how dangerous antisemitism is and the immense suffering it causes.
It has always been very personal and clear to me; both sets of my grandparents and my parents were expelled from Egypt during the rise of Pan-Arabism under General Gamal Abdel Nasser (may his name be erased). Before antisemitism became mainstream there, both families had successful lives, owned factories, and enjoyed a modern lifestyle. The Egyptian government seized everything, and they never saw a single cent of the assets “nationalized” by the regime.
With the explosion of hate, lies, and violence against Israel and the Jewish people since October 7th, I felt I couldn’t just be a bystander anymore. Even with the volunteering I was already doing, I knew I had to do more. When the offer to work for FOA came up, I saw a chance to help communities worldwide gain the skills to fight and remove online hate. Jumping from the private sector to an NGO wasn’t the “obvious” career move, but I said yes because the situation today is so critical that we need all hands on deck. I needed to contribute measurable results to one of the many fronts of this war against antisemitism.
More than that, FOA is launching a new program, sponsored by Maccabi, to teach our tools to communities around the world, including in Latin America, where I come from. So I’ll be part of this effort to help many communities to be part of their own line of defense. By The Way, if this sounds interesting to anyone, please let us know, and I’ll gladly share more details.
Brazil has a large and established Jewish community, but antisemitism is very much present there. Did you experience it personally growing up — and looking back, do you think it shaped who you are today, both as a person and as a professional?
Brazil is home to the 10th-largest Jewish community in the world, with about 100,000 to 120,000 Jews. However, in a country of over 210 million people, we are a small minority. Thankfully, the antisemitism there isn’t quite like what we see in North America or Eastern Europe today; it’s often more “under the surface.”
In a predominantly Catholic country, these biases are sometimes embedded in the culture — certain religious traditions, vocabulary that uses “Jew” as a pejorative word, or “jokes” people tell without even realizing they are antisemitic. However, in the last few years, the environment has shifted. Beyond the impact of October 7th, the current political rhetoric has been increasingly hostile, with the Brazilian president frequently spreading antisemitic tropes and misinformation about Gaza. It’s reached the point where Brazil hasn’t had an ambassador in Israel for a few years.
That said, my experience in Brazil was mostly positive and didn’t “shape” me through trauma. What truly shaped me as a professional who cares about our people and the truth was my family’s history, their example, and my Jewish education. They and my school instilled in me a deep pride in being Jewish, strong moral values, and a love for our rich history.
Through the World Jewish Congress Jewish Diplomatic Corps, you engaged with Jewish leaders from across the globe. What did that experience teach you about how differently Jewish communities around the world perceive and respond to antisemitism?
It taught me that every community is unique. Even when they are geographically close, they face different realities that demand tailored responses based on their local culture.
On the flip side, there are many universal lessons that communities can exchange. The sad part about our current era is that the sponsors of terror have expanded their reach so far and so efficiently — whether they are funding universities, influencing news stations, or lobbying politicians — that many of the challenges faced by vastly different communities have become strikingly similar.
Running a Global Operation
As FOA’s Global Project Manager, you keep our work moving across time zones, languages, and teams — all from Israel. What does a typical day actually look like, and what is the hardest part of holding a global operation together?
That’s a great question, mostly because a “typical” day is usually anything but! Depending on which region is running a course or which country I need to coordinate with, my schedule can shift completely.
For instance, if I’m working with a very different time zone, my day might start late by Israeli standards but end very late at night to ensure I’m available when our partners are active. The hardest part is knowing when to draw the line. Because we operate globally, there is work happening 24/7. If you let it, the job could easily consume every hour of the day, so maintaining that balance is the real challenge.
FOA collaborates with volunteers and partners from many different countries and cultures. What have you learned about building real trust across such diverse communities — and what still surprises you about how people show up for this cause?
Building trust comes down to showing genuine concern and a real willingness to help. It’s also about taking the time to actually get to know people, as much as our busy schedules allow.
In my months at FOA, I’ve met some truly extraordinary people. It is incredibly inspiring to see individuals from such diverse backgrounds, cultures, and creeds dedicate their personal time to learning how to fight antisemitism. It gives me a lot of hope. What surprises me in the best way possible is seeing participants who have no personal connection to Judaism or Israel, but who join the fight simply because they can discern right from wrong. They haven’t fallen for the global disinformation campaign and want to stand against hate, even if it doesn’t affect them directly.
October 7: Why This Fight Belongs to Everyone
October 7 was a turning point for Jewish communities everywhere. How did it affect you personally — and did it shift the way you think about the urgency of what we do at FOA?
It absolutely reinforced the urgency of fighting antisemitism with every tool at our disposal, everywhere in the world. This isn’t just a Jewish fight; it’s a fight for anyone who values Western civilization.
As the saying goes, “Jews are the canary in the coal mine.” We are the first to be attacked, but never the last. October 7th proved this; the Hamas terrorists didn’t just murder Jewish babies, women, and the elderly; they also murdered and kidnapped people from Thailand, the Philippines, Tanzania, Eritrea, Sudan, and even fellow Muslims.
Personally, it became clear to me that there is no path to peace with the Gazan culture that indoctrinates children from birth to have as their main inspiration killing a Jew or die trying, or that erases history by faking archaeological findings that prove the connection between the land and the Jewish People for millennia. It’s also heartbreaking to see international organizations like the UN and the ICC become playgrounds for dictatorships, providing a “diplomatic cover” for the most modern versions of antisemitic blood libels and forgetting completely why they were created.
At its core, FOA’s mission is about protecting real people who face hate online every day. Is there a moment from your time here that has stayed with you — something that brings the mission home for you?
The moment that really brought it home for me was learning that an FOA volunteer flagged information so serious that it was passed to the FBI, successfully preventing a terrorist attack against a Jewish community in the United States.
You’ve seen FOA’s educational work up close. How do our workshops equip people — whether students, community members, or professionals — to stand their ground in an environment that can feel deeply hostile to Jewish identity?
Our approach is distinct because we focus on monitoring and reporting rather than direct engagement. This fulfills our primary goal — getting the hate removed — while protecting our volunteers from the toxicity of online arguments.
Even so, the work isn’t easy; staring at pure hate all day is draining. We help people stand their ground by providing them with effective tools to actually see that hate disappear, which is very empowering. We also incorporate mental resilience exercises to help participants decompress. On a personal note, I always encourage people to learn our history. When you are proud of who we are and understand that we have thousands of years of rich, beautiful culture, you realize that while these hostile events are awful, they do not define us. Am Israel Hai!
You can contact Andrea at [email protected]