The IKG youth department's latest project is called "Toda" which comes from Hebrew and means "thank you". These are little words that we often forget about, so we are not even aware of how many wonderful things in life - often vital for our survival - we should be grateful for. In our consumer society, the focus is mostly on the outcome or the product. We take many services for granted and, in the stress of daily life, fail to appreciate them. What's more, we often don't even know the people who are responsible for organising and maintaining our city of Vienna and the Jewish community. Through our project, we want to highlight the value of these very simple words, "THANK YOU", and learn to appreciate and, above all, know more about the services and people that enrich and simplify our lives every day. The aim of "Toda" is to reawaken young people's awareness and understanding and encourage them to express their gratitude and appreciation through homemade gifts.
We want to thank not only Jewish but also state institutions. That's because we, as VIENNESE JEWS, feel we should express gratitude not only to our community but also to the city of Vienna.
Each year, every youth organisation seeks out both Jewish and non-Jewish organisations. By engaging in joint group activities, they learn about the structure of the chosen institutions and study the areas for which they are responsible. After their close examination of the chosen organisations, the young people together decide on a suitable gift which they then make themselves. Finally, a few representatives of the youth organisation visit the institution to hand over their gift to the people in charge.