The Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Annual Memorial Lecture 2026
9 July 2026
“The choice humankind faces in every age is between the idea of power and the power of ideas. Judaism has always believed in the power of ideas, and it remains the only non-violent way to change the world.”
Lecture Title: “Kings, Priests and Prophets: Power and its Missing Guardrails”
THE KEYNOTE LECTURE WILL BE DELIVERED BY
David Miliband
PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE
Date: Thursday 9 July 2026
Time: 7:00 pm
Location: A central London venue
Cost: £10 plus booking fee
Student Concessions Available
The Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Annual Memorial Lecture addresses the issues that challenge us as a society, stimulates debate about morality and social policy, and connects people to the issues Rabbi Sacks championed as a global moral voice, ideas that remain relevant in today’s world.
About the 2026 Keynote Speaker
David Miliband
David Miliband is the President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, an NGO founded by Albert Einstein whose mission is to help people whose lives have been shattered by conflict and disaster, including the climate crisis, to survive, recover, and regain control of their future. He oversees the agency’s operations in over 40 crisis-affected countries and its refugee resettlement and assistance programs in the Americas and in Europe.
Miliband previously served as the 74th Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom. He is also the author of the book, Rescue: Refugees and the Political Crisis of Our Time. As the son of refugees, Miliband brings a personal commitment to the IRC’s work and the premise of his book – that we can rescue the dignity and hopes of refugees and displaced people, and if we help them, in the process, we will rescue our own values.
The 2025 Annual Memorial Lecture
On 11 March 2025, the Rt Revd and Rt Lord Rowan Williams gave the keynote speech at The Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Annual Memorial Lecture. The 104th Archbishop of Canterbury titled his lecture “Covenant, Solidarity, and Building Together: From Cohesion to Community” and the event took place at King's College London.
The 2024 Annual Memorial Lecture
On Wednesday 27 March 2024, The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown was the honoured keynote speaker at The Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Annual Memorial Lecture. This inaugural lecture was held at King's College London. During his powerful address, Hope, Faith, and Charity, Gordon Brown called for a new partnership to tackle poverty, recalling this key message in Rabbi Sacks’ writings.