Author: AUFTAU

BOG 2022: Kadar Family Award for Outstanding Research Presented to Four TAU Scholars

Written by AUFTAU on 6 June 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

8th annual Kadar Award ceremony honors excellence in science and teaching.

In recognition of their trailblazing academic work, the 2022 Kadar Family Award for Outstanding Research was presented to four Tel Aviv University scholars: Prof. Michal Feldman (Exact Sciences), Prof. Leo Corry (Humanities), Prof. Jonathan Berant (Exact Sciences) and Dr. Roy Tzohar (Humanities).

Now in its eighth year, the Kadar Family Award honors pioneering scientists and scholars who have reached the highest levels of excellence in both research and teaching. The Award is granted annually to four TAU researchers, two senior and two junior faculty members, from across the entire spectrum of faculties and disciplines at TAU.

The Award Committee selects the winners based on a number of criteria including: groundbreaking research; teaching quality; research grants earned from competitive foundations; quality and quantity of scientific publications; and their status in the global scientific community.

Prof. Dan Peer, TAU Vice President for Research and Development, conferred the awards to the recipients at a festive ceremony, which also included presentations of the researchers’ work, during TAU’s 2022 Board of Governors meeting.

Professor Corry spoke on behalf of the recipients and noted that while scientific advancements in TAU’s hard science faculties are globally recognized, “One important aspect of this award is in the explicit acknowledgment that a great university, like ours, promotes not only one kind of achievement, but also excellence in the humanities and social sciences.

“Precisely in an era of deep technological and scientific change…the study of the humanities is more relevant and necessary than ever before to help interpret and place new context on how these changes are affecting us as a society and individually,” he said.

The Naomi Foundation established the Award in 2015 to honor the memory of Naomi Prawer Kadar PhD, a lifelong Yiddish specialist and the late wife of TAU benefactor Dr. Avraham Kadar, a TAU graduate, physician, educator and innovator. The three Kadar children, Einat Kadar Kricheli, Nadav Kadar, and Maya Kadar Kovalsky, are all TAU alumni and active board members of the Kadar Foundation along with their father. Avraham, Nadav and Maya are also members of TAU’s Board of Governors.

Maya Kadar Kovalsky opened the ceremony and welcomed everyone via a recorded message. She lauded the laureates: “Congratulations…on reaching this high level of distinction and thank you for your pathbreaking contributions in your respective fields.”

TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat also addressed the crowd; “The Kadar Foundation does an excellent job in advancing academic research and excellence,” he said, noting other programs the Foundation supports such as MD-PhD scholarships and the Naomi Prawer Kadar International Yiddish Summer Program, housed in TAU’s Goldreich Family Institute for Yiddish Language, Literature and Culture at the Lester and Sally Entin Faculty of Humanities.

The 2022 Kadar Family Award recipients:

Prof. Michal Feldman – Professor of Computer Science at the Blavatnik School of Computer Science, Raymond and Beverly Faculty of Exact Sciences. She is one of the most visible and successful researchers of her generation working in the rapidly emerging field of algorithmic game theory, which is situated at the intersection of theoretical computer science and economics. She is also a trailblazer in the field, where women are significantly underrepresented.

Prof. Leo Corry – Professor at the Cohn Institute for History and Philosophy of Science and Ideas, Lester and Sally Entin Faculty of Humanities, and former Dean of Humanities. Corry is a historian of mathematics. His research explores the historical development of some of the main threads of twentieth-century mathematics, such as the rise of modern algebra and the development of the idea of a mathematical structure. Since 2013, he has held the Bert and Barbara Cohn Chair for History and Philosophy of Exact Sciences.

Prof. Jonathan Berant – Associate Professor at the Blavatnik School of Computer Science, Raymond and Beverly Faculty of Exact Sciences. His research examines Natural Language Processing (NLP), which stands at the crossroads between linguistics, computer science, and artificial intelligence.

Dr. Roy Tzohar – Associate Professor at the Department of South and East Asian Studies, Lester and Sally Entin Faculty of Humanities. His research, publications, and teaching are driven primarily by an interest in the Buddhist philosophical understanding of the role and function of language. His first book, A Yogācāra Buddhist Theory of Metaphor, was published by Oxford University Press and won the Numata Prize for the best book in Buddhist Studies in 2018.

Featured image: The 2022 Kadar Family Award recipients from left: Prof. Jonathan Berant, Dr. Roy Tzohar, Prof. Michal Feldman, and Prof. Leo Corry. (Photo: Israel Hadari)

Blavatnik Prizes for Computer Science Awarded to Doctoral Fellows

Written by AUFTAU on 5 June 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

TAU hosts annual ceremony recognizing standout research in growing field.

The second annual Blavatnik Prizes for Outstanding Israeli Doctoral Students in Computer Science were awarded on June 8 to four recipients, in a ceremony at Tel Aviv University.

With generous funding from the Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Prizes were established to highlight excellent research by Israeli PhD candidates in the field of computer science and emphasize the importance of doctoral studies in general.

The 2022 recipients were:

Nave Frost of Tel Aviv University
Gal Yona of the Weizmann Institute of Science
Assaf Shocher of the Weizmann Institute of Science
Leshem Choshen of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Honorable mention went to:

Hagai Rossman of the Weizmann Institute of Science
Elad Romanov the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Gilad Yehudai of the Weizmann Institute of Science
Lior Rotem of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Among the ceremony attendees was British-American industrialist and philanthropist Sir Leonard Blavatnik (Len Blavatnik), for whom the Prizes are named. The Prize is among the latest programs backed by the longtime TAU benefactor and dedicated supporter of science, innovation and higher education in Israel.

Forefront of the Computer Science Revolution

“Israel is at the forefront of the ongoing computer science revolution that increasingly affects everyday lives around the world,” said Sir Leonard Blavatnik. “As such, it is vital to amplify the academic achievement of emerging trailblazers, who are poised to become future leaders and innovators in academia and industry.”

Sir Leonard Blavatnik, a TAU Governor and Honorary Doctor, has a transformative legacy of giving at TAU, which began over a decade ago with backing for scholarships and the Blavatnik School of Computer Science. From there, his Foundation pledged sizeable gifts to establish the Blavatnik Initiative, a multi-year program in the fields of computing, cyber, drug development, film production, and faculty recruitment. Key programs benefited by the Initiative include the Blavatnik Center for Drug Discovery and Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center.

The Prizes are conferred at TAU by the Blavatnik School of Computer Science at the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences and the School’s Blavatnik Computer Science Research Fund for high-impact areas that contribute to Israel’s economic prosperity. As computer science becomes increasingly central to life today, the Blavatnik School of Computer Science plays a cutting-edge role in TAU’s academic achievements and real-world contributions advancing innovation. Graduates fill leading positions in high-tech companies, Israel’s defense establishment and defense industries, and academic institutions worldwide.

New Avenues for Excellence

TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat welcomed Sir Leonard Blavatnik to campus in front of a packed auditorium at the state-of-the-art Check Point Building: “Again and again, Sir Leonard Blavatnik has demonstrated his heartfelt commitment to nurturing the next generation of outstanding young scientists and creators – at TAU, in Israel and globally. We at Tel Aviv University are grateful for his support and friendship that is felt throughout the campus, and that is opening new avenues for excellence in crucial fields.”

Prof. Sivan Toledo, Head of the Blavatnik School of Computer Science at Tel Aviv University, who moderated the event said: “Israeli PhD fellows in computer science contribute immensely to research and teaching that move the field forward. Sir Leonard Blavatnik and his considerable contributions play an immeasurable role in propelling them to new frontiers. The Blavatnik Prizes celebrate the achievements of the best of these PhD students, and the Blavatnik School of Computer Science is honored to award these prizes for the second time.”

A jury of computer science experts from Israeli universities including TAU, the Weizmann Institute of Science, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem select winners from a pool of doctoral students and recent PhD recipients from all Israeli universities.

Also on June 8, the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel were awarded in a separate evening ceremony held at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation. The Awards recognize the country’s most promising faculty-rank (academic staff) researchers in life sciences, physical sciences & engineering, and chemistry. The Blavatnik Family Foundation funds the Awards, which are co-administered by the New York Academy of Sciences and The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. To date, two outstanding TAU scientists, Prof. Oded Rechavi of the School of Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, and Prof. Yossi Yovel of the School of Zoology, have been Blavatnik Award laureates.

BOG 2022: Smolarz Family Building Dedicated

Written by AUFTAU on 5 June 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

In a warm and emotional ceremony during the Board of Governors meeting, TAU inaugurated the Smolarz Family Building– a home base to hundreds of students in the Smolarz Family Graduate School in Life Sciences.

The Building, which opened in 2020 as part of TAU’s Wise Faculty of Life Sciences Faculty, provides a physical bridge between the Faculty’s two older buildings, Sherman and Britannia-Porter. It has dramatically improved the University’s ability to train young scientists and professionals in the field. The Building houses four spacious, cutting-edge teaching laboratories in microbiology, biochemistry, genetics, cell biology and other subjects as well as classrooms and meeting rooms that provide opportunities for networking and collaboration. It is the last campus project of Honorary Doctor, and Vice- Chair of the Board of Governors Adolfo Smolarz, who passed away last year.  

Aida Smolarz, daughter of Adolfo and Miriam, a fellow TAU Honorary Doctor who recently celebrated her 102nd birthday, spoke to the guests at the inauguration in an emotional address, thanking all those involved in making the project a reality.

TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat said: “There could have been no more loving and generous friends of TAU and Israel than Adolfo and Miriam, and I’m so happy that Aida and Alberto are here with us today to close the circle and to pay a fitting tribute to the realization of Adolfo’s final project here.” 

The Smolarz family has supported TAU, both on campus and in Argentina, for close to 40 years. Their long history of support includes major projects such as the Miriam & Adolfo Smolarz Auditorium, which has served as the University’s premier event venue since 2005; the Smolarz Graduate School in Life Sciences; the Gitter-Smolarz Library; and a floor named in honor of their late son, Pablo, at the Buchmann Faculty of Law building. 

“The Building will serve new generations of students who will go on to become leading researchers, innovators and professionals in Israel and globally in the life sciences field,” said Prof. Marcelo Ehrlich, Vice Dean of the Faculty. “Every day at this faculty, in this building, we see the fruits of Adolfo Smolarz’s vision and generosity—the impact that will continue to perpetuate itself.”  

Guests were treated to a musical performance by students from TAU’s Buchmann-Mehta School of Music students, and viewed a moving video about the Building, which was prepared for Adolfo and Miriam when it first opened in 2020, under COVID-19 restrictions.  

Featured image: Aida Smolarz and TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat (Photo: Ofer Amram)

“A True Chance to Follow My Dream”

Written by AUFTAU on 2 June 2022. Posted in Scholarship stories.

TAU medical student Batya Sonnenfeld follows in the footsteps of late Prof. Dina Lev, as the inaugural recipient of memorial scholarship.

Since high school, TAU medical student Batya Sonnenfeld knew she wanted to pursue a medical career. Having grown up in the Chabad ultra-Orthodox education system in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Malachi, though, her choices seemed limited.

“I felt there weren’t many options when I finished high school,” she says. While most ultra-Orthodox institutions do not include a curriculum of core subjects such as math and science needed for academic studies, the Chabad system does and Batya excelled at them. Still, at that point, she was only comfortable with gender-segregated institutions.

A short time later, she enrolled in an undergraduate optometry program at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem for ultra-Orthodox women. “Before I even finished my optometry studies, I knew I wanted to learn more about medicine.”

However, she wasn’t sure she would be able to realize her medical aspirations as academia’s top medical programs seemed extremely challenging to get into and unfamiliar from her upbringing in the ultra-Orthodox education system.

She followed her heart and forged a journey that eventually led her to Tel Aviv University. Today, she is a second-year medical student and the inaugural recipient of the Dina Lev Scholarship, named for late TAU professor and alumna Prof. Dina Lev, who was a leading breast cancer surgeon and researcher.

Relentless Pursuit

Sonnenfeld, the youngest of 12 children, married her husband shortly after earning her optometry degree. “At that point in my life, I felt more stable and mature,” she recalls.

It was then that she began exploring top university medical programs and came across TAU. The four-year accelerated MD track at one of Israel’s top-ranked medical schools appealed to her. She thought it might be a long shot considering the extremely competitive nature of Israeli medical schools, even among students who aren’t from the ultra-Orthodox education system and come with all the advantages and preparations. Determined, Sonnenfeld decided to apply.

“Then I became pregnant and thought that was the end of my medical dreams,” she says.

With encouragement from her husband and parents, she completed the prerequisite courses she needed for enrollment and stayed in the running.

“The day I was accepted to TAU was one of the happiest days of my life,” she beams. “I still have my acceptance letter hanging on my refrigerator. Every time I walk by, it reminds me of what I’m capable of.”

By the time she began her studies, Sonnenfeld had her first child and soon thereafter she gave birth to her second son.

“When I was accepted to TAU, my husband was serving in the IDF with an 800-shekel (approximately $240) salary per month,” she said. Therefore, she continued working to provide for her family and pay for tuition until she received the scholarship.

Perpetuating a Legacy

“The Dina Lev Scholarship gave me space to really focus on my studies, otherwise it would have been extremely difficult to raise children alongside demanding studies and a full-time job,” said Sonnenfeld. She had applied for a scholarship through the Office of the Dean of Students.

Moreover, Sonnenfeld was astonished when she learned she had received the scholarship in Dina Lev’s name.

“By chance, I had read an article about her just a few days before and was so fascinated and inspired by her,” she explains. Sonnenfeld says she was extremely moved when she discovered a Facebook page dedicated to Lev. There, her former patients write touching testimonials about her impact as a compassionate and skilled doctor.

“Each one of them felt like they were her only patient,” said Sonnenfeld. “As a Chabad member and religious Jew, I believe everything happens for a reason; there’s no coincidence. I feel I have a special duty to honor her legacy.”

Lev was a professor at TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine and the Director of the Breast Health Center at Assuta Hospital in Ashdod at the time of her untimely death in 2020 at age 55. She graduated from TAU’s medical program before launching a career that led her to become a top surgeon in Israel. Her father, Reuben Ben-Arie, who lives in US, established the scholarship fund through the American Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU) to honor her memory. He explains that he chose TAU because it was his daughter’s intellectual home.

“Dina would want a woman to follow in her footsteps,” he says. “It’s not easy to have a family and study medicine. To follow that path shows Batya has a passion for it.”

Sonnenfeld has yet to choose a medical specialty, but she is interested in gynecology and is eager to begin clinical rotations next year at TAU-affiliated hospitals.

“My hope for the future is to be the type of doctor that Prof. Dina Lev was, who touches the lives of patients with compassion even during some of the most difficult times in their lives,” she says.

Win-Win Situation

With two young kids, Sonnenfeld acknowledges that it was challenging to begin her degree at TAU. However, support from the medical faculty helped her ease into the academic rigors in a way that complemented her personal needs.

“I got a parking spot, extra time for tests, and a very nice nursing room at the medical faculty that I could use,” she explains. Furthermore, she is particularly grateful for the tight-knit social support and hospital shadowing through the course Medical Education and Communication (“Chibuki” in Hebrew) led by Dr. Mirit Lahav.

“TAU gave me a true chance to follow my dream,” she enthuses.

Sonnenfeld sees considerable benefits to the growing access of academia for the ultra-Orthodox community. She is among the over 150 students in Trailblazers: The Program for Integrating the Ultra-Orthodox into Tel Aviv University. “Co-ed studying was a concern going into my studies as I had never experienced it before and thought I might be stereotyped, but I felt very accepted,” she says. “There is consideration and respect for my beliefs.”

Established in 2016 with two students, Trailblazers combines academic studies with educational, psychological, and social support services to ease student entry into secular academia.

“I think it’s a win-win situation,” she says. “There are tons of talented potential students, many of whom are women, and a lot of will in the community to go out and learn.”

Pride Week on TAU Campus

Written by AUFTAU on 1 June 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

BOG 2022: Strauss Brain Bank Inaugurated

Written by AUFTAU on 31 May 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

Israel’s first MRI brain database launched to prevent brain disease.

In a festive ceremony during the 2022 Board of Governors meeting, TAU inaugurated the Strauss Neuroplasticity Brain Bank—Israel’s first MRI brain database, poised to become the largest in the Middle East. Data gathered and analyzed through the Brain Bank will be used for discovering new early signs and risk factors of the disease, thus becoming a crucial national scientific and health resource. 

Inaugurated at TAU’s Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, the Brain Bank is the result of a generous and far-sighted contribution of longtime TAU supporters the Strauss family. In 2005, the family pioneered the Strauss Center for Computational Neuroimaging, which has since become a major hub of interdisciplinary research, serving over 20 different research teams from across campus ranging from biomedical research to behavioral change and evolutionary studies. Along with the Center, the family also dedicated the Guillermina Reis de Strauss Periodicals Floor at the Gitter-Smolarz Library and donated student scholarships for many years. 

At the ceremony, TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat said that TAU Governor Guillermo Strauss is continuing the giving legacy initiated in 1990 by his late father Alfredo Frederico Strauss, who was a TAU Governor, and his mother Lotte. “The combination of the Strauss family’s support, together with the expertise of TAU scientists will put TAU and Israel at the forefront of brain science and help to eventually prevent brain disease completely,” concluded Porat. 

Over the next five years, TAU neuroimaging experts will scan the brains of up to 5,000 healthy volunteers and then analyze the data using unique, patented techniques.

“The Strauss Brain Bank will harness the power of big data and translate the findings gathered at the database into earlier targeted treatments or lifestyle recommendations to prevent brain disease,” said Prof. Yaniv Assaf, the Bain Bank’s Founding Director and head of TAU’s Strauss Center for Computational Neuroimaging.  

“This project will boost Israel’s standing and competitiveness in the global scientific arena and usher in a new era of neuroscience worldwide, promoting open ‘citizen‘ science and data-sharing,” he added.  

The inauguration ceremony was attended by Dafna Meitar-Nechmad, Chairwoman of the Board of Governors, Guillermo Strauss, Prof. Abdussalam Azem, Dean of the Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Polly Deutsch, President of the Argentinian Friends of TAU, TAU Governors, faculty, and students.  

Outstanding Navigators, both Night and Day

Written by AUFTAU on 30 May 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

It is time to bust a myth about bats – bats actually see well during the day and they know how to navigate the space during daylight hours. A new Tel Aviv University study has found that fruit bats use their biological sonar during the day, even though their vision is excellent and would ostensibly eliminate the need for the bats to emit calls to the environment and use their echoes to locate objects (echolocation). The researchers believe that due to the high accuracy of the bats’ bio-sonar system in estimating how far objects are, echolocation offers an additional tool – on top of vision – to help ensure that the bats are navigating as effectively as possible. This is similar to a person crossing the street using their sense of hearing as well as sight to make sure the road is clear.

Enjoying the Tel Aviv Sun

The study was conducted under the supervision of Prof. Yossi Yovel, head of Tel Aviv University’s Sagol School of Neuroscience and a researcher at the School of Zoology in The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History. The study was led by Ph.D. student Ofri Eitan in cooperation with Dr. Maya Weinberg, Dr. Sasha Danilovich, and Reut Assa, all from Tel Aviv University, and Yuval Barkai, an urban nature photographer. The study will be published in the journal Current Biology.

The researchers explain that in general, bats are active mainly at night, and echolocation is the tool they use to navigate their way in the dark. They also say, however, that in recent years a growing phenomenon has been witnessed in Israel, particularly in Tel Aviv but also in other cities, in which Egyptian fruit bats roam around even during the day. In the current study, the researchers sought to examine what happens when the bats are active during the day, and whether they are aided by their unique bio-sonar even in conditions of good visibility.

For the first time, the researchers studied the activity and sensory behavior of the fruit bat during the day. The research was conducted with the help of photography and audio recordings of the bats’ activities throughout the day, in three different situations: in the morning, as they went out to explore in Tel Aviv; later in the day, when they visited Tel Aviv’s sycamore trees; and while they were drinking water from an artificial pool. In each of these situations, the bats used echolocation.

Daytime Integration of Senses

Ofri Eitan explains: “We compared the bats’ landings and flights between the trees, and found that prior to landing, the bats increased the sounds they emitted in order to use the echoes to help estimate the distance to the ground. In addition, we found that even in the pools of water, bats increased the rate of their calls before coming into contact with the water and reduced it (and sometimes even ceased the calls completely) after ascending from the water to fly to an open area. On the other hand, there were cases in which the bats emerged from the pool and had a wall placed in front of them, and once again returned to the use of echolocation. So, all our results show that the fruit bats make functional use of echolocation.”

Prof. Yossi Yuval concludes: “Our results are unequivocal and show that fruit bats make frequent use of echolocation even during the day when visibility is good. We hypothesize that this is due to the fact that echolocation helps the bats to measure the distances of objects in the environment more accurately, and that their brains combine the visual information along with the auditory information. This study shows how important integration between different senses is, just as we humans integrate visual and auditory information when we cross a street, for example.”

TAU Opens Registration for New Management & Liberal Arts BA

Written by AUFTAU on 30 May 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

Tel Aviv University launched a new International BA in Management and Liberal Arts, with an emphasis on entrepreneurship, and recently opened enrollment for the inaugural class beginning in the 2022-23 academic year.

The competitive three-year, double-major track will be taught entirely in English. The Program is open to students from around the world. It is among the first of its kind in Israel and joins a growing number of such degree offerings around the world.

Training for Success, Tel Aviv Style

Today’s global business arena is becoming increasingly complex and competitive. The Program’s organizers believe that, to succeed, managers and entrepreneurs need a diverse skill set that combines a deep understanding of management with knowledge from a range of other disciplines.

Against this backdrop. TAU launched the Program, building on its record as one of the world’s top universities for producing successful entrepreneurs and strength in interdisciplinary research. The new degree will build on TAU’s record as a top institution for innovation and entrepreneurship and its proximity to Tel Aviv’s renowned startup scene. In 2021, TAU was ranked fifth in the world for entrepreneurship and eighth in the world for startup founders. The Coller School of Management is ranked 30th in the world, and its MBA program is 13th internationally.

“The symbiotic relationship between Tel Aviv University and Tel Aviv’s thriving innovation ecosystem with over 2,000 startups has created a unique campus environment that breeds game-changing ideas and innovations,” said TAU Vice President of International Collaboration Prof. Milette Shamir. “This new Program directly reflects TAU’s priorities to become increasingly global and provide a holistic education to all students to prepare them to make real-world impact.”

Diverse Skills to Lead Today’s Businesses

Students in the International BA in Management and Liberal Arts will learn from world-class faculty and instructors, many of whom are industry leaders. The Program also offers students frequent interaction with the local hi-tech sector through internships, networking and mentoring. It is the latest initiative demonstrating TAU’s adoption of a global trend of incorporating a broad liberal arts education into science and technology curricula; it joins initiatives including the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Program for Humanities in Engineering.

The new degree’s academic programming is the result of a joint venture between The Coller School of Management, Israel’s top-ranked business school, and The International BA in Liberal Arts. Graduates from both TAU units have become successful leaders in business and hi-tech.

Prof. Shai Danziger, academic head of the International BA in Management and Liberal Arts at TAU, said: “Traditional degrees for entrepreneurs, such as management or accounting, don’t necessarily provide the kind of diverse skill sets needed to lead businesses today. The broad skills that our students are going to acquire in the humanities and from Tel Aviv’s world-leading startup hub are certain to make them better managers, both in startups and in large corporations.”

As in TAU International’s over 60 other English-language programs, students in the International BA in Management and Liberal Arts program will study among a diverse cohort of students in small classes. The curriculum incorporates rigorous management sciences with an option of seven specialized study tracks in the liberal arts: psychology, digital culture and communications, philosophy, literature, Jewish-Israel Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, and life sciences.

For more information about TAU’s International BA in Management and Liberal Arts, register through the following links for a live open day webinar on June 1 or June 2.

Learn more by visiting the website here.

BOG 2022: From Making Tahini to Advocating Rights

Written by AUFTAU on 29 May 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

In an especially moving ceremony during Tel Aviv University’s 2022 Board of Governors meeting, Israeli Arab businesswoman Julia Zaher was honored for her entrepreneurship and civic leadership role with the Hugo Ramniceanu Prize for Economics.

Zaher is CEO of Al-Arz Tahini in Nazareth. She took a local product and turned it into a global brand sold in 18 countries, including by Amazon in the US. Zaher is the rare female CEO in the Israeli business arena, and she is the only woman in Israel to lead a major Arab-owned company. She also has a long history of philanthropic donations aimed at improving the lives of her fellow Israeli-Arabs—especially women, disabled people, and the LGBT community.

More to the point, Zaher braved controversy to give a voice to weaker segments of the population who were not being heard within Arab society in Israel.

Shared Values

“Mrs. Zaher’s social consciousness aligns with the priorities and values of TAU,” said Prof. Ariel Porat, TAU President, at the ceremony. “We understand, like Mrs. Zaher, that for a country to have a healthy and prosperous economy, you need to have an equitable and inclusive society where everyone is valued, and where every young person’s potential is nurtured.

“Through the Ramniceanu Prize, you are continuing to promote a thriving and socially responsible State of Israel,” Prof. Porat told Zohar.

Always Philanthropic

In her acceptance speech, Zaher, who donated her prize money to a nursing studies scholarship at TAU for an Arab Israeli student, said that her career had been about fighting for the things she cared about. As a young widow and mother of two, she took over her late husband’s tahini factory. Once her business was going well, Zaher felt a responsibility to “take care of the less fortunate.”

“The common ground of everything I do both in business and philanthropy is love, of nurturing others body and soul,” Zaher said.

Dr. Monique Barel, TAU Governor and daughter of the late Hugo Ramniceanu, noted several similarities between the Prize’s namesake and Zaher. “[Like my father] you were incredibly brave, as even when suffering from the great loss of your husband, you decided to take over the company he had created, while you were trained as a mathematics teacher and not an entrepreneur. You succeeded in paying off the debts of the company and even upgraded the manufacturing process.”

The ceremony concluded with the awarding of the Hugo and Valerie Ramniceanu Scholarships in Economics, by their son Gerald, to three TAU students, Ido Tel Tzur, Eden Cohen and Nathan Cohen Itay.

Musician Sefi Asfouri opened the ceremony with a moving performance, which enraptured the audience.

Featured image: From left: François Heilbronn, President of TAU’s French Friends Association, Monique Barel, Julia Zaher and TAU President Prof. Ariel Porat. Credit: Ofer Amram

BOG 2022: Celebrating Life through Science 

Written by AUFTAU on 29 May 2022. Posted in Newsroom.

Argentinean Friends of TAU award Life Sciences fellowships in honor of Honorary Doctor and Governor Miriam Smolar.

Tel Aviv University has always cherished the longstanding partnership between the George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and TAU’s Argentinean Friends Association. The partnership, which extends over two decades, helped the Faculty blossom into one of the world’s leading biological research institutions, with more than 100 laboratories and over 500 graduate students. 

This year, at the Board of Governors meeting, Argentinean governors and friends finally met again with researchers and students from the Life Sciences.  The gathering honored loyal TAU Honorary Doctor, Governor and friend Miriam Smolarz, who turned 102 in April, by awarding scholarships in her name to four outstanding Life Sciences graduate students. 

“This has been a tough year for us, a year in which happiness and sadness were intertwined,” said Prof. Marcelo Ehrlich, the Faculty’s Vice Dean, referring to the passing of TAU Honorary Doctor Adolfo Smolarz, Miriam’s husband, a few months earlier.  

Prof. Abdussalam Azem, Dean of the Faculty, reflected on the Smolarz family’s and Argentinian Friends’ contribution to the Faculty throughout the years. “To be the best, we need to attract the best students. We do so with the help of our friends, who make sure that our Faculty stays among the top in the world, both in research and in facilities,” he said.  

Polly Deutsch, President of the Argentinian Friends of TAU, and Governor Aida Smolarz, Miriam and Adolfo’s daughter, presented the honorary scholarships. “This country and this University – you make us proud,” Deutsch said to the recipients.

The Fellowships were awarded to Noam Harel, Shahar Dubiner, Shai Zilberzwige -Tal, and Edo Kon for their research in RNA viruses, climate change, cell-on-chip platforms, mRNA vaccines and cancer therapeutics respectively.  

Featured image: From left: Prof. Marcelo Ehrlich, Aida Smolarz, Noam Harel, Edo Kon, Shahar Dubiner, Shai Zilberzwige-Tal, Polly Deutsch and Prof. Azem. (Photo: Yael Tzur)

Author: AUFTAU

BOG 2022: Kadar Family Award for Outstanding Research Presented to Four TAU Scholars