The Ben-Gurion Award
About the Award
The Ben-Gurion Award for Statehood, Democracy, and Shared Society was launched and presented for the first time in the 2022–2023 academic year. The award is the result of a collaboration between the Ben-Gurion House in Tel Aviv, the Lautman Foundation, and the Nadav Foundation, which joined forces with the shared goal of fostering, encouraging, and recognising educational excellence that advances the values of statehood, democracy, and shared society.
On 7 October 2023, the face of Israel changed. From a country deeply engaged in debate over its democratic character and, in particular, the powers of the judicial system, Israel became a nation at war—a society closely following the wellbeing of its soldiers, the return of kidnapped civilians, the rehabilitation of devastated regions, and the care of hundreds of thousands of displaced residents. In many ways, the country became one primarily occupied with holding collective pain and waiting for the war to end.
The war will eventually come to an end, and Israel will emerge changed. Israeli society will need not only to heal its wounds, but also—and perhaps most importantly—to build a new and different future.
The Ben-Gurion Award seeks to serve as an ethical beacon for the day after. When the fighting subsides, the foundations of Israeli society’s future must continue to rest on the principles of statehood, democracy, and shared society. These values can provide a strong and common basis for all parts of Israeli society.
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On Ben-Gurion, Statehood, Democracy, and Shared Society
According to Ben-Gurion’s legacy, statehood is the ability to cultivate a shared civic consciousness among all those living in Israel—one that connects different communities and encourages them to become a civil society living within a democratic and sovereign state.
Today, this vision is more relevant than ever, and the Ben-Gurion Award has an important role to play in supporting the healing of Israeli society and its recovery from crisis. Only a democratic, life-affirming society—guided by a shared civic consciousness and committed to the common good—can remain resilient. Such a society holds the capacity for mutual responsibility, social solidarity, and the strength to confront the challenges it faces.
Through the awarding of this prize, we seek to encourage educational initiatives that:
we seek to encourage educational initiatives that:
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Promote the healing of Israeli society in all its diversity, while fostering a sense of partnership, understanding, and mutual respect.
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Advance the value of statehood as envisioned and defined by David Ben-Gurion—cultivating a shared civic consciousness.
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Strengthen Israel’s identity as a Jewish and democratic state that upholds the values of human dignity, freedom, and equality.
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Encourage social engagement rooted in the promotion of democratic values.
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Support the development of civic skills, which lie at the heart of active citizenship in a democratic society.
Through this award, we also aim to raise public awareness and visibility for the educational work carried out by educators and community leaders who continue to initiate meaningful action, especially during these challenging times.
Tzivoni Foundation is an Israeli foundation established in 2021, dedicated to supporting community and social needs across Israel in areas including education, culture, leadership, higher education, welfare, healthcare, the arts, and more. As part of its activity, the foundation supports initiatives that combine leadership development with projects in welfare, culture, and related fields.
Lautman Foundation is a family foundation established in 2008, focusing on two main areas: advancing formal and informal education, and promoting partnership and equality among diverse populations within Israeli society.
The foundation invests in non-profit organisations, high-quality educational programmes, and the development of new content and services aimed at creating meaningful and sustainable change in its fields of activity. It also works to build collaborations with government bodies, local authorities, and civil society organisations across all areas of its work.
Go to the Lautman Foundation website
The Ben-Gurion House, Tel Aviv was the private home of Paula and David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first Prime Minister and Minister of Defense.
In his will, Ben-Gurion bequeathed the house to the State of Israel, requesting that it become “an institution for reading, study, and research.” Today, the house serves as an educational and cultural centre dedicated to promoting the study of Ben-Gurion’s leadership and his concept of statehood, while continuously examining their relevance to contemporary Israeli society.
The Award Committee
The initiatives will be evaluated by a committee composed of representatives of the supporting foundations and education professionals.
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1
Reviewing all nominations within the same educational stream and age group and selecting the finalists.
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2
Reviewing the presentations of the finalists.
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3
Selection of the winners.
Winning Schools
The winning schools are selected from among hundreds of schools that apply each year.
In order to encourage ongoing educational work and to build a learning community of schools that promote statehood, democracy, and shared society, we invite you to explore the initiatives and practices of the schools selected as winners each year.
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