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the melbourne jewish report | November 2021
AROUND
T H E
COMMUNITY
Tel Aviv Uni Friendship Circle
AFTAU In July, David Solomon assumed the newly created role of CEO of the national arm of the Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University. The Jewish Report wanted to find out what his responsibilities are. Congratulations on assuming your new role. What does it entail and how did Federal AFTAU come about? Clive Donner, the national Chair, who is also President of the Western Australian division of AFTAU, created the Federal body two years ago, under the auspices of Tel Aviv University. I am the inaugural CEO of Federal AFTAU and Clive hired me to liaise with Tel Aviv University (TAU) and co-ordinate activities in Australia. AFTAU has active committees in Victoria and New South Wales, as well as in Western Australia and we have plans to grow further. My key responsibilities are to: • Develop a strategy for a range of fundraising programs and other development opportunities with local pre-existing donors, potential donors and community members. Funds raised for the university are used to assist its educational and research goals and long-term development plans. • Raise the profile of TAU and Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU) in a broader community context, including academia, corporations and governments. This is done by publicising the university’s achievements and advancements in research, technology, humanities and innovation. • Promotion of Australian university and corporate relationships with TAU in the areas of academic and research partnerships. • Encourage student enrolment in courses at TAU, as well as exchanges between Australian universities and TAU. This includes creating scholarships to support learning and research, cultivate student and faculty exchanges, and recruiting Australian students to participate in the TAU International Program. We are part of a global network of Friends’ associations. What are your top three priorities, in order of importance? Narrowing it down is nearly impossible, but if I have to choose just three, they would be: 1. Understanding the full history of the university, of the Australian Friends and the many people that have built it in this country for more than four decades and to develop a strategy to engage the next generations of Australian supporters. 2. Meet and speak to as many existing and potential supporters, universities, corporations, other Israel-focused organisations and governments, with a view to advancing links to TAU. 3. To get to Israel as soon as travel conditions permit, to meet the academic and research staff at the university and learn much more about their groundbreaking work. What is your background? I have held various roles in business management, strategic
The Porter School of Environmental Studies Building at Tel Aviv University and operational consulting, business coaching, mentoring, leadership and executive search. This has been with listed multinational corporations and a number of successful start-ups. Most recently, I spent three years working as national philanthropy executive for Australian Red Cross. I also spent 13 years on the Board of the Australia Israel Chamber of Commerce during its rapid expansion period, as well as numerous other community organisations over the years. Obviously, you will be spruiking the merits of Tel Aviv University, so exactly what are they? If you can, talk to me about initiatives and innovation that may be of global significance. • TAU is very much a multi-disciplinary university and one of its key strengths is the way it brings together all the streams of academia and research to collaborate in “Centres” that are tasked with solving real-world problems. These include neuroscience, biomed & bioinformatics, quantum science & technology, nanotechnology, environmental studies, cyber and renewable energy. A recent example of this collaboration is The Centre for Combatting Pandemics, which had seed funding from Frank Lowy. • Students come from around the world to study at TAU and many of the courses are taught in English. The resulting melting pot of cultures spreads tentacles when students return to their home countries. TAU alumni are everywhere. • Two thirds of the students at TAU study at post-graduate level i.e. masters, doctorate and post-doctorate levels. • TAU is considered a world leader in several fields, such as entrepreneurship, cybertechnology and nanotechnology. • Other areas of global impact include water, medical technology,
David Solomon archaeology, classics, computer science, film & TV, education, engineering, geriatrics, linguistics, mathematics and theoretical economics. • There are some exceptional examples of life-changing developments coming out of the university. For example, TAU scientists printed the first ever 3D heart using a patient’s own cells. • The next big thing for TAU (and Israel) will be big data and artificial intelligence. How significant a university is Tel Aviv on the world stage? For a relatively young university (TAU was established in 1953), the institution punches well above its weight globally. A new study by Stanford University identified the top 2% of researchers in various disciplines worldwide. From a list of 160,000 researchers in 149 countries, 22 scientific disciplines and 176 subdisciplines, 333 Tel Aviv University faculty members are ranked among the top 2% of researchers in their respective fields.
The TAU cybersecurity course is ranked number one in the world. A TAU course on Islam has been ranked as one of the 50 best online courses of all time. Is there any formal tie in with Australian or Australian universities? If so, can you elaborate? TAU has bilateral agreements with approximately 500 institutions and universities in 40 countries worldwide and Australia is no exception. Most revolve around student exchange programs at undergraduate, masters and doctoral levels. There is also collaborative research being undertaken. A key objective in Australia is to expand these and create more. So, how can the Australian Jewish community help when it comes to Tel Aviv University? What do you desire from the community here? The best place to start is to learn more about the university – join the mailing list, log onto to a webinar, give me or anyone on the various state committees a call, or browse the TAU website. If you are going to Israel, make TAU one of your places to visit. There is so much to see, including the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History. I strongly believe that once you get to know a bit more, you will want to keep learning more about how TAU impacts Israel and, indeed, the rest of the world. If that then moves you to become involved philanthropically, we would welcome your help with the process of enabling higher education and Tikkun Olam. To enquire about Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University, please email davidsolomon@aftau.org.au
