Genesis, Morris Kahn set up $1m grant competition to boost women in Israel
Nonprofits working in the field are eligible to apply; program is in line with foundation’s 2018 theme: ‘Advancing women’s equality in all aspects of human endeavor’
Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter
The Genesis Prize Foundation and Israeli philanthropist Morris Kahn are setting up a $1 million grant competition to support Israeli nonprofit organizations working to advance women’s equality.
The competition is open to all Israeli NGOs working in the field, and Genesis will announce the winners of the competition in September.
“Advancing women’s equality in all aspects of human endeavor” was Genesis Prize’s chosen philanthropic theme for 2018 when it selected Natalie Portman as its 2018 laureate, said Sana Britavsky, deputy CEO of The Genesis Prize Foundation. “While Ms. Portman has declined to attend the Genesis Prize ceremony in Jerusalem, our foundation is committed more than ever to advancing the cause of women’s equality — a matter of great social importance globally as well as here in Israel.”
The foundation canceled an award ceremony scheduled for June, after the Jerusalem-born actress refused to travel to Israel to accept the Genesis Prize because of what she said were recent “distressing” events in Israel, namely the violence in Gaza and the Israeli government’s activities. The prize “honors individuals who serve as an inspiration to the next generation of Jews through their outstanding professional achievement along with their commitment to Jewish values and the Jewish people.”
Four areas will be a priority for the new grants, Genesis said in a statement: increasing socioeconomic participation and opportunities for women, in particular for women from Israel’s geographic and social periphery; promoting gender equality, particularly around marriage and divorce; promoting the rights and status of women in minority groups, such as Arab, Druze, Bedouin and ultra-Orthodox Jewish women, as well as those in the LGBT community and new immigrants; and empowering women to resist violence.
“In the past five years, The Genesis Prize Foundation has become a pioneer in shining a light on important social problems in Israel and the global Jewish community that are not receiving sufficient attention and funding,” said Dafna Jackson, CEO of the Kahn Foundation.
Nonprofit organizations interested in applying for grants should follow this link (Hebrew) for more information.