News Archive

DAN DAVID SUPPORT GRANTS 2026

In November 2025, the Dan David Foundation  established a US$2 million grants program to support humanitarian aid, civil society, democracy and peace-building initiatives in the wake of the Israel-Gaza war.

As of May 2026, the Foundation has distributed US$1.6 million in grants to NGOs operating in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank with additional donations planned. To date, the following organizations have received support:

• The Adam Institute for Democracy and Peace Democracy – It’s in Our Hands! is an Israeli grassroots educational initiative conceived and implemented by the Adam Institute for Democracy and Peace. Against a backdrop of democratic backsliding and a sharp increase in ultra-nationalistic sentiments, groups of volunteers from all sectors of Israeli society are trained in how to teach democratic principles to their respective communities.

• Beit HaKhan - A collaborative project aims to turn an underused building in Kiryat Shmona on Israel’s northern border into a sustainable cultural and social hub. Beit HaKhan seeks to attract young people who left during the war back to the area by providing a welcoming space, supportive networks and entrepreneurial and leadership opportunities.  

• Clean Shelter - The House Warming House Repairs Project is an initiative by the German NGO Clean Shelter to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza by fixing up partially damaged but repairable structures to make them habitable. The homes are designated for women-headed households and other vulnerable families still living in tents or uninsulated shelters in the Khan Younis area. Locally available materials like wood, tarps and plastic sheeting are used to create safe, habitable spaces, while supporting local livelihoods through the employment of construction workers.

• Comet-ME - The Israeli-Palestinian NGO works to support vulnerable communities in the West Bank (Area C) through the provision of sustainable, off-grid infrastructure and services. Local rapid-response teams repair damaged solar energy, water, connectivity and protective camera components for Palestinian herding communities affected by settler violence and displacement. 

• Enosh - This non-profit organization, which focuses on community-based mental health provision, is developing a new service aimed at identifying people in emotional distress, reducing crisis escalation and contributing to suicide prevention. The Foundation will also support a guidance center, which serves as a first point of contact for individuals seeking help for emotional distress, to develop its No Wrong Door model - whereby no one is turned away - to incorporate an AI-based chat system that can respond during evenings and nights.   

• The Forum for War Orphans - The Forum brings together several philanthropic bodies with the aim of coordinating, targeting and pacing donations to children who lost parents on October 7, 2023 or in the subsequent war. The Foundation donated to the second annual gathering for foster families now raising orphans alongside their biological children. The retreat provides support, respite and opportunities for ongoing assessment of the families’ evolving needs.

• Gaza Women’s Center of Hope - Under the auspices of Gaza Children’s Village, the Gaza Women’s Center of Hope aims to prevent exploitation and establish income sources for vulnerable women in Gaza, filling a critical aid gap. Five decentralized centers, run by Women of the Sun, are dedicated to creating supportive environments where women can restore dignity and rebuild livelihoods. 

• Givat Haviva - One of Israel’s oldest and most respected organizations promoting a shared society between Jewish and Arab citizens of Israel, Givat Haviva runs programs in education, language learning and leadership development. The Foundation is contributing to training a new generation of facilitators with the required professional, ethical and emotional tools to guide meaningful Jewish-Arab dialogue.

• Ilam - Arab Center for Media Freedom, Development and Research - The Center runs the STEP program, which works to strengthen the presence of Arab professional voices in Hebrew-language media and improve the representation of Arab citizens in Israel’s public discourse. The project was established after Oct 7, 2023, in response to the deep crisis of trust between Jews and Arabs in Israel. 

• InterAct -  The non-profit rooted in the vision that peace is possible was founded by Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli Maoz Inon, who have both lost family members in the conflict. The organization houses a wide range of initiatives, including a scholarship program for Palestinian university students and Beit Fauzi Azar, a new cultural and peacebuilding hub in Nazareth’s Old City. 

• Itach Maaki - Women Lawyers for Social Justice - The NGO isone of several organizations working towards 'inclusive recovery' following the war. This includes the establishment of a professional forum of Jewish and Arab lawyers from the Negev to provide free legal services to under-represented groups with a special focus on women in unrecognized Bedouin villages. 

• JAR (Jaffa Artists Residency) - A program that nurtures young artists from Israel and abroad, is launching a special residency cycle for dance creators. Participants from across the country will develop site-specific dance works to tour peripheral communities in the north and south of Israel, regions deeply affected by the war. 

• Jumpstarting Hope in Gaza - This program addresses the humanitarian crisis by providing emergency aid and sustainable infrastructure to displaced communities. The project, a partnership between Damour for Community Development and the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, builds decentralized, off-grid systems that provide clean water, sanitation and solar energy, in the Samar Camp in north Al-Mawasi, among other locations. 

• Mifras - An educational incubator which encourages creativity and innovation in Israel’s school system, has created a new training program for senior figures in education departments in local authorities. By engaging these key players in the educational arena, the initiative seeks to leverage the power of educational entrepreneurship to strengthen democratic and social resilience in Israel. 

• NATAL - An Israeli non-profit which specializes in providing treatment and support to victims of trauma due to war and terror, offers a range of clinical services, along with community resilience programs and professional training. A recently developed program offers trauma-focused couples therapy in relationships where at least one partner is coping with post-trauma. 

• OTI - the Israeli Autism Association - A support program tailored to the needs of children aged 3-7 in the northern periphery of Israel, where life continues to be deeply disrupted by war. OTI’s multi-disciplinary teams provide tools to families under stress, designed to create structure and predictability at home - at a stage when intervention is most critical for the child’s development - along with guidance in coping with sirens, bomb shelters and exposure to alarming news. 

• Rozana - A field medical clinic for displaced families in northern Gaza and a women’s mobile clinic in the Hebron area of the West Bank are two projects the Foundation is supporting via Rozana, an international peace-building organization dedicated to advancing health diplomacy between Israelis and Palestinians, while improving access to healthcare in underserved areas and empowering local teams. 

• Shomrim - The Center for Media and Democracy - The Center, which is inspired by the ProPublica model, is shoring up its investigative journalism capabilities ahead of the 2026 autumn elections in Israel. The Safeguarding Democracy: Elections 2026 Program team will publish stories that aim to increase transparency around government performance and counter misinformation and foreign influence efforts. 

• Tamar Organization - The core mission of the NGO is to provide mental health support to Bedouin communities in the Negev, but the organization grew its capacity post-Oct 7 to fill a nationwide gap in Arabic language services in the field of mental health. The Foundation is supporting the development of specialized services for those dealing with violence-related grief, in light of the growing wave of violence in the Arab community in Israel in recent months and years. 

• Tell Qana Archaeological Project - The archaeological dig at this ancient site in Central Israel offers community-based participation in rigorous scientific work. This includes work placement for autistic adults and individuals coping with post-trauma, who contribute to archaeological conservation with support from specially trained staff and adapted digital equipment.  

The Dan David Foundation welcomes the recent ceasefire in the war in Gaza and the release of the hostages. At the same time, the Foundation recognizes that the truce remains fragile, the humanitarian crisis continues to be dire, and a broader solution to the Middle East conflict is still distant. Meanwhile, extremist settler violence racks the West Bank and tensions rise within Israel amidst the government’s renewed attempts to push through anti-democratic legislation. 

Against this backdrop, the Board of the Foundation has allocated $2 million for grants in support of humanitarian aid, civil society, democracy and peace-building in the wake of the Israel-Gaza war.

Funding will be directed towards non-governmental organizations and community groups supporting humanitarian efforts for areas and populations deeply affected by the conflict, as well as initiatives that promote democratic values and reconciliation efforts.

Further details on the selected initiatives will be made public on the Dan David Foundation website under the “Other Projects” section in due course.

The Dan David Prize, the largest history prize in the world and the Foundation’s flagship project, has announced its 2025 Winners. Following an open nomination process, a global committee of experts selected nine outstanding early- and midcareer researchers whose work sheds new light on the past in bold and innovative ways. Each winner will receive $300,000 in recognition of their achievements and to support their continued scholarly contributions.
 
For more information about the winners: www.dandavidprize.org.

The Dan David Foundation has been following with growing concern and alarm the development of the war in Gaza. We join the many voices in Israel and across the world calling for an immediate end to this conflict, which is causing unbearable suffering and a terrible loss of life. Until a ceasefire is agreed upon by both parties, humanitarian aid to the residents of Gaza must not be blocked or restricted, and civilian lives must be protected. We support diplomatic efforts that will lead to an immediate end to hostilities and the return of the hostages, as well as the beginning of a serious diplomatic process for a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

The Dan David Foundation is deeply concerned by the circumstances that led to the cancellation of Israel’s 49th Annual Archaeological Conference. As a foundation that has long supported archaeological research in Israel, we consider the attempt by a minister in the Israeli government to exclude a scholar from the conference an unacceptable act of political interference.

The Foundation commends the decision by the archaeological community to support their colleague and postpone the conference in response to the pressure.

We believe researchers in all fields should be allowed to undertake and present their work free from political interference and irrespective of their own political views.

DAN DAVID CITIZEN SUPPORT GRANTS

Following its announcement of October 16, 2023, the foundation allocated $1 million to civil society relief efforts for people affected by the October 7, 2023 attacks on the communities near the Gaza border and across Israel, and the ensuing war. After careful consideration, the Foundation has distributed the funds among the following organizations and their respective projects:

The helpline of NATAL – Israel Trauma & Resiliency Center received nearly 10,000 calls in the first five days following Oct 7. Since then, the organization has significantly increased its capacity to offer help to thousands of people using its distinctive model of multidisciplinary psychological support.

The Al Hamishmar (On Guard) initiative is a proactive, multi-faceted emergency prevention program designed to combat escalating violence between Arabs and Jews amid rising national tensions following Oct 7. Founded by a collective of foundations, the program utilized civil society organizations and local leadership to calm tensions in known flashpoints, launched anti-violence media campaigns, established a presence on university campuses and offered training to other organizations.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, established on Oct 8, is a civil organization that campaigns for the safe return of the hostages being held in Gaza. The forum comprises thousands of volunteers from the families of the hostages and their networks, as well as prominent figures from the security, judicial, diplomatic, creative, advertising and welfare sectors. Activities include support for families of hostages and advocating for their return via rallies, events, media campaigns and meetings with international and local leaders.

The Road to Recovery’s model of peacebuilding involves connecting Israeli volunteers with grievously ill Palestinians with the shared goal of obtaining life-saving medical care inside Israel. The volunteers are tasked with arranging the travel and other logistical aspects of the treatment of the Palestinian patients; in parallel, patients and their volunteer drivers dismantle negative stereotypes and misperceptions of the ‘other’ and foster hope and trust. The organization worked to upscale its efforts despite the complexities of operating during the war.

The Science Training Encouraging Peace – Graduate Training Program (STEP) funds stipends for pairs of Palestinian and Israeli science students in challenging and intensive PhD/MS/MD programs with the goal of fostering enduring professional and personal relationships of respect and trust. Other goals include promoting an ethos of cooperative science between Israelis and Palestinians within university laboratories and departments.

The staff of Amcha, Israel’s largest psychosocial service for Holocaust survivors and their descendants, used their expertise to provide emergency support to mental health workers, social workers, medical teams and other first responders working to support victims of the war, while simultaneously providing ongoing care to Holocaust survivors re-living their original trauma in the face of new trauma.

The Social Venture Fund for Jewish-Arab Equality and Shared Society, a philanthropic collaboration to support an equal and inclusive shared society in Israel, launched an emergency fund to prevent incitement and inter-communal violence, and to support communities outside the traditional social service and crisis safety net, notably Bedouin towns and villages in the south.

The Israel Center for Education Innovation, which specializes in turning around underperforming Jewish and Arab elementary schools serving low income communities, upped its efforts to support areas hardest hit by the war, especially those living through the trauma of constant missile attacks and displacement. This included providing laptops for students and creating a new position at the organization to promote resilience and social emotional learning.

Tel Aviv University’s Emergency Fund supported services for students and members of the TAU community directly affected by the attacks and ensuing war, including drives for food, clothing and medical supplies, psychological therapy and free temporary housing for evacuees.

Tzedek Centers, which work to create democratic infrastructure to empower local communities, shifted energies following Oct 7 to providing housing solutions for evacuees, including services specifically catering to Russian-speakers. The organization subsequently developed a more comprehensive aid program for evacuees from the south and north of Israel.

The University of Haifa’s Faculty of Law offered stipends and scholarships to students who were displaced, injured or otherwise affected by the war. In addition, the faculty’s legal clinic mobilized to assist those harmed by the Oct 7 attack and the war, operating in various spheres including human rights, women’s rights, poverty law and anti-discrimination – in parallel strengthening relations between Arab and Jewish students who worked side by side in the clinic.

Shortly after Oct 7, a group of PhD students in the School of Historical Studies at Tel Aviv University came together to consider how to collect and preserve testimonies of those directly affected. The result was the creation of the Israeli Testimonial Archive of the 7th October Hamas Attack, which aims to provide an independent and research-orientated archival platform to host testimonials, alongside other digital documentation. The archive will focus in particular on the civil society reaction to events.

Many residents of Moshav Manot, a village in northern Israel, fled their homes following Oct 7 due to the frequent rocket attacks by Hezbollah. As a result, many families experienced severe economic distress. The Foundation has a long-standing relationship with the community, having supported archeological digs in the area.

Students, staff and alumni of Sapir College, located less than two miles from the Gaza border, were among those murdered, severely injured or taken hostage on Oct 7. Many others were evacuated from their homes and housed in temporary accommodation; some lost sources of income. The college created the Emergency Student Stipend Program to address the needs of disadvantaged students affected by the war, offering tuition waivers and other financial support to eligible students.

Fake Reporter is a non-profit organization dedicated to combating malicious online activities, such as disinformation and hate speech. Following Oct 7, using a unique work model based on quickly detecting, analyzing and reporting, the group expanded its efforts to monitor and expose the increased wave of extremist groups spreading misinformation through messages and videos.

JAR (Jaffa Artists Residency) is a program aimed at nurturing young artists from Israel and abroad. The residency created a special intake of its 3-month program for young musicians from the southern city of Sderot and its environs who were evacuated or otherwise directly affected by the events of Oct 7. Participants were offered intensive professional guidance and housing for the duration of the 3-month program, along with opportunities to record an album and perform.

Early Starters International is an educational humanitarian organization that aims to provide a healthy environment to young children in emergency situations and vulnerable communities around the world. Following the Oct 7 attacks, the group established and staffed 17 safe spaces for internally displaced children in Israel.

The Dan David Prize, the largest history prize in the world and the Foundation’s flagship project, has announced its 2024 Laureates. Following an open nomination process, a global committee of experts selected nine researchers whose work illuminates the past in bold and creative ways. Each winner received $300,000 to recognize their outstanding work to date and to support their future endeavors.

For more information about the winners: www.dandavidprize.org.

Following its announcement of Aug. 2, 2023, the Foundation allocated $1 million to support education programs and other activities run by civil society and non-governmental organizations that seek to promote democratic, liberal and secular values in Israel.

After careful consideration, the Foundation has distributed the funds among the following organizations and their respective projects:

·       Democracy - It's in Our Hands! is a new initiative by the Adam Institute to develop a volunteer-run training program aimed at protecting and enriching Israel's democracy.

·       The Association for Civil Rights in Israel has set up an initiative to counter the ongoing attacks on democracy and freedom within the Israeli education system.

·       Connecting for Impact is a new project of the National Council of Jewish Women, aimed at strengthening the Israeli feminist ecosystem by nurturing peer learning and collaborative leadership among feminist changemakers.

·       The Pumbi Civic Theatre is a new Jerusalem-based project dedicated to promoting liberal and democratic values among young audiences.

·       The Forum for Regional Thinking runs a program in Israeli high schools to strengthen democracy and address the inequality between Jews and Arabs in Israel and in the West Bank.

·       The Israeli Movement is creating a network of Neighborhood Councils aimed at empowering local communities to take ownership of their civil needs.

·       Qadayana is the new youth track of Qadaya, a leadership initiative to promote community responsibility and expand civic participation among Arab citizens in Israel, with the goal of advancing social and economic justice.

·       Israel Hofsheet, which promotes religious freedom and battles religious coercion, has launched a project to thwart attempts to introduce extremist agendas into educational institutions.

·       Tel Aviv Youth University is launching a series of Science and Society Exposure Days, which include a focus on democratic values, for high school students from Israel’s periphery.

·       Givat Haviva – which works to create a Jewish and Arab shared society anchored in principles of mutual respect, trust, pluralism and intrinsic equality between citizens – is running training programs for educators, and for facilitators in Jewish-Arab encounters.

·       The Secular Forum has established programs to combat religious indoctrination and discrimination against women in the army and in state-run schools.

·       Tzedek Centers, which work to create democratic infrastructure to empower local communities, have launched training programs in three cities for Russian-speaking Israelis.

·       Mifras, which encourages creativity and innovation in education, has launched an intensive program to help school principals promote democratic civic education.

·       Shabibat AJEEC is a youth movement run by AJEEC-NISPED, aimed at equipping young Bedouin Arabs with tools for self-development, leadership, social change and a sense of agency.

·       Part of the New Israel Fund, which supports a wide range of social justice causes, the Democracy Taskforce is a 100-member group of NGO staff and others working actively to fight anti-democratic trends in Israel.

·       Haredim La’Medina, which aims to introduce values of democracy, equality, justice and inclusivity to ultra-Orthodox Jews (Haredim), is launching a new program to offer democracy training to senior Haredi educators in Israel.

·       The Movement for Freedom of Information is establishing a new Active Citizenship program to equip law and communication students at Sapir Academic College with tools and knowledge to utilize the Freedom of Information Act.

·       Programs for Jewish and Arab teachers run by the Jerusalem-based peacebuilding organization, the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue, aim to embed principles of inclusivity at all levels of the education system.

·         Hechalutz - Hamidrasha at Oranim, a leadership-building movement in the spirit of the chalutzim (Israeli pioneers), peaceful Zionism and humanistic secular Judaism, runs Seeds of Partnership, which invites young Jews and Arabs to work on mutual goals, and other programs for students.

·       BaShaar – Academic Community for Israeli Society aims to promote and foster academic and liberal values through a variety of channels including education outreach, position papers and a hotline for safeguarding academic freedom.

Following the horrific attacks perpetrated by Hamas terrorists in the communities near the Gaza border and across the rest of Israel, the Dan David Foundation has allocated $1 million in donations to civil society relief efforts and reconstruction projects for the people affected.

This amount is in addition to the $1 million in grants, announced in August, dedicated to strengthening democratic and liberal values in Israel and which are in the process of being disbursed.

Details on both programs will be published in the “other projects” section of the Foundation’s website soon.

The Dan David Foundation continues to follow with dismay the political developments in Israel, where the government has succeeded in pushing through the first element of a judicial overhaul that has been widely criticized as endangering the balance of powers and undermining the democratic foundations of the state.

The Foundation joins the many concerned and friendly voices across the world calling on the Israeli government to put an end to its uncompromising and illiberal legislative push, which has created an unprecedented rift within the country. 

We are particularly shocked by the Education Minister’s ongoing attempt to seize control of the Council for Higher Education, a move that endangers the independence and viability of Israeli universities, which are one of the country’s greatest success stories and are internationally recognized for academic excellence. 

In light of the latest developments and our own statement dated March 6 on this matter, the Foundation’s Board has made the following decisions:

• Until further notice, the Foundation will not support or participate in any new project run by the Israeli government or government-controlled entities.
• For clarity, Israeli universities, which operate independently under the Council for Higher Education, will not be included in the above provision, as long as their independence is preserved.
• The Foundation has decided to allocate $1 million to support education programs and other activities run by civil society and non governmental organizations that seek to promote democratic, liberal and secular values in Israel. Applications, submitted by invitation only, are now being considered by the Board. Further details on the grants will be made public on the Dan David Foundation website under the “other projects” section in due course.

The 2023 Dan David Prizes were awarded at a festive ceremony at Tel Aviv University. For the second time, the prize was given in its reimagined format and was awarded to nine outstanding early and mid career historians and practitioners who investigate the human past. The winners received USD 300,000 each to support their work in illuminating the past.

For more information about the winners: www.dandavidprize.org

Photo Credits: Guy Yechiely

March 6, 2023

Since its establishment, the Dan David Foundation has supported numerous projects in Israel –in cultural, scientific, educational and environmental fields – all in the spirit of its founder, Dan David, who believed in nurturing and protecting the democratic, secular and liberal values on which the state was founded.

The Foundation is following with growing concern the political developments in Israel and particularly the government’s attempts to push through judicial and constitutional reforms that would fundamentally alter the character of the state, as well as the increasingly inflammatory and racist rhetoric by some government ministers and politicians.

There is broad consensus among international and Israeli intellectuals, legal experts and other academics that the proposed measures would undermine the principles of equality and the checks and balances that are key to the survival of any democracy.

We share this view and support the struggle by many in Israel’s civil society to halt the passage of the controversial legislation through peaceful protest. We especially appreciate the strong stance taken by Tel Aviv University, the Foundation’s partner in many of its Israel-based projects, whose leadership has, on multiple occasions, condemned the planned reforms as a threat to democracy as well as academic freedom and research.

We join the calls by other philanthropists, charities and supporters of Israel around the world for the Israeli government to reconsider its plans.

As a result of the situation, the Foundation is reevaluating its donation policies in Israel. Should some or all the planned reforms be approved, the Foundation reserves the right to stop investing in new projects in the country.