Israel’s dividend for investing in education

In mid May, 16 Australians made their way to Tel Aviv for the annual board of governors meetings for Tel Aviv University (TAU). The meetings and presentations are open to governors and their guests.

Despite the Houthis sending over missiles and two red alerts during the early hours of the two consecutive days, the group was amazed at how alive Tel Aviv was.

There were the usual crowds along the beach and boisterous and loud activity wherever one went. This positive affirmation of life really set the scene for the high quality presentations and meetings we experienced.

The time I was at the Tel Aviv Hilton coincided with a group from an Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) mission of over 30 people, who were provided with an amazing tour to show them how Israel suffered from the impact of October 7 and how they have responded. I note that several perceptive articles have been run in The Australian as a result of this.

A highlight of the functions was dinner at the Jerusalem home of the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog. This sent the message to me that Israel regards the university sector as critical and that support from abroad drives the sector.

The Gandel Oration was held to a standing-room only crowd, during the events and the keynote speaker was former Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant. With his history of military roles over such a long time, he provided a run-down on the security situation. In essence, his view is that the security situation has improved immeasurably on all fronts. The events following the 12 Day War between Israel and Iran have vindicated his views. The Gaza situation has been won militarily but will be messy for some time and the hostages’ situation is far from resolved.

TAU is largely back to normal, although at any one time, there are about 1000 students on army duty. The Iranian missiles did cause some damage but students were safer on campus than on the travel to the campus.

A more significant issue is the attempts by many foreign universities to lock Israel out. Universities can’t operate successfully in isolation. There is no magic wand answer to this issue but they are very focused on it.

There has been a lot of construction on campus and new buildings are either completed or are underway.

Walking around the campus, I was struck by the energy of the students. Many sport military haircuts and have clearly been serving but they take this in their stride.

A quick walk also shows the extent of generosity and support from Australians over many years. The names of buildings and facilities display names such as Lowy, Gandel, Besen and probably at least another 40 names from our community.

Something TAU is actively seeking is more international students. Pre-October 7, there were about 3000 enrolled in programs held in English. That number is down to half that. In addition, there has been a drop off in postdoctorate students.

The presentations reinforced how TAU is really focussed on inter-disciplinary research and on practical outcomes.

In the US, about one per cent of students are in research institutions, whereas in Israel, that figure is about 60 per cent. Innovation is simply in the DNA of most Israeli universities.

Some good news was presented to the group. A donation of over $US200 million was received by the medical school from the Gray family in the United States. It was the third largest donation to an Israeli university.

The positivism we experienced in Israel is at odds with the negative experiences of recent Jewish life in Australia. The lesson is that life goes on and that we simply must be smarter and steps ahead of our enemies.

The handling of the 12 Day War confirmed once again that brains beats brawn.

The Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University in Melbourne and Sydney will certainly be doing all we can to help TAU be smarter and better.

Since returning, the 12 Day War has been and gone. What that war has confirmed is just how reliant Israel is on its universities and research institutes, with their focus on innovation and achieving better outcomes.

Roger Mendelson is presidnet of the Victoria chapter of the Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU).