Sherman’s new role with Israeli museum
PHILANTHROPIST Brian Sherman has recently been invited to join the Public and Scientific Council of Israel's soon-to-be-developed Natural History Museum.
LEXI LANDSMAN
PHILANTHROPIST Brian Sherman has recently been invited to join the newly formed Public and Scientific Council of Israel’s soon-to-be-developed Natural History Museum.
The appointment will mark the start of a new era for Sherman, who will step down from his position as president of the Australian Museum Trust after serving the maximum term of nine years.
Sherman said he has enjoyed his work with the Australian Museum Trust and was looking forward to strengthening cultural ties with Israel.
“It’s very exciting,” Sherman told The AJN. “I’m proud to be invited onto the council of the Natural History Museum. It’s a prestigious appointment and I think I can add a lot given my experience at the Australia Museum, which is, in itself, a world-class institution.”
That experience has included raising $42 million for the Australian Museum Trust to build a new collection building, providing research facilities for 90 scientists and space to store several million objects.
In addition, during his tenure as president of the trust, the number of visitors to the museum has increased by 50 per cent.
Sherman -— who is currently a director of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, chair of the Rambam program and member of National Australia Bank Yachad Scholarship Fund board -— will be joined on the new Israeli council by a high-achieving team, including Nobel Prize winners and leading biologists and zoologists. They are expected to meet in Israel in the coming months.
“The Middle East -— Israel -— is rich with experiences, objects, ideas and stories, and all of this will be encompassed into the Natural History Museum,” Sherman said.
Funding for the museum is already in place. The current plan is to build a 7000 square-metre building at Tel Aviv University, adjacent to the zoological and botanical gardens, and opposite the Diaspora Museum.
The two-acre site, where the facility will be built, will create the largest and most complete centre in Israel for local flora and fauna. It will house the collections, staff research laboratories, exhibits and public education activities. It falls under the Israel Academy of Sciences.
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