By MICHAL GALANTISenior White House Advisers Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump attend a reception held at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem ahead of the moving of the US embassy to Jerusalem, May 13, 2018(photo credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)1. Dan David PrizeThe Dan David Prize was awarded last week to nine researchers from around the world. The ceremony for this prestigious award, which is considered nearly as prestigious as the Nobel Prize, was held at the Smolarz Auditorium at Tel Aviv University. The award is named after Dan David, a businessman and international philanthropist who died in 2011. It is awarded each year to people who have demonstrated excellence and made an outstanding contribution to humanity in the fields of science, humanities, and art. The David family was represented by Gabriela David, Dan’s widow, and their son Ariel David.Among the prize recipients was Prof. Ezekiel (Zeke) Emanuel. His two brothers are Rahm Emanuel, the mayor of Chicago and former chief of staff of president Obama, and Ari Emanuel, the world’s most famous Hollywood talent agent.2. Unistream Unistream is working in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles to promote social change through the training of young Israelis living in the periphery. The organization, which is led by chairman Rony Zarom and CEO Batsheva Moshe, held its annual investment summit led by its second- year students. Acting as judges were Neil Corney, CEO of Citi Israel; Yael Dromi, deputy CEO and head of Stakeholder Relations at Bank Hapoalim; Eran Shalev, managing partner of KPMG; Adi Soffer-Teeni, CEO of Facebook Israel; and Guy Pereg, chairman of Aspen Group.3. Friendly Dr. Mike Evans welcomed Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump to the Friends of Zion Embassy Dedication Gala Dinner held Sunday night in Jerusalem.4. Sotheby’s Senior members of the art community in Israel were hosted in the home of Batya and Idan Ofer in Arsuf, the location of Sotheby’s World Exposition. Robin Woodhead, CEO of Sotheby’s International, Sigal Mordechai, CEO of Sotheby’s Israel, and Batya Ofer, a member of the Sotheby’s International Council, presented the curators of Israel’s leading museums and collectors with a prestigious award, which was granted last year for the first time. The prize, up to a$250,000, is awarded to institutions, curators and museum directors who aspire to advance pioneering art projects. Among the event’s guests were Ruti Direktor, curator of contemporary art at the Tel Aviv Museum, and Dr. Aya Lurie, director and chief curator of the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art.
5. Bezalel Award Prof. Adi Stern, president of Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, and former minister Dan Meridor, who is currently chairman of the academy’s executive committee, hosted a festive ceremony at Binyanei Hauma this past Tuesday. In the framework of the event, Stern and Meridor awarded the Yakir Bezalel Award to President Reuven Rivlin and his wife Nechama, renowned journalist Ilana Dayan, designer Yaakov Kaufman, and Dame Vivien Duffield, chairwoman of the Clore Foundation in Israel.Translated by Hannah Hochner.
