Israel Institute

The Israel Institute works in partnership with leading academic, research and cultural institutions to enhance knowledge and study of modern Israel in the United States and around the world. Founded in 2012 as an independent, nonpartisan organization based in Washington, DC, the Institute supports scholarship, research and exchanges to build a multi-faceted field of Israel Studies and expand opportunities to explore the diversity and complexity of contemporary Israel.

What we do

Israel is a small country with a brief history as a modern state, but it offers unusual richness as a field of study across a wide range of academic disciplines. The study of modern Israel is relevant to history, political science, international relations, economics, anthropology, archeology, art and comparative literature, and is closely related to Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies. In addition, modern Israel is an important cultural, scientific and technological hub, a close ally of the U.S., and a focal point of much interest from around the world. 

Israel offers unusual richness and depth as a field of study.

The Israel Institute promotes scholarship across these diverse areas, undertaking educational initiatives and programmatic activities that inspire, promote and support the study of modern Israel at universities, research institutes, think tanks and cultural organizations.  In addition, the Institute supports and enhances the reach and impact of affiliated organizations whose work is aligned with its mission.  Across all of its efforts, the Israel Institute catalyzes and promotes exemplary teaching, scholarship, research and public education that promise to generate a more informed, sophisticated and multi-faceted understanding of Israel, in the United States and the broader global community.

Founding

Founded in 2012, the Israel Institute was initially funded by the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation (CLSFF) as part of the Schusterman Foundation’s long-standing efforts to advance a genuine understanding of Israel. A long-time prominent player in the development of Israel Studies in the U.S., the Schusterman Foundation established the Institute to improve and expand the ways that modern Israel is taught, viewed and appreciated in the United States and globally.  While the Foundation created the Israel Institute, the Institute is a separate and independent entity with its own board of directors, advisory board, staff and budget.