The Technion’s story has been intertwined with Israel’s for more than a century, from laying the foundations for a new nation to shaping its future.
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Under the shadow of geopolitical tension and global uncertainty around the future of Israel, doubling down on international academic collaboration can serve as an antidote that allows us to envision a brighter version of this future. Calls for boycotts of Israeli institutions ignore the fundamental function of academia as an open forum of ideas and eliminates the infinite potential for innovation when cross-cultural work prevails. Reflecting on Israel’s global collaborations reminds us of what is possible when we meet face-to-face with our peers from halfway across the world and harness the full power of our compassion for each other.
The Michigan-Israel Partnership (opens in a new tab) brings together two drastically different corners of the world toward a common goal and illustrates exactly why international collaboration is required to seed a better future. What began as a generous gift from business and community leader D. Dan Kahn in 2011 to fuel two joint research projects in cardiovascular disease between the University of Michigan (opens in a new tab) (U-M) and the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology (opens in a new tab), the Partnership eventually grew to include the Weizmann Institute of Science (opens in a new tab) a few years later. Together, the three universities are fueled by their hunger to take on even greater challenges and have continued to advance Mr. Kahn’s vision for over a decade after his passing.
This piece is an op-ed from American Technion Society former CEO Michael Waxman-Lenz.