BGU | PRESIDENT'S REPORT 2022

THE STRATEGIC PLAN Upon assuming the reins of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, I quickly realized the place to begin was with an in-depth strategic process, through which we identified existing strengths that can be maximized to successfully achieve our goals: to become one of the world’s most outstanding universities and Israel’s leading university in terms of research, teaching, and contribution to society. We are leveraging the power and perspectives of the Negev, along with the University’s trademark problem solving, application-oriented research approach, to tackle today’s global challenges. The strategic plan that emerged from that process contains concrete recommendations which we have been implementing over the past two years. For example, we established new administrative units to support the recruitment of excellent young faculty members and quality cutting-edge teaching; we are continuing to streamline administrative processes and reduce red-tape; and we completed a comprehensive and eye-opening re-branding process that articulated what differentiates BGU: Our uncommon perspectives – grounded in our unique location and history – generate remarkable results, discoveries, and impact. THE SCHOOL FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE In the 2021 President’s Report, we announced the implementation of one of the strategic plan’s key recommendations: leveraging our 50 years of experience living and conducting research in the desert through the founding of the School for Sustainability and Climate Change (SSCC). Over the past year, the SSCC – the first STRATEGIZING FOR THE FUTURE

such multidisciplinary framework in Israel – has become a reality, with programs, students, scholarships, and unprecedented international research collaborations such as an historic agreement with Morocco’s Mohammed VI Polytechnic University. The SSCC, with over 150 affiliated senior faculty members, now offers an environmental studies minor in five different tracks: Natural Sciences, Sustainability, Nature Conservation, Environmental Policy and Management, and Renewable Natural Resources. We are also working to open several new degrees, including an English language BSc at Sde Boker and MSc and MA degrees in Sustainability. We established the Moshe Mirilashvili Research Center for Food Security in the Desert under the auspices of the School, hosted a conference on the effects of extreme weather conditions on public health, held consultations with government officials, and are reaching out to the public with podcasts and public seminars on the environment and sustainability. And we are practicing what we preach: BGU’s investment committee has begun to invest in ESG funds to align the University’s investment policy with its commitment to sustainability. BGU has also been a “Green Campus” for over a decade, working to reduce the University’s environmental impact. We have redoubled these efforts since the establishment of the SSCC, working to ensure that the University uses its resources more sustainably: we are taking steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in different areas of activity, and to change the way the BGU community consumes resources and produces waste.

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Ben-Gurion University of the Negev