NEW YORK, N.Y. (Press Release) —Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) will award renowned writer and public health advocate Dr. Chelsea Clinton an honorary doctorate at the University’s Board of Governors Meeting in May 2023, BGU President Prof. Daniel Chamovitz has announced.
“Dr. Chelsea Clinton is a world-renowned activist, author and ardent supporter of gender equity. As vice chair of the Clinton Foundation, she strategizes regarding their flagship initiatives Too Small to Fail and the Clinton Global Initiative University. She is a strong advocate of raising awareness about vaccine hesitancy, childhood obesity, and health equity,” Prof. Chamovitz said.
“We are honored that Dr. Clinton will be accepting an honorary doctorate from the University in May. Ben-Gurion University has always been at the forefront of community medicine and increasing access to high-quality medical care for underserved populations in the Negev,” he added.
Dr. Clinton, DPHIL, MPH teaches at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and has written several books for young readers, including the #1 New York Times bestseller She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University, a Master of Public Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, and both a Master of Philosophy and a Doctorate in international relations from Oxford University.
BGU mirrors Dr. Clinton’s commitments as a university that leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in Israel’s Negev desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere. In the public health arena, the University’s social- and humanitarian-focused research strives to improve conditions for underprivileged populations across the world whose health and wellbeing may be impacted by a range of environmental factors. Established in 2019, the University’s School of Public Health educates the future generation of researchers, clinicians, policy designers, and policymakers in the fields of public health and healthcare management, while placing an emphasis on the unique challenges at community, regional, national, and international levels during periods of normalcy and crisis alike.
Dr. Clinton and her parents — former U.S. President Bill Clinton as well as former Secretary of State and Sen. Hillary Clinton — are also noted for the impact of the family’s Clinton Global Initiative in the realm of addressing global climate change. Today, the Clinton Global Initiative has created resilient projects in the face of climate change, promoting access to renewable energy and expanding efforts to support the sustainable use of natural resources.
The Clinton Global Initiative’s focus on climate change strongly aligns with the cutting-edge research at BGU. In March 2021, BGU formed Israel’s first School of Sustainability and Climate Change, an interdisciplinary research and innovation initiative to tackle the world’s most pressing environmental issues.
“As a leader in both public health and climate change research, it is only fitting that BGU honors Dr. Chelsea Clinton, whose family shares the University’s commitment to and passion for tackling society’s most urgent challenges — demonstrating that David Ben-Gurion’s vision is not only transforming Israel but also changing the world,” said Doug Seserman, CEO of Americans for Ben-Gurion University (A4BGU), which works to share the University’s expertise in the U.S. and around the world.
May’s honor for Dr. Clinton, a changemaker in the field of global health, will also come on the heels of A4BGU’s April 23 event, “Celebrating the Remarkable 3: Pioneering Medical Science.” Now in its third year, the annual virtual event will feature BGU’s latest innovative breakthroughs in the fields of 3D printed science, cancer research, biomedical engineering, and more. Participants will discover how David Ben-Gurion’s pioneering spirit lives on and get to know the Negev’s science leaders of tomorrow.