Impact Report
Ramon Foundation
Passover 2020
Dream, Dare, Realize the Dream I Improve Israeli Society
Dream, Dare, Realize the Dream
I Improve Israeli Society
Even in the days of Corona
“Rising from Crises is our Specialty”
Our Story
The Ramon Foundation (RA) was established by Rona Ramon and family friends in 2010 after the tragic death of Asaf Ramon in a training accident. Asaf, who followed in his father’s footsteps – Col. Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli astronaut – enlisted in the Air Force and finished a compact pilot training course with honors.
The Foundation was established to instill in Israel’s youth academic excellence, social leadership, and courageous prowess as the three core values which most embody Ilan and Asaf Ramon (may their memory be a blessing). The Foundation uses lessons from science, aviation and space to improve life in the State of Israel.
The Foundation fulfills what Ilan, Asaf and Rona would have done if they were with us today. Ilan – the first Israeli astronaut, sought to make use of his becoming a "national hero" in the Columbia Mission to inspire youth and improve the Israeli education system and develop the Israeli Space Program. Asaf Ramon was involved in a series of educational initiatives that he incorporated during his military career. Rona Ramon raised the memories of her loved ones from a place of a memorial to an engine of real change that has impacted the lives of tens of thousands of children.
The Ramon Foundation operates a budget of 8 million NIS
and works in 101 different education institutions
92%- work directly in education
67 Employees
44% Women
56% Men
70% of education programs take place in Israel’s social and geographical periphery
200,000
Participants in the foundation online course
30,000
Indirect beneficiaries
2,500
Program direct beneficiaries
120,000
Total number of participants
600
Educators and teachers have been trained by the foundation
52
municipalities
Coping with Coronavirus
Dear Friends,
The COVID-19 outbreak has health, economic and social effects. The outbreak has placed The Ramon Foundation in a complex position. The foundation stands today at the social forefront of the fight against the virus social implications.
As the Israeli education system has come to a stop, the Foundation has transferred 100% of its educational program activities to remote work. Whether it is our leadership development programs in the Israeli periphery, science classes, teachers training or empowerment sessions for youth at risk – all of our activities continue- and no child is left behind.
The situation is complex – On the one hand we are receiving inspiring, wonderful feedback from teachers, welfare departments and widespread demand from schools and parents to intensify our programs. On the other hand, our budgetary sources are deteriorating. Local authorities are being forced to cut budgets, Israeli and American philanthropy is dwindling.
Now is the time to support the Ramon Foundation.
We need your support so we can continue our work throughout the country and strengthen the social home front against Covid-19, in the spirit of Ilan, Asaf & Rona and for the benefit of Israeli society.
Stay safe,
Ran Livne
Director General
The Ramon Foundaiton
Programs main Featurs during covid-19 crisis
Aviators Club-
Instructors are available 24\7 for the children and their families, doing personal training sessions, issuing family challenges, and provide pedagogical and academic support. The children have become adults in the ‘quarantined family’ : – they are coordinating family schedules, cleaning and organizing their homes, and strive to keep their family units strong during this difficult time.
In some cases, we are allocating assistance from the city's welfare departments to the various families.
Space Programs-
In 50 out of 55 schools, classes continue remotely. These schools include schools in the periphery that don’t have organized remote lessons. We are creating daily activities, lessons, and tasks that encourage general and research-skills development.
We are currently focusing on producing 3 over 1000 student online events including a first online student STEM hackathon.
Teachers Training-
The Foundation is supporting the 'Horizon Community' with over ove 120 science teachers. We are conducting training and transferring relevant content and curriculum to them. Since the crisis began, the community has held about 15 virtual events. The foundation also has published three booklets with indoor science activities for parents and children (ages 5-15).
Programs main Features during the covid-19 crisis
Areas of Activity
Space industry development
The Foundation seeks to continue the legacy of the first Israeli astronaut mission by assisting space engineers and entrepreneurs in their first steps in the space industry.
Space Education
The Ramon Foundation is committed to producing an eco-system for space studies in Israel.
Using the facinating world of space has brought the israeli youth closer to the sciences, technolgy & math studies.
Leadership Development
The Foundation runs educational programs aimed at developing value-based social leadership among young people in Israel. The aim ist to create a foundation responsible citizenship – the pillar of a democratic Israeli society.
Leadership development
Rona Ramon, Israel independence beacon ceremony 2017
The Aviators Club program is a social-ethical leadership program for 5th-8th grade students, in which Operational squadrons of the Israeli Air Force adopt schools from the periphery.
The pilots accompany the children, together with a professional 'social leader' from the Ramon Foundation, in varied activities over the span of two years through close guidance and meetings throughout the year.
The program is based on the doctoral dissertation of the founder and director of the program – Reuven Zemach. The program won the Minister of Education’s Award. The Ramat David Air Force Base won an Award of Excellence for a Volunteer Unit from the IDF Chief of Staff. The program is currently active in 25 localities and is considered one of the most sought after programs in the Israeli education system.
The program is designed to nurture and empower children, and to instill a greater sense of self-image and ability, and an improvement in academic achievement. It inspires motivation, drive for excellence, and contributes to the development of personal responsibility and leadership.
Students statistics of the past 2 years
Improved linguistic
grades
Decrease of
violent behavior
Improved their
math grades
Improved their
general behaviour
This activity paves the initial path for understanding and acquiring diverse values such as: taking responsibility, perseverance, avoiding self-renunciation, leading by example, motivation, dream fulfillment, collaboration, different forms of leadership and more
Ascending is based on the principles of existential philosophy and the principles of personal training. Schools that seek to develop social leadership values among Israeli youth uses this program. Throughout the program, students keep a personal journal with weekly and monthly tasks, experience various workshops, activities, and group sessions. During sessions, students discuss and analyze major life events and seek behavioral alternatives to the ones they have previously chosen.
They participate in an annual enrichment and empowerment leadership program that nurtures their abilities and equip them with an administrative toolbox that will enable them to lead Israeli society of the future.
Every year, candidates from all parts of society in Israel, win the “Ramon Award”: Women and men, new immigrants and ‘Tzabarim’, Arabs and Jews, children who live in the center and the periphery.
The Ramon Award is Israel's leading leadership program for 12th graders. Program partners include, The Ministry of Education, The Ministry of Science, and the Ramon Foundation. Fifteen exceptional students who have completed 11th grade with outstanding academics, , have demonstrated leadership capabilities, and who have given back to society and to their community in an extraordinary capacity are chosen.
The award winners are selected from over 300 candidates in Filter committees evaluated.
Space education
IIlan Ramon
rich toolbox for performing the culminating task – sending an experiment to the International Space Station.
The teaching staff not only teaches the required theoretical material, but also leads a process by which students are equipped with critical skills that assist them both throughout the project and also outside the program itself.
The program is built around seven tasks, each named after a member of the Columbia team. Each task is designed to encourage students to expand their horizons, and to equip them with the tools they need to conduct their own research.
Israel’s leading educational program in space gives students a unique opportunity to send an experiment to the International Space Station. The program is currently active in 52 schools in Israel.
As part of the program, some 60 researchers from about 25 laboratories in the business world (pharma, foodtech and more), hospitals, and four different research universities accompany the students in preparation of sending their experiments.
The learning and research process is carried out via project-based learning . The students carry out a number of system tasks, set forth by the Columbia team members, whose purpose is to equip the group with a
6
Experiments will be sent in 2020
18
Experiments sent to the ISS
48%
Women
1,400
Participating students
52
Particpating classes
120
Wikipedia articles were composed by our students in 2019
22
Space companies take part in the judging panel
110
Researchers and scientists mentor the students towards the finals event
A 30-week middle school enrichment program (annual plan). As part of this program, children conduct structured, advanced and experiential research on earths atmosphere. During the program, students experiment with programming, study the effects of human beings in the atmosphere, participate in a one-of-a-kind hackathon accompanied by scientists and experts, and, in collaboration with Israel’s leading researchers, take an active role in an advanced scientific experiment involving a stratospheric balloon which flies tens of kilometers into the atmosphere.
The Ramon Foundation operates for the Israeli Space Agency and is part of the online academy project of the Ministry of Education. As part of the Academy, the foundation broadcasts online lectures related to space and technology to dozens of schools. Over the course of a year, the Foundation deliverd 22 lectures by Israel’s leading space experts in Hebrew and Arabic.
To this date:
200,000 Viewers
5500 particpating schools
45% by female lecturer
Lectures been given
Kindergartens programs
In the past year, the Ramon Foundation has run experiment-based programs for preschool children.
These programs – ‘Space Children’ and ‘Space Kindergartens’ – were designed to establish scientific and technological literacy among preschoolers prior to entering elementary school. The programs encourage a positive affinity for technology and science, laying foundational knowledge in science and providing children with perceptual tools that will enable them to understand and articulate scientific principles at an early age.
The programs allow children to experience the fields of science, technology and space by learning about professional figures from each field. Each session focuses on expanding the knowledge introducing them to role models in these fields by getting the opportunity to 'be someone for a day'.
Children are exposed to a diverse range of scientific disciplines including science, engineering, medicine, biology, chemistry, aviation, and instruction. These are the necessary fields required to obtain an “entry ticket” to NASA’s astronaut training programs.
Teachers Training
Since its establishment, the Ramon Foundation has set out to develop a community of leading teachers and instructors in the area of space technology and research, and to promote the integration of space education in Israel’s wider education system. We believe that a cohesive community of space educators can spark curiosity and interest in our youth, inspire their imaginations, assist them in delving deeper into the world of space, and develop the professional arena for space activity in the State of Israel.
Israel’s Community of Space Educators “Horizon” was established in January 2018 as joint venture of the Israeli Space Agency and the Ramon Foundation.
The community includes teachers, educators and professionals from the field: academics and from the Space Industry. The community was established aiming to increase exposure to the field in the formal and informal systems, and to create an appropriate infrastructure that is connected to field of programs and content adapted to teachers and educators who are able to use space as a tool to promote STEM studies. The community currently numbers about 230 members who have been selected by regulated filing process
Members event in thier community per year
Members event in thier community per year
Regional meetups per year
National meetups per year
Female Members
Researchers, Scientists and engineers.
Teachers and educators
Community members
Hackspace
Since 2016, the Ramon Foundation and the Israeli Space Agency conduct a unique space education Hackathon each year.
As part of this event, academics, industry representatives, and educators come together for 12 hours straight to produce advanced educational activities for Israeli children. To this day, the systems built through this event have been seen hundreds of classrooms and thousands of students.
150 Participants per year
Rona Ramon Confernce
Since 2013, the Ramon Conference for Education and Space has commenced on the last day of Israel’s Space Week.
Amidst guest lectures from renowned experts from Israel, the world and interactive workshops by educators, conference goers from around the country gather annually to network, exchange ideas, and gain exposure to leading projects and cutting-edge research taking place in Israel's space industry.
350 Participants per year
Teachers Training
The Foundation hosts teacher training workshops alongside the Department of Science in the Ministry of Education.
These training sessions are available for kindergarten, elementary, and middle school teachers and include training in observational astronomy, space technology, PBL. They also instruct teachers to use the world of space to teach biology, chemistry, physics, and computer science.
56 Participants per year
Spacetech
“Ramon- Spacetech Vision is to support the growth of the Israeli space sector and enhance the implementation of innovation in our field, while simultaneously, positioning Israel as a global innovation center for new space and space applications.
100
Engineers particpated in an
AI hackathon
40
VC' representatives met space enterpnerus during the israeli space week
120
Participants in each space cafe
Space Cafe sessions serve as a meeting point for entrepreneurs, Israeli space companies, the Israeli security apparatus, international space actors and investors. During the gatherings the foundation host an international expert that give a 45 minute talk to 100 Israeli space engineers and entrepreneurs. Before each talk, guests are given the opportunity to network with each other. The stage is then given to an Israeli start up to present its work and initiative. They are part of a global network of meetings held in Washington, Luxembourg, Tokyo, Montreal that was founded by Entrepreneur and philanthropist – Michael Potter
The Ilan Ramon International Space Conference is held annually surrounding the anniversary of the Columbia Space Shuttle tragedy and is organized together with the Israeli Space Agency and the Ministry of Science and Technology. Among the Conference’s guests are active-duty astronauts, heads of space agencies from around the world and senior figures in the global space industry.
The conference is a cornerstone of the Israeli space industry and provides a platform for young entrepreneurs and Israeli industry leaders to meet senior investors and potential clients and partners from around the world.
In addition to offering a platform for Israel to present its own space policy, the Conference encourages and enables cooperation between the Israeli space agency and visiting space agencies, including the European Space Agency.
In 2020, the Foundation was the acting content and production consultant to the Ilan Ramon Conference, the Israeli Space Agency's Entrepreneurship Workshop and the Israeli Space Week.
Entrepreneur Investors Conference
As part of the Israel’s Space Week, the Ramon Foundation co-hosted an Entrepreneur-Investors Conference with Startup Nation Central. The Conference enabled some 40 venture capitalists to meet with representatives of the Israeli space agency, Israeli entrepreneurs, and representatives of global companies to discuss the challenges and needs of the global space industry.
Ramon AI Hackathon
In March 2019, the Ramon Foundation hosted the first annual Israeli Space Hackathon. The event hosted 100 experts in Machine Learning, Deep Learning, AI, and Big Data. Participants gained unprecedented access to satellite imagery valued at $10 million to develop algorithms and technology that have the potential to grow into new startups or business products in existing companies.
For the event, the foundation acquired satellite imagery from Israeli satellites Venus and BGUSAT, and opened satellite imagery from satellite constellations:: Spot, Pleiades, Terrasar (of Airbus) for two weeks for free.
