Businessman Ronny Douek: More Israelis are becoming philanthropists

Israeli society is undergoing a subtle change that is manifesting itself in local projects, family offices, and nonprofit organizations nationwide.

- + By ZVIKA KLEIN

More Israelis with financial means are stepping into philanthropy, according to Israel Prize laureate and businessman Ronny Douek, and many of them are doing so with a new mindset shaped by the aftermath of October 7.

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, Douek said the change had been building for years but accelerated sharply after the war began, when civil society organizations and philanthropic networks moved quickly to fill urgent gaps.

“Tt wasn’t that way five years ago, and it definitely wasn’t that way 20 or 30 years ago,” Douek said. “People saw how effective civil society and philanthropy were, and they wanted to be part of it.”

Douek, a longtime social entrepreneur associated with establishing initiatives such as Zionism 2000 and Sheatufim, described October 8 as a turning point in how many Israelis understood the role of organized giving.

Douek also recalled a formative moment from an early visit to Cleveland in the 1990s, when he sat at breakfast with philanthropist Mort Mandel and Jewish Federation professional Steve Hoffman and watched them argue passionately as equals.