Cybersecurity : $5 million for new cybersecurity building at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Published 15 September 2014

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) is a central component of the new “CyberSpark” initiative, a multi-component cyber eco-system. It is the only complex of its type in the world which is a government-academic-industry partnership and includes Fortune 500 companies and cyber-incubators, academic researchers and educational facilities, as well as national government and security agencies. A $5 million contribution will underwrite construction of the building that will house the Cyber Security Institute.

BGU to get an integrated cybersecurity center // Source: commons.wikimedia.org

American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) announced a $5 million contribution from Carole and Marcus Weinstein of Richmond, Virginia, to underwrite construction of the building that will house the Cyber Security Institute at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) in Beer-Sheva, Israel.

The new Carole and Marcus Weinstein Cyber Security Building (17,000 sq. ft.) will house laboratories, classrooms, auditoriums, conference rooms, and offices, accommodating the various needs of information systems engineering and cyber security training and research.

The groundbreaking will take place in November 2014.

BGU is a central component of the new “CyberSpark” initiative, a multi-component cyber eco-system. It is the only complex of its type in the world which is a government-academic-industry partnership and includes Fortune 500 companies and cyber-incubators, academic researchers and educational facilities, as well as national government and security agencies (see “National cyber complex to open next to Ben-Gurion University of the Negev campus,” HSNW, 31 January 2014).

“Ultimately, we were impressed with the caliber of cyber researchers we met, and with the vision for the cyber security direction presented to us byBGU’s president, Rivka Carmi, that will help both Israel and America,” says Carole Weinstein.

She added that Prof. Carmi has become a personal friend whom she much admires for her leadership, her intelligence and her integrity. “Rivka embodies the spirit of David Ben-Gurion, who understood the value of the Negev and the crucial role the desert would have in Israel’s future.”

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