Jewish Red Army Soldiers Honored by Blavatnik Archive Foundation

Len Blavatnik, a U.S. industrialist, is also a well-known supporter of Jewish causes, especially as it relates to his birth country of Russia. So it's not surprising that he was highly involved in the recent exhibit in Moscow dedicated to Jewish soldiers in the Russian army during World War II.

Len Blavatnik was at the opening in Moscow of the exhibit "Writings and Reflections of Jewish Soldiers in the Red Army" at the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War.  The exhibit uses letters, photos and other factual information to tell the story of Russian Jews who fought the Nazis during World War II. Jewish soldiers suffered staggering losses during the war: an estimated one-third of the 450,000 Jewish soldiers in the Russian army were killed.

He has extended his charitable work to telling the story of Jewish soldiers. In an interview, he told Jewish news agency JTA that he felt it was important to tell the stories of Jews being heroes during the war as well as being victims. He said that it's important to tell the stories now since the remaining soldiers who fought during the war are dying of old age.

The exhibit is just one of the many philanthropic endeavors advancing Jewish causes supported by Len Blavatnik.  He currently sits on the board of Tel Aviv University (along with similar roles at Cambridge and Harvard). He is also an active board member of the Center for Jewish History in New York, which preserves Jewish history and culture and serves in educating the public about Jewish history and traditions.

In addition, billionaire U.S. industrialist Len Blavatnik is known to have a passion for higher education. He has donated his time and energy to ensure the progress of learning at some of the major universities in the world and currently sits on boards at Cambridge University, Harvard University, and Tel Aviv University.

With this in mind, the latest bit of Len Blavatnik news should come as little surprise.  It has been recently reported that Mr. Blavatnik has donated 75 million to Oxford University in England to create a new school for government. The new Blavatnik School of Government will help to prepare future leaders of the UK (and other countries) to provide the type of powerful, decisive leadership needed in the 21st century.

Many Oxford alumni have risen to power within the UK. David Cameron recently became the 26th Oxford graduate to become Prime Minister. Others have included Tony Blair, Margaret Thatcher and Edward Heath. Many other leaders from around the world have matriculated at Oxford and taken the lessons learned back to their home countries. Funds donated by Mr. Blavatnik will be used to build a home for the school along with paying for 40 academic posts and hiring a dean to run the school.

The fact that Mr. Blavatnik would make such as generous donation is no surprise. A self-made billionaire, Mr. Blavatnik has used a considerable amount of his personal wealth for philanthropic causes. The Blavatnik Family  Foundation has made many significant contributions to worthy causes in recent years. Among the cultural entities that the foundation supported to are the British Museum, Tate Modern, Royal Opera House, National Portrait Gallery and Museum of Modern Art. In addition, the Blavatnik Family Foundation has teamed with the New York Academy of Sciences to create the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists to honor outstanding young scientists working in a variety of fields.