Dr. Yifat Gutman and Dr. Noam Tirosh have been elected to The Young Scholars Forum in the Humanities and Social Sciences of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Dr. Yifat Gutman is a lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Her fields of interest include social movements, collective memory, and ethnonational conflict in a transnational and global context. Dr. Noam Tirosh is a lecturer in the Department of Communication Studies. His research focuses on the relationship between memory and media and their relationship with democracy, justice and human rights.
The two researchers have collaborated in the past and last year published an article together: On media, memory and laws: The Israeli 'Law Commemorating the Exile of Jews from Arab Countries and Iran' (2014) as a case study.
Throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, the Young Scholars Forum will investigate the Holocaust, the two researchers will delve into the subject of the collective memory of the Holocaust, each one from a different and fascinating perspective.
The Young Scholars Forum was launched in 2004 with the aim of bringing together outstanding young scholars in Israel. In addition to serving as a platform for discussion and thought, the forum is designed to promote collaborative intellectual and research activity among researchers from different institutions and from a range of disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. Each year, a group of young scholars from academic institutions in Israel is selected for the forum. The criterion for selection is extraordinary distinction in research and original thinking. The group is active for one to two years.
A member of the Academy heads each group and guides its discussion of a broad topic chosen for the group, which includes young scholars from a range of fields related to the topic. The group's activity includes meetings, workshops and lectures, delivered by members of the group and occasionally by guest lecturers, who may or may not be Academy members. The group leader and participants may also decide to discuss the state of research in Israel and tools available to researchers at institutions of higher education.
On her election, Dr. Gutman commented, “This prestigious forum is an excellent opportunity to examine the history and memory of a difficult and traumatic past, the Holocaust, and the legacy of racism in the present. I am excited to be with other young researchers in Israel under the leadership of Prof. Israel Bertal". Dr. Tirosh added, “It's a great honor to part of such an important forum, both for me personally, and for the University. My field, communication and memory in the digital era, is very relevant to this year's topic."
