Uri Poliavich is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who has directed sustained financial and organizational investment toward Jewish education across multiple continents. Born in 1981 and raised in Israel from the age of 14, Poliavich developed a personal understanding of what it means to build a life across cultural and geographic boundaries. That experience informs both the priorities and the operating logic of his philanthropic work, which he co-founded with his wife in 2020 and has scaled significantly in the years since.
The foundation he co-founded operates under a straightforward guiding principle: every Jewish child, regardless of where they live or the size of their community, deserves access to quality education and a meaningful connection to their heritage. Uri Poliavich has described this commitment in direct terms: “The very first moment the business broke even, the idea was to create something that would reinforce children’s feelings about being part of the Jewish community. This is what pushed us toward creating the foundation”.
The Formation of Philanthropic Values
The values that underpin Uri Poliavich’s philanthropic activity are grounded in personal history. His family emigrated to Israel when he was 14, an experience that involved adaptation to a new language, culture, and institutional environment while maintaining a strong sense of Jewish identity.
Uri Poliavich has spoken publicly about the relationship between business success and social obligation. His view is that the two are not sequential considerations but interconnected ones. “Most people think that business drives charity initiatives, but for me, charity drives business, pushing it forward,” he has stated. This orientation shaped the timing of the foundation’s creation: it was established at the first point of business viability, grounding philanthropic intent in the earliest stage of commercial success.
Engagement with the Global Jewish Community
Uri Poliavich’s philanthropic perspective is explicitly international in scope. The foundation he co-founded works across 45 countries, with a particular focus on communities where educational programs exist but lack the institutional or financial support to remain sustainable. This international orientation also reflects an understanding that identity formation in Jewish children is supported by the knowledge that their community extends beyond their immediate surroundings. Uri Poliavich has supported initiatives that connect school leaders across different countries, enabling the exchange of curriculum approaches, leadership structures, and informal education practices.
Core Areas of Philanthropic Activity
The most significant area of Uri Poliavich’s philanthropic investment is the direct funding of Jewish day schools, kindergartens, and supplementary educational programs. The foundation he co-founded provides financial support to day schools, Sunday schools, kindergartens, and after-school programs, reaching approximately 22,500 students in active enrolment.
Support for Youth Identity and Leadership Development
Beyond formal schooling, Uri Poliavich has invested in programs that build Jewish identity among young people through experiential education. The foundation he co-founded operates Yael Camp, a summer program that brings Jewish youth from different countries together around shared activities, cultural content, and peer connection. The program is designed to create lasting bonds among young people from different backgrounds and to reinforce a sense of belonging within the broader international Jewish community. The camp program operates alongside formal school support, creating continuity between classroom education and broader community engagement.
