Ben-Gurion University of the Negev the Albert Katz International School for Desert Studies, and the Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism. Ben-Gurion University was established in 1969 as the University of the Negev with the aim of promoting the development of the Negev desert that comprises more than sixty percent of Israel. The University was later renamed after Israel's founder and first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, who believed that the future of the country lay in this region. After Ben-Gurion's death in 1973, the University was renamed Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. In 2016, long-time friends, the late Dr. Howard and
Blueprint Negev the Negev. After the Disengagement together with the Or Negev settlement movement, the JNF was instrumental in helping Gaza evacuees find new homes in the Negev as cohesive units. The plan aims to increase the population of Beersheba, the Negev's largest city. One of the main projects undertaken there is the Be’er Sheva River Walk, creating a park inspired by San Antonio’s River Walk. The plan includes green spaces, an amphitheater for events, a lake for boating and promenades for strolling. The JNF supported cleanup of the riverbed. The plan envisions the creation of 25 new suburban communities. Seven communities