Fundación Richard Lounsbery

La Fundación Richard Lounsbery es una organización filantrópica ubicada en Washington, D.C. Fue fundada en 1959 para fortalecer las capacidades nacionales en ciencia y tecnología (en los Estados Unidos ) y fomentar una sólida cooperación franco-estadounidense. ^{[ 2 ]} La fundación apoya proyectos de investigación, educación científica, cuestiones clave de política científica y otros. ^{[ 3 ]}

La fundación se creó a partir de la fortuna de la familia Lounsbery, derivada de las actividades comerciales de James Ben Ali Haggin , nieto de Ibrahim Ben Ali y abuelo de Richard Lounsbery . ^{[ 4 ]} Fue fundada en 1959 y tiene estatus de organización benéfica desde 1960. ^{[ 5 ]} En 1967, tras la muerte de Richard Lounsbery, Vera Lounsbery, esposa de Richard Lounsbery, y el abogado de la familia, Alan F. McHenry, establecieron los objetivos de la fundación. ^{[ 6 ]} McHenry se convirtió en el primer presidente de la fundación en 1980. ^{[ 7 ]} El hijo de McHenry, Richard, actualmente forma parte del consejo de administración de la fundación. ^{[ 8 ]}

The Richard Lounsbery Foundation aims to enhance national strengths in science and technology through support of programs in the following areas: research that connects groups outside the US and American science; joint international research between nations in conflict; science and technology components of US policy issues; elementary and secondary science and math education, especially in New York City and Washington DC; historical studies and contemporary assessments of key trends in the natural sciences; and start-up assistance for establishing the infrastructure of research projects or new fields of research.  Among international initiatives, the Foundation has a long-standing priority in French-American cooperation.

The Foundation generally provides seed money or partial support, rarely renews grants for continuing activities, does not normally fund endowments or capital equipment, and aims to achieve high impact by funding novel projects and forward-looking leaders.  

The foundation takes a special interest in cooperative activities between French and American scholars. It may have been the first philanthropic organization to fund the Wikimedia Foundation.^[13] A prospective Lounsbery grant in late 2004 accelerated Wikimedia to get US Internal Revenue Service approval as an educational foundation in April 2005.

Some of the foundation's most frequent grantees in the past ten years include the American Museum of Natural History, the American Philosophical Society, U.S. National Academy of Sciences, American Association for the Advancement of Science, BioBus, Inc., Institute of International Education, French Académie des Sciences, U.S. Foundation for the Commemoration of the World Wars, and the Center for the Study of the Presidency & Congress.

Awards supported by the foundation include:

• The Richard Lounsbery Award in biology or medicine.^[14] The Richard Lounsbery Award is an annual prize given to young (aged 45 and below) French and American scientists to recognize extraordinary scientific achievement in biology and medicine.  It is administered in alternate years by the National Academy of Sciences and the French Académie des sciences. In addition to honoring scientific excellence, the Award is intended to stimulate research and encourage reciprocal scientific exchanges between the United States and France. The Richard Lounsbery Award was established by Vera Lounsbery in memory of her husband, Richard Lounsbery, in 1978.

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