Everything is Doable
The Asper Foundation was founded on the tenets of celebrated Canadian entrepreneur Israel Asper (O.C., O.M., Q.C., L.L.D.), a rare visionary in the business world. A unique personality, Israel Asper was not only a successful entrepreneur; he was also a media mogul, politician, lawyer, and musician, as well as a devoted supporter of Israel and one of the greatest philanthropists in Winnipeg’s history.
In an interview held shortly before he passed away in 2003, Israel Asper laid out his beliefs in simple equations. “Everything is doable; if you are tenacious enough, you can do whatever you set out to do. Because all you need is more determination than the guys who are trying to stop you.”
As an early visionary in the field of media and communications, Israel Asper established the CanWest Global Communications Corporation in 1977, which became a leading international, diversified media empire spanning three continents, with interests in television, film production, radio, and newspapers. Recognizing the potential of the internet as a medium for disseminating information, Asper became an early adopter of internet as a publishing and media channel.
CanWest’s success enabled Israel Asper to found, together with his spouse, Ruth (Babs) Asper, The Asper Foundation, a philanthropic foundation dedicated to education, healthcare, environmental action, and social justice.
Tikun Olam
Israel Asper’s inspirational philanthropic philosophy, which he imparted to his three children when he founded The Asper Foundation in 1983, was the unshakeable belief that each of us must do something useful with our lives and make a difference. He was imbued with what in Hebrew is referred to as Tikkun Olam, or taking action to improve the world. Never content to sit back and watch while a wrong was committed, Asper created the Canadian Museum for Human rights so that, as his daughter Gail related, “future generations could be taught that we all need to stand up for one another and be vigilant in the protection of each other’s rights.”
In Winnipeg and elsewhere, the arts, universities, hospitals, parks, and the disadvantaged have all benefited from Israel Asper’s generosity, which was based, as Leonard Asper detailed in his eulogy to his father, on the desire “to set an example for his descendants and for others that you give back to your community. It was particularly important to him that the future trustees of The Asper Foundation understand his philosophy of giving and appreciate the legacy they must uphold.”