The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR) constitute one of the academic faculties of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), and are located on BGU's Sede Boqer Campus in Midreshet Ben-Gurion in the heart of the Negev Desert in Israel. The BIDR is home to approximately 70 academic faculty and 90 technical and administrative staff members. In addition, 220 graduate students and 50 post-doctoral scholars, coming from over 30 different countries, study at the BIDR within the framework of the Albert Katz International School for Desert Studies. The BIDR comprises three internationally recognized research institutes: the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, the French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, and the Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental Research. The stated mission of the BIDR is to combat desertification and to explore global challenges by bringing together water, food, energy, and environmental research.

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) is a public research university in Beersheba, Israel. Named after Israeli national founder David Ben-Gurion, the university was founded in 1969 and currently has five campuses: three in Beersheba, one in Sede Boqer and one in Eilat.