Barbra Streisand is a distinguished actress, director, producer, writer, composer and recording artist. Streisand is the only artist ever to receive Oscar, Tony, Emmy, Grammy, Golden Globe, Cable Ace, American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement and Peabody awards. She is also a recipient of the National Medal of Arts as well as France’s Legion d’Honneur. Her many other awards include an honorary doctorate in arts and humanities from Brandeis University in 1995 and an honorary doctorate of philosophy from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2013.

Making the movie Yentl early in her career ignited Streisand’s passion for ensuring that women get the same chances in life as men — whether in business, social services, medical research, education or anything else. She is a leading spokesperson and fund-raiser for many social and political causes close to her heart and has often dedicated proceeds from her live concert performances to benefit programs she supports. The Streisand Foundation has supported over 700 nonprofit organizations.

In 2012, Streisand founded the barrier-breaking Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she helps fund the research, treatment and education of women’s heart disease. This program addresses the leading cause of death among women in the United States. No stranger to Washington, Streisand has met with senior leaders in Congress and the executive branch to advocate for equitable representation in medical research to further study the unique impact of heart disease on women.

As a lifelong passionate philanthropist and political activist, Streisand has given and raised millions of dollars to combat some of the most pressing social and political issues of our time in the U.S. and around the world. A champion for the most vulnerable with a sense of responsibility to heal the world that grows out of her Jewish heritage, Streisand and her foundation have tackled a wide variety of issues, including women’s health and women’s equality, civil rights and voting rights, and educational opportunity. The preservation of the planet is also one of her most pressing endeavors. She has been a committed environmentalist for many years; she created a chair in environmental studies at the Environmental Defense Fund in 1989. Streisand was also the lead funder of the Clinton Climate Initiative. In addition, she created chairs in contemporary gender studies at the University of Southern California and cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.