Elie Wiesel and his wife, Marion, established The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity soon after he was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize for Peace. The Foundation's mission, rooted in the memory of the Holocaust, is to combat indifference, intolerance and injustice through international dialogue and youth-focused programs that promote acceptance, understanding and equality.

The Foundation runs multiple programs both domestically and internationally.In the U.S., the Foundation organizes The Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest for college juniors and seniors and bestows The Elie Wiesel Humanitarian Award to a deserving individual.