TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Nine scholars of history have been awarded the prestigious Dan David Prize for 2022, with each receiving $300,000 to help further their work.

The Dan David Prize board said the nine are being recognized for “breakthrough achievements in the study of the past” in new and creative ways. The winners include a historian who investigates the environmental impact of big business, a researcher who has uncovered Jewish hiding places during the Holocaust and the founder of a mobile museum of African heritage.

“If you are a person who believes history can make a difference in the world, this prize is an affirmation of that,” said Bart Elmore, an environmental historian and one of this year’s winners.

The Dan David Prize board said in its announcement that this year’s recipients are “unlocking the secrets held by human remains and medieval manuscripts, uncovering forgotten legal cases from the American South and revealing echoes of Ethiopian global power.”