"We had in mind a small village composed of inhabitants from different
communities. Jews, Christians and Moslems would live there in peace, each one faithful to
his own faith and traditions while respecting those of others. Each would find in this
diversity a source of personal enrichment. "We had in mind a small village composed of inhabitants from different
communities. Jews, Christians and Moslems would live there in peace, each one faithful to
his own faith and traditions while respecting those of others. Each would find in this
diversity a source of personal enrichment. ...The aim of the village: to be the
setting for a school of peace.
Father Bruno Hussar, Founder
The School for Peace was established in 1979 as an independent educational
institution devoted to work centering on the Jewish-Palestinian conflict. Today, it is on
the cutting edge of conflict resolution work in Israel, offering a wide range of workshops
and encounters for many levels of Jewish and Palestinian society. Taking into
consideration the asymmetric political and social reality in Israel, the work aims to
heighten awareness of the complexity of the relationship between the two national groups
in Israel, and to improve understanding between them.
The School for Peace conducts encounters for children, youth and adults; it
offers specially-designed teacher-training seminars, training for facilitators, and
courses held in Israeli universities. A significant new .development is a collaboration
with the Palestinian Center for Peace and Democracy, working with Palestinians in the
Palestinian Autonomy. The School also teaches its methods to workers in conflict
management abroad, including the United States. Altogether, over 18~O people participate
in SFP programs each year.
Youth Encounters
At the heart of the program are the youth encounter~ in which
young Jews and Palestinians. meet on an equal basis and engage in intensive dialogue. In
four days of living together in the bi-national environment of Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam,
the students come to see one another in a new light. The program, led by Jewish and
Palestinian co-facilitators, provides a rich encounter at all levels -social, personal,
cultural and political:
The highlight is a day-long simulation game/workshop that deals,
with the future of Jewish-Palestinian relations in Israel. This allows the students to
play leadership roles, conduct negotiations and engage in conflict resolution. The young
negotiators set up committees to investigate matters of education, security and democracy,
taking into consideration the conflicting needs and aspirations of each group. Through
hands-on experience, the students become aware of the special role each group and
individual plays in solving the conflict.
This work is today of utmost importance This work is today of utmost importance in a climate of
prejudice and alienation between the two population. Recent surveys of Israeli Jewish
youth reveal a great and growing insensitively of understanding towards the Arab
population. For example, over one-third of all the young Israeli Jews questioned are in
.favor of denying the Arab population the right to vote national elections. Against this
backdrop, the feedback we have received from graduates of our youth encounter program
shows that for many, the encounter was a moment of enlightenment of waking-up
to the realities of Jewish-Arab relations, a point of departure, and the beginning of
empowerment towards social change. Reaching ever increasing numbers of these young
people is therefore our earnest objective.
Encounters for Adults
Programs specially designed for Palestinian and Jewish
teachers, university lecturers, lawyers .and other influential professionals are a growing
part of the SFP's work. The SFP has also added programs in the field of gender issues,
which often show similar dynamics. to those of the Jewish-Arab encounter. One such
program, in collaboration with Tel Aviv University, works with Jewish and Arab women from
disadvantaged areas.
Encounters for Children
The newest phase of SFP work is with preschool and primary school children and
their teachers, starting in: the Jewish-Arab town of RamIe. More work with schools is
planned.
Professional Development
The School for Peace offers the only training course in Israel for
professionals facilitating groups in conflict. The 160-hour course includes intensive
intergroup process, tools for analyzing the dynamics of the conflict, as well as knowledge
or the theories, methods, and skills. Graduates are now leading figures in most
coexistence institutions in Israel.
As a result, the SFP is today greatly in demand as a training center for
facilitation of conflict group work. Many organizations working in the field of Jewish-Arab
relations send their staff to SFP facilitation training courses, so that we are
able to have a broad impact on work of this kind throughout Israel.
University Courses
SFP courses in graduate departments of three of Israel's major universities
have earned our facilitation work academic respect and sanction. This relationship with
the universities continues to grow, arid we are now in the process of conceiving a
university undergraduate unit that will offer conflict group study in a combination BA
program.
Our goals are to make conflict group "work a recognized profession, to
professionalism the standard of work done In this field; and to raise the awareness of
every state or private institution that is involved In contact between the two
populations, so that these contacts will be better informed; show greater understanding of
the complexities of the relations, and hence become more successful.
Special Programs
* A partnership with the Pepperdine University Department of Law Center for
Alternative Dispute Resolution is yielding a new approach to conflict resolution that
combines SFP conflict group facilitation methods with alternative dispute resolution
skills new to Israel. This can bring new dimensions to conflict resolution between our two
peoples as they attempt more peaceful ways of cooperation and coexistence.
* An international conference, "Language -a Bridge or a Barrier in the
Relations between Peoples," will bring together internationally recognized experts in
communication and conflict work.
* Publication of a book of essays that target key aspects of the Jewish-Arab
encounter. The book will draw upon the accumulated knowledge of our senior staff and
should be a significant contribution to the scant resources available in this field.
The SFP remains highly dependent upon its support base of foundations and
NS/WAS Friends' Associations in order to carry out its activities. In the current year,
our primary aim is to fund the activities outlined in our Work Plan. Funding beyond this
level will directly enlarge the amount of work the SFP is able to accomplish.
Our Facilities
