The power of dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians : stories of change from the School for Peace

In __The Power of Dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians__, scholar and activist Nava Sonnenschein shares a collection of twenty-five powerful interviews she conducted with Palestinian and Jewish Israeli alumni of peacebuilding courses, a decade after their graduation. Participants with diverse personal and professional backgrounds completed a series of conflict transformation workshops using the model developed by the School for Peace at the world’s only intentional Jewish-Palestinian community, Neve Shalom-Wahat al-Salam (“Oasis of Peace” in Hebrew and Arabic). Critically, the interviews vividly demonstrate that peacebuilding does not end with the courses. Most of the graduates choose to work professionally in roles that contribute to peace-building. Sonnenschein shows the transformational potential of encounter between members of groups in conflict, sharing how ordinary Israelis and Palestinians coming together in an open and honest environment undergo life-changing experiences that provide concrete hope for a sustainable path to a peaceful shared existence as equals in Israel and Palestine. Conflict and Conscience is a collection of interviews that introduces readers to 25 graduates of the School for Peace, an non-profit dedicated to building peace among Palestinians and Jews in Israel. Interviewer and editor Nava Sonnenschein is a founding member of the village of Neve Shalom (Oasis of Peace), a collaborative venture where an equal number of Jewish and Palestinian Israelis live co-operatively. As part of their mission, Neve Shalom's leaders conducts courses in peacemaking for college students at different Israeli universities. After facilitating these courses for over 25 years, Sonnenschein states that the effort of bringing together Jewish Israelis and Palestinians from both sides of the Green Line - either in Neve Shalom or on the campuses of Tel Aviv University, Ben-Gurion University, and other institutions - can be overwhelming. But she and her colleagues press on because of the conversations they facilitate and the long-term changes these conversations introduce to participants' worldviews. "Seeing the transformation undergone by the participants is a re-energizing, amazing moment when something perceptibly shifts for a participant or for an entire group." In the mid-2000s, she began to interview graduates of one or more school for Peace courses, and conducted these interviews through 2015 in order to "look more deeply into the nature of the changes [she] witnessed." She selected the 25 strongest interviews to publish in Conflict and Conscience, and bracketed the text with a scholarly introduction by social psychologist Tamar Saguy and her own concluding interpretive essay. The resulting volume is both a scholarly resource and an inspiration that "lends strength to human rights and peace organizations." Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Contents 6 Preface 8 Introduction: When Groups Meet—Understanding How Power Dynamics Shape Intergroup Encounters 16 Part I: Human Rights and Political Activism 30 1. Michael Sfard 32 2. Suhad Hammoud Dahleh 42 3. Mohammad Abu Snineh 54 4. Yonatan Shapira 68 Part II: Community Organizing, Education, and Planning 84 5. Ayelet Roth 86 6. Harb Amara 100 7. Youval Tamari 112 8. Rachela Yanay 122 9. Nazih Ansaari 134 10. Sebastian Wallerstein 150 Part III: Family and Community Mental Health 160 11. Wassim Biroumi 162 12. Yoav Lurie 172 13. Dina Zarega 186 14. Slieman Halabi 202 Part IV: University Teaching and Research 216 15. Norma Musih 218 16. Roi Silberberg 228 17. Nada Matta 242 18. Sarab Abu-Rabia-Queder 256 19. Maram Masarwi 270 Part V: Pioneering New Organizations 284 20. Eitan Bronstein 286 21. Amin Khalaf 298 22. Maya Mukamel 310 23. Badria Biromi 322 24. Avi Levi 330 25. Amal Elsana Alh’jooj 344 Afterword: A Critical Analysis of the Interviews 362 Acknowledgments 382 Bibliography 384 About the Author 388 When groups meet : understanding how power dynamics shape intergroup -- Encounters -- Human rights & political activism -- Michael Sfard -- Suhad Hammoud Dahleh -- Mohammad abu Snineh -- Yonatan Shapira -- Community organizing, education & planning -- Ayelet Roth -- Harb Amara -- Youval Tamari -- Rachela Yanay -- Nazih Ansaari -- Sebastian Wallerstein -- Family & community mental health -- Wassim Biroumi -- Yoav Lurie -- Dina Zarega -- Slieman Halabi -- University teaching & research -- Norma Musih -- Roi Silberberg -- Nada Matta -- Sarab abu-Rabia-Queder -- Maram Masarwi -- Pioneering new organizations -- Eitan Bronstein -- Amin Khalaf -- Maya Mukamel -- Badria Biromi -- Avi Levi -- Amal Elsana Alh'jooj -- Afterword : a critical analysis of the interviews Presents a collection of twenty-five powerful interviews Nava Sonnenschein conducted with Palestinian and Jewish Israeli alumni of peacebuilding courses, a decade after their graduation. She shows the transformational potential of encounters between members of groups in conflict.