August 2026
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Facilitating Change
Amal Tikva and Rossing Center: Launching Trauma-Informed Dialogue Facilitators Course
Samer Sinijlawi: Fresh Conversation Needed Prior to Israeli and Palestinian Elections
Natalie Portman: New Political Party “A Place for Us All” is Reason for Hope
Convening Young Changemakers
Emerging Leaders From Palestine and Israel Access Heart of a Nation
PeaceWorks Foundation Engages DC-Based Summer Interns
Heart of a Nation Recruits Youth for Seeds of Peace Dialogue Academy
Writers Matter Eloquently Amplifies Palestinian and Israeli Voices
Empowered Jewish Teens to Advocate on Capitol Hill
New Committee Members
Mohamad Jamous
Ma’ayan Gafni
Henry Nicholls
Summer Bennett Stein
Guy Shalom
Sonya Seidman
Facilitating Change
Amal Tikva and Rossing Center: Launching Trauma-Informed Dialogue Facilitators Course
Have you ever had a difficult conversation with someone that left you feeling angry, frustrated, and even more sure that you're right and they're wrong? There seems to be some shared understanding in peacebuilding work that bringing Israelis and Palestinians together is inherently a good thing to do. Our research, and that of many others, shows that often a dialogue process can be ineffective or cause harm. Our idea is to train facilitators in a methodology of trauma-informed, trauma-sensitive, and trauma-responsive facilitation.
Amal-Tikva and the Rossing Center are launching their first Trauma-Informed Dialogue Facilitation Course for facilitators working in and across Israeli and Palestinian societies. Our facilitation course focuses on how collective trauma shapes dialogue processes, and equips participants with practical tools and facilitation skills for holding dialogue in the context of ongoing conflict.
Samer Sinijlawi: Fresh Conversation Needed Prior to Israeli and Palestinian Elections
Israelis and Palestinians have developed powerful national narratives that shape not only our political opinions but also our understanding of ourselves…
Within such a narrative, questions become dangerous. Curiosity becomes suspicious. Listening to the other side becomes an act of disloyalty. The goal is no longer to search for truth but to protect the story itself…
Once that happens, the conflict ceases to be merely political. It becomes existential. Every compromise feels like surrender. Every acknowledgment of the other's pain appears to diminish our own. This intellectual prison has become one of the greatest obstacles to peace...
We may now be approaching one of the greatest political opportunities in decades. Israel is expected to hold national elections in October. Palestinians are scheduled to elect a new parliament in November… Many already speak of political change. But political change alone will not be enough…
Dialogue must happen on two levels. First, within our own communities. Israelis need difficult conversations among Israelis. Palestinians need equally honest conversations among Palestinians about identity, democracy, religion, violence, and the future they wish to build.
Second, across the border. Israelis and Palestinians who seek change must learn to speak directly with one another – including with those whose worldviews appear the furthest from their own…
Natalie Portman: New Political Party “A Place for Us All” is Reason for Hope
American-Israeli actress Natalie Portman addressed an online fundraiser on
Sunday for the new Arab-Jewish political party A Place for Us All, calling
the slate and the activist movement from which it emerged "one of the most
courageous and exciting developments in Israel-Palestine in recent
years."...
"The establishment wants to tell us that this is impossible, that true
partnership is impossible," she said. "They want to minimize what these
incredible leaders are doing here right now...
Portman said the party's projected support among some 50,000 voters - a
figure cited from a recent Channel 13 poll - shows "real potential."...
She added, "Thank you to the members of A Place For Us All for bringing us
this hope through your work and your courage, and we have to stop settling
for these politics of fear and division. And we have to choose partnership,
choose equality, choose hope, and build this new path together."...
"If we continue to ignore the fact that two peoples live on this land
together - millions of Palestinians and millions of Israelis - and that none
of us are going anywhere, and that we cannot continue living by the sword,
living with violence, living with controlling millions of people militarily
and in a violent way, it will explode again in our faces," Co-Chair Alon-Lee
Green said...
Convening Young Changemakers
Emerging Leaders From Palestine and Israel Access Heart of a Nation
PeaceWorks Foundation Engages DC-Based Summer Interns
Heart of a Nation Recruits Youth for Seeds of Peace Dialogue Academy
Writers Matter Eloquently Amplifies Palestinian and Israeli Voices
This piece is from Noor in Gaza, and part of the Writers Matter collection “Light through the Darkness.”
In a time when darkness multiplies around us, light remains the undying hope,
the vision that guides us when paths blur into one another…
A divine light, not perceived by our senses, but seen by souls attached to truth and guided by it through the maze of life.
Light… a word that holds in its letters the secret of life, the music of serenity, and the fragrance of hope.
Light is nothing but a beginning to every dark ending, a promise at the heart of pain that nothing lasts forever—not even darkness.
Light is not just the sunlight. It is the spark of hope in a chest worn by sorrow, the smile of a heart that chose to shine for others even as it faded within.
It is the sound of a prayer in the depths of night, reaching the sky with confidence, returning as light into the heart—even without words…
Light is what pierces your heart at the height of darkness.
Empowered Jewish Teens to Advocate on Capitol Hill
New Committee Members
Mohamad Jamous
Mohamad Jamous is a Palestinian peacebuilder, community leader, and international speaker. For more than fifteen years, he has worked to strengthen Palestinian society while building meaningful partnerships between Palestinians and Israelis.
Ma’ayan Gafni
Ma’ayan Gafni has a keen interest in building bridges between communities and in the dynamics that help build greater understanding across divides. Ma'ayan has previously served in the leadership of the International Diplomacy Initiative.
Henry Nicholls
Henry Nicholls is a British student studying Classics at the University of Oxford. He has been elected Treasurer of the Oxford Union, Europe’s leading debating and political society. Through his work in politics, publishing, and student leadership, he is committed to helping build a society in which every individual has the freedom and opportunity to flourish.
Summer Bennett Stein
Summer Bennett Stein's engagement in human rights advocacy through the Student Task Force of Human Rights Watch has led her to focus on the Middle East. She is as passionate about criminal justice reform as she is about embracing pragmatic approaches to resolving conflict.
Guy Shalom
Guy currently holds a leadership position at the International Diplomacy Initiative where he focuses on modernizing international communication through innovative digital tools and narrative building.
Sonya Seidman
Sonya Seideman is a junior at The Pingry School with a strong interest in pluralism, coexistence, and international affairs. She is actively engaged in local politics and civic leadership, and works with her peers who are committed to thoughtful dialogue, community engagement, and shaping a more inclusive future.
