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Organization: The Med2020 Department -The Peres Center for Peace
The following information may be cited or quoted as long as the source is accurately mentioned and the words are not taken out of context.
Posted: April 18 2010,07:20 If you wrote this report, you will find a button here that you may click
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Postal address of organization/institution

The Peres Peace House
132 Kedem Street
Jaffa, Israel 68066

E-mail address of organization/institution

info@peres-center.org

Website address of organization/institution

http://www.peres-center.org

Telephone of organization/institution

+972-3-5680680

PRIORITIES: All of the organization's domains of culture of peace activity

EDUCATION FOR PEACE
UNDERSTANDING, TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY
INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY

TOP PRIORITY: The organization's most important culture of peace activity

EDUCATION FOR PEACE

PARTNERSHIPS AND NETWORKS: What partnerships and networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the global movement for a culture of peace?

The Malta-based Strickland Foundation
Fundacion Picasso
the Palestinian Al-Quds Daily Newspape
Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for Dialogue between Cultures
Magen David Adom (Red Cross Israel)
Al Quds Center for First aid
The Euro-Mediterranean Youth Program
Caritas Internationalis
Cisco system
Mytech Project

ACTIONS: What activities have been undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and nonviolence during the ten years of the Decade? If you already made a report in 2005, your information from 2005 will be included in the 2010 report.

A Mediterranean Youth Vision for 2020
Project Objective:
Med2020's launching project, A Mediterranean Youth Vision for 2020, enlisted youth to manifest their personal visions of the Mediterranean basin for the year 2020 in a cultural expression competition based in prose, poetry, music and picture. The project, which began in September 2006 in partnership with the Euro-Med Movement, Malta, focused on youth aged 15-18 from 17 cities and countries around the Mediterranean. The winning male and female entrant from each country participated in the "Mediterranean Youth Vision 2020 Seminar" in January 2007 – a three-day peacebuilding workshop in Sliema, Malta for youth leaders. The 35 participating youth represented Mediterranean countries including Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Turkey, Malta, Italy, Spain, France, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The youth enjoyed discussions and role plays on issues of youth civic engagement, gender, immigration and violence, conflict resolution from the Balkan perspective, issues of identity, regionalism and community, and more. At the end of the seminar, the youth created a "Mediterranean Youth Agenda", outlining a strategy for cooperation and empowerment of youth from Mediterranean countries.

Illuminating Picasso’s Dove of Peace
Project Objective:
To bring together various sectors of society, such as youth and the media, to create joint initiatives through the medium of culture.
The Peres Center, in cooperation with Fundacion Picasso and the Palestinian Al-Quds Daily Newspaper, held a contest entitled "Illuminating Picasso’s Dove of Peace." This cultural expression competition, which was advertised in various local newspapers and subsequently evaluated by such sources, invited Mediterranean youth to interpret Pablo Picasso’s 1949 depiction of the "Dove of Peace". Following the competition, in November 2007, the winning contestants were invited to participate in a four-day peacebuilding seminar at Fundacion Picasso in Malaga, Spain. The youth participants represented a diverse array of Mediterranean countries, including Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, France, Greece, Italy, Cyprus, Spain and Malta. Following ice-breaking and team-bonding activities and exercises, the youth participated in sessions focused on cross-cultural similarities, common values, and topics including gender issues, peace, and equality. The youth spent much time building trust between, and real friendships with, one another, and the seminar culminated in the signing of a Joint Declaration embodying the notions of a Mediterranean identity and inter-cultural cooperation.

First Aid and Peacebuilding
Project Objective:
In August 2007, a First Aid and Peacebuilding Seminar was held for 30 Israeli and Palestinian youth from all over Israel and the West Bank.
The first part of the program comprised a week-long course in First Aid training held separately for the Palestinian and Israeli youngsters aged 15-18.
The following week, the Palestinian and Israeli youngsters gathered at Neve Shalom for the second part of the program – an intensive peacebuilding seminar which was based on the experiential learning of concepts including "thinking out of the box" in terms of the "other". The Israeli and Palestinian youngsters learnt that their counterparts on the other side of the border have similar lives and dreams – problems, fears, and desires regarding everyday life and relationships.
An additional seminar day, whereby they delivered an educational program that dealt with topics including the history of natural disasters in the Middle East, management strategies and rehabilitation, and the seven principles of international humanitarian law.

Palestinians and Israelis Study Together in Italy
Project Objective:
To contribute to the academic and social development of students who have recently lived in, or are still living in, a situation of conflict or open war, and encourage them to develop a unique perspective on the values of freedom, responsibility, dialogue, respect for others, solidarity, and peace.Med2020 is currently implementing a scholarship program for international students to study in Italy, thereby contributing to the academic and social development of young students who have recently lived in, or are still living in, a situation of conflict or open war. The program, which entails a long-term stay in Rosazzo, offers the students the possibility of obtaining advanced professional qualifications and a unique perspective on the values of freedom, responsibility, dialogue, respect for others, solidarity, and peace.
Peace School
In parallel with their academic studies, students examine various topics and ideas, including peace, equality, freedom, and social justice. The style of brotherhood, solidarity, attention to social problems and specifically to the themes of integration of the respective cultural and religious roots, supports the process of personal and inter-personal reconciliation, stimulating a coherent and harmonious growth in the students’ characters, and enriching their experience socially, culturally, and spiritually. After five years of studies, the young participants, upon returning home, will be able to use their knowledge, lessons, and experiences acquired, and apply such invaluable learning to benefit their respective communities.
In addition, Med2020 has published "A Mediterranean Mosaic of Peace", a collection of essays on relevant Mediterranean topics written by distinguished experts across the Department's areas of focus.

The Med2020 Department has also published a book entitled "2020: Visions of Our Future", which stands as an expression of true hope and dedication to both the process of creating and the possibility of sustaining international peace.

PROGRESS: Has your organization seen progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of action and in your constituency during the second half of the Decade?

As the Med2020 department is only five years old and mainly focused on the youth, we do not have noticed significant progress. Indeed, we are settling down the fundaments for a mutual cultural understanding between the Mediterranean countries' youth and our efforts will come to fruition only in a close future.

OBSTACLES: Has your organization faced any obstacles to implementing the culture of peace and nonviolence? If so, what were they?

The current situation in the Middle-East is the biggest obstacle we have to face. Indeed, our relations with the surrounding mediterranean Arab countries are compromised by the ongoing situation in the Gaza strip and the Israeli tense diplomatic relations with Lebanon. As an Israeli Peace NGO, we are, unfortunately, handicapped by the political background.

Also, the lack of budget is an obstacle. Two projects proposals submitted to European Organizations were not accepted. The economical situation in 2009 stopped the progress of the department.

PLANS: What new engagements are planned by your organization in the short, medium and long term to promote a culture of peace and nonviolence?

We hope to find partners within the EuroMed area, we want to focus mainly on projects concerning:
1. Youth empowerment.
2. Environment (cleaning of the Medditeranean sea).
3. Projects engaging Turkish partners
4. Establishment of Food trust.
5. Jewish Arab Cultural festival in Yafo.

GLOBAL MOVEMENT: How do you think the culture of peace and nonviolence could be strengthened and supported at the world level??

Through extensive communication and interaction with Arab partners, the Peres Center has come to understand that sustainable peace and stability can only be developed in the Middle East region through the elevation of social and economic capacities. Accordingly, the peacebuilding activities of the Peres Center focus on common Arab and Israeli social, economic, developmental, cultural and educational interests, with an emphasis on nurturing Palestinian-Israeli relations. The Peres Center designs and facilitates tangible peacebuilding projects that address these interests, utilizing cross-border, regional and international partnerships to bring these initiatives to fruition.
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Organization: The Med2020 Department -The Peres Center for Peace

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