A group of dedicated individuals and organizations invites you to partner with us to make it possible for Israeli and Palestinian grassroots leaders to be together inside Palestinian Territory, to increase their effectiveness. We invite you to support us in exploring what happens. When we work together as peers and partners to develop our own skills, self-awareness and ability to contribute to the organizations, movements and communities which we serve?
Short Summary
Can you imagine Israeli, Palestinian, and international leaders, teachers, and organizers gathering together inside Palestinian Territory for four days to learn leadership and decision making that can propel their own organizations, projects, and communities to the next level of visionary growth and effectiveness? We imagined it, and are putting it into action December 19-22 in Beit Jalla, Palestine, in a historic event, the first ever training in Convergent Facilitation in the Middle East. We are asking for your support to make it possible for all who want to attend this training regardless of their own means.
What is Convergent Facilitation?
Convergent Facilitation is leadership training based on Nonviolent Communication (NVC), developed by Miki Kashtan, a senior Nonviolent Communication trainer. Miki inspirers and mentors thousands of people in the global movement for transformation of ourselves, our consciousness, our societies and the power structures that are holding us all back from living together with dignity, safety, freedom and respect.
Miki was born in Israel and has lived in the USA for many years. As a senior NVC trainer, she particularly focuses on systems change, leadership and empowerment, all within the consciousness context of NVC. She is a master facilitator and teacher who inspires people around the world. She has developed Convergent Facilitation, an application of NVC that breaks new ground in supporting groups to work together effectively and make decisions that are acceptable to all. Her work demonstrates that we don't have to compromise either collaboration or efficiency when working with a group.
With Convergent Facilitation, the principles of Nonviolent Communication are embedded into facilitation, decision making and leadership.
Why Is This Important?
Underneath the radar of the struggling peace talks and continuing violence, there is a growing movement among Palestinians and Israelis that needs leadership and grassroots training for its leaders. This includes teachers, parents, doctors, business and community leaders and officials who are involved in their own communities to create a culture of nonviolence and a better life. This includes people who are open to discovering authentic new ways to be together, strengthening each others’ courage, determination and skills to work for peace and better lives.
There is an urgent need for opportunities for people in the Mideast to learn, grow, and explore together.
These people, both public figures and unknown individuals, are sometimes risking their lives, often lovingly embracing the cost of social alienation and lack of resources, and always taking on systems and norms that perpetuate separation and even hatred. Their yearning for transformation, a future that works for all their children, and shared places at the table inspire us to offer them what we have to ease their struggles.
Response to this Project
The response for this training has been deeply inspiring. We have an outpouring of people and organizations who want to attend, from Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Europe, North America, and all the way to Thailand. The range of organizations already represented in the list of attendees is giving us confidence that our efforts to make this happen are meeting a deep need for support and connection. We are overjoyed to imagine how much more effective everyone will be in their work and efforts towards transformation after immersing themselves in this learning environment.
More Information about the Event Itself
For full details, go to www.steps2peace.com for a flyer in English, Arabic, or Hebrew. The training in Convergent Facilitation will take place over 4 days in Beit Jalla, Palestine, with 60 participants from a cross section of Israeli Jewish, Israeli Palestinian and Palestinian society. The program is hosted by Holy Land Trust and includes several other organizations from the region.
This is a unique opportunity for Jewish and Palestinian leaders and organizers, with counterparts from other parts of the world, to train as equal learners and partners together, to explore new territory together; in short, to experience and learn together as peers, colleagues and seekers
What We Need & What You Get
Our hosts and partners, the Holy Land Trust and NVC Mideast, are working tirelessly to make the training as financially accessible as possible. Together we have created a subsidized budget. Participants from US and European economies are asked to give the full cost of their participation, which is US$600 (including room and board at the Everest Hotel in Beit Jalla). People in the Mideast are asked to give NIS500 to participate. This difference reflects the divergent realities within which people in the region live. In total, we are attempting to raise $36,000. Some of this amount will come from contributions and donations that attendees will give based on their ability to do so. We also know that many will attend who cannot contribute the full amount or even part of it. We want everyone to be able to participate, and we want to be able to give some money to the trainers and organizers who are putting this event together. This is the reason we are creating this campaign: without it, we are not confident we can cover our costs, let alone give some money to the trainers and organizers whose livelihood is tied up with this kind of work.
Whether or not you can be there, we hope you will be inspired by what we are trying to do, that you will choose to contribute from your heart to make this training a success, so that it becomes sustainable for Israeli-Jewish and Palestinian leaders and activists to be together as peers and partners to develop our skills, self-awareness, and ability to contribute to the organizations, movements, and communities which they serve.
What you get is the satisfaction of contributing to the ongoing efforts to bring vision and hope to the region, the possibility of attending the event, and a report we plan on writing after the event, so you know what your contribution supported. In addition, depending on the amount of your contribution, you can get additional gifts – see the sidebar for more information.
Who We Are
Miki Kashtan is certified NVC trainer, is a founder of Bay Area Nonviolent Communication and the North America Leadership Program. She is inspired by the role of visionary leadership in shaping a livable future, and works toward that vision by sharing the principles and practices of Nonviolent Communication through mediation, meeting facilitation, consulting, and training for organizations and for committed individuals. Miki blogs at the Fearless Heart. Her articles have appeared in Tikkun magazine, Waging Nonviolence, Shareable, and elsewhere. Her first book, Spinning Threads of Radical Aliveness: Transcending the Legacy of Separation in Our Individual Lives is due out in early 2014. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from UC Berkeley.
Roberta Wall is a lawyer, mediator, trainer, parent, activist, mindfulness practitioner and coach. She shares her time between Israel and the beautiful Hudson River Valley of Upstate New York and travels the world coaching couples, individuals and organizations and facilitating workshops and retreats inspired by Nonviolent Communication (NVC) as developed by Dr. Marshall Rosenberg and Buddhist teachers Thich Nhat Hanh and the Dalai Lama, and teachers and rabbis from her root Jewish tradition.
Sami Awad is is the Executive Director of Holy Land Trust. At a young age, Sami was influenced by the teaching of his uncle Mubarak Awad, the Palestinian activist who promoted nonviolent resistance to the occupation during the first Intifadah (popular uprising) and was arrested and deported for his peaceful / nonviolent activists by the Israeli government. Through working with Mubarak, Sami was introduced to great leaders and visionaries of the global nonviolence movement; from Jesus to Gandhi to King. Sami Awad holds a Masters Degree in International Relations from the American University in Washington D.C. and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Kansas.Since his return and establishment of HLT, Sami has engaged himself locally, through promoting and engaging in nonviolence, healing and transformation work and globally through visiting and speaking in different countries, communities, political and religious organizations in places such as India, South Africa, numerous European countries, and the US.
Other Ways You Can Help
Please spread the word! Think of people you know who are longing to see positive action in support of transformation in the region, people who want to value the lives of everyone in this tortured piece of land. Tell them about the opportunity to participate - both as learners at the event, and as partners and co-sponsors in making this possible. Speak about this at your synagogue, church, or mosque, share it on your Facebook page and elsewhere.
Thank you already for your heart and support. Remember, in these kinds of campaigns, no amount is too large or too small.
-Miki, Roberta, Sami and the many others who support this work.
