About Pen Pals For Peace

We have a vision, a belief that Israeli and Palestinian youth need to develop common ground between them, where they can meet and discover their cultures, their similarities, their differences - their humanity. Though only a few miles separate most Israelis and Palestinians, their views of each other are largely based on propaganda, politics, and tragedy - rarely through personal interaction.

Most of us learn about the conflict through the media which can be misleading and maybe enforce false stereotypes, easily engaging our minds to a specific way of thinking that predefines our everyday decisions. Meaningful encounters with diverse groups of people decrease stereotyping of those groups, and prejudice can be transformed into understanding by confronting fears of the unknown.

There's an urgent need to question facts we are frequently exposed to in the newspapers, TV and radio, to look for the truth and keep an open mind to accept other's opinions.

The Idea of the Project

In order to approach conflict effectively, the parties involved must build relationships. Students from all over the world can help those from Palestine and Israel to take a step back and look at the picture from a neutral side, let them know that their voices are being heard and that there are people outside of their regions having sympathy for their circumstances. The only thing you have to do is to contact us, we will find your personal pen pal and provide you with issues to discuss, latest news and basic knowledge of the conflict.

Why Letters?

Writing letters for peace is not anything new - it is, expect of meeting them in person, the oldest and still one of the best ways to reach out to people all over the world. For example, the letters of the famous doctor Albert Schweitzer, addressed to the U.S. presidents Eisenhower in 1957 and Kennedy in 1961, emphasizing the importance of ending the rat race for nuclear arms all over the world, certainly played a decisive role in convincing the world's leaders to strengthen their efforts for peace.

It doesn't matter if you use a pen, typewriter or the keyboard of your notebook to write your pen pal in order to exchange ideas and get to know each other, the advantages of written language are obvious: You can think twice before sending your message, making sure that pointless hate and narrow-minded, prejudiced emotions won't stand in the way of real communication.

To sum up, there's nothing more inspiring than to find words for your plans, fears and hopes - discussing with your pen pal via e-mail, that's exactly what you will experience!

Contact

The Pen Pals project coordinator in Israel is Rasha Athamni, who can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The German project coordinator, Ursula Volker, may be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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