Building Bridges for Peace is the flagship program for Seeking Common Ground. BBFP brings together young women and men (16 -19) from Israel, Palestine and the United States to participate in an intensive summer program. During their time together participants learn new communication techniques, develop leadership skills and engage in activities that promote peace and the status and empowerment of women.
After the summer program participants return to their respective communities to continue in a year long follow-up program. Our inaugural program took place during the summer of 1994.
These young women and men are able to meet and learn from participants from diverse ethnic, racial, and religious communities.
"It has been a women's task throughout history to go on believing in life when there was almost no hope. If we are united we may be able to produce a world in which our children and other people's children can be safe."
- Margaret Mead
According to Joni Seager's State of Women in the World Atlas, in 1997 Internationally there is a regrettable lack of leadership development opportunities for women. Clearly, women are in need of programs that can train and empower them to speak for themselves and take on leadership roles in their community and beyond. Seeking Common Ground believes that women have the power to effect change within their homes and communities, and that they have a crucial role in building peaceful communities.
Participants represent Americans, Israelis, and Palestinian's from the United States, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. They represent Christians, Muslims, Jews and other's from diverse racial, ethnic, socio-economic, political and religious backgrounds. During the program participants are integrated in cabin groups, communication workshops, discussion groups, and as partners in creative projects. Many of the participants have never met one from the other side, and the opportunity to express themselves and be understood by their enemy is transformative.
These experiences begin to break down walls that lead to hate, racism, and often violence. While learning skills to talk about conflict, the young women and men also build self-esteem and leadership skills , and together they begin to create a vision for a peaceful future.
A past participant wrote, "…When I first met the Israelis I thought of them as an enemy and I was afraid to ask why I think that way, but during the program I dared to ask why, and found no answer beside that it was our societies and history books that taught us to be enemies. By the end of the program, I discovered that the society is not always a good teacher, and books are not wider than the human heart."
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