Environmental Cooperation as a Tool for Building Peace: Israel and the Palestinians

The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies (AIES) is a unique higher education institution
based on an Israeli Kibbutz (communal agricultural collective) which aims to nurture a new core of regional leaders working for the advancement of real peace through the management of a better environment.

For over ten years the institute has been teaching environmental studies to undergraduate and postgraduate students from all over the Middle East and the world featuring interdisciplinary courses such as socio-cultural studies as it pertains to environmental studies.

The Arava Institute has an explicit aim of forging the necessary personal and academic relationships for long-term cooperation in the field of environment.  All students participate in the Peacebuilding and Environmental Leadership Seminars.  The Arava Institute aims and dream is that the future Environmental Ministers for Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and Jordan will all be graduates of the Arava Institute programs.

Ilana Meallem (an Israeli Jew) and Muttasim Abu El Hawa (a Palestinian Moslem) graduated from the AIES program in 2004 and have remained active within the framework of the Alumni Network ever since. In a joint presentation they will present the AIES model whilst sharing their own incredible stories of personal and professional transformation.  They are working together to build a culture of peace and a sustainable environment for the Middle East.

Muttasim is presently working for Israel-Palestine Center for Research and Information (IPCRI) as the Project Coordinator of the Water and Environment Department. Ilana is currently working with the Bedouin Indigenous Arab population of the Negev on developing Biogas as a renewable source of energy for cooking, lighting, heating and electricity generation in villages lacking access to municipal services. Her work also includes the development of a training program for Bedouin Women Environmental Health Activists.

When: Friday 11th July 2008
Time: 12-2pm
Where: 'Eats' Suite, Level 1, Building P, Victoria University, Footscray Park (Melways 2007 Ref: 42 C2)

RSVP: Wednesday 9th July 2008
Sue Butterworth
Phone: +61 (3) 9919 5478
Fax: +61 (3) 9919 5479
Email: sue.butterworth@vu.edu.au