A visit to Seeds of Peace

Every day should start with a greeting from Dindy. (Dindy is an all-round Seeds of Peace champion and was our expert and exceptionally lovely chaperone while we were there.) When we arrived at camp, a little fuggy from our journey, she greeted and hugged each of us as if we were old friends.

After an orientation session where we walked around the camp, admiring how beautiful and calm a space it was, we sat down to learn more about Seeds of Peace.

We already knew that they had a big mission: to inspire and cultivate new generations of leaders to transform conflict and build peace. But until our visit, we couldn’t quite put our finger on what this meant, or how they might go about trying to ‘build peace’.

However, as we sat – rapt and listening to some of the children, some of the returning seeds and some of the counselors and fellows – we were completely struck by the enormous wisdom and maturity that was being generated and nurtured at the camp and in Seeds of Peace.

From chatting with many of the kids, it was clear that this camp (which brings together roughly 400 teens and educators from Israel, Palestine, India, Pakistan, Jordan, America, Egypt for three weeks of facilitated dialogue sessions) teaches the children to respect and accept one another; to find their own voices; to listen without agenda; to resolve conflicts through dialogue; and ultimately, to break down barriers. The process that these kids go through – sleeping, eating, playing, and talking with ‘the other’ – is designed to encourage them to consider things from a different angle. It forces them to see ‘the other’ as a human, to engage and empathise.

Many of the seeds that had taken part in the camp years previously, shared with us what they had appreciated about their experience, and whether it was Will, or Daniella, or Ashraf or Mayanne – there was so much to learn from. Everyone was so alive, so thoughtful and somehow so centered in the middle of the conflicts that they live with every day. There was something common in everyone’s eyes – an awareness and determination.

Seeds of Peace run this camp because they believe that developing respect and dignity for others is a precondition for peace. And this was the most powerful takeaway for us as a team. This camp and Seeds of Peace are without doubt fostering more tolerance and peace in society by arming smart children with compassion, kindness, and justice, and encouraging them to build meaningful relationships across lines of conflict. Is there any more important work that needs to be done now?

We were utterly humbled by the entire experience, and so very grateful to all the children who kindly accepted our invitation to tie rakhis on each other – as a symbol of protection. For us, this is an incredibly powerful gesture, with great significance.

After the few days we spent there, each of us left harbouring thoughts of giving up our jobs and going to work for Seeds of Peace!

Thank you so much Dindy, Leslie and everyone who chatted to us, for allowing us to see a little of your experience. We cherished every interaction with every one of you.