TWO-DAY YOUTH LEADERSHIP RETREAT IN NAZARETH: Israeli and Palestinian teens explore peacebuilding pr

During late March, JPB brought together 14 youth from across Israel for an overnight retreat in the Old City of Nazareth. For two days, the teens participated in workshops, dialogues, heard from guest speakers, and toured around Nazareth, visiting the White Mosque, Christ Anglican Church, and a Biblical-era synagogue. The retreat centered around exploring different practices of peacebuilding, with youth examining their own practices and those of other peacebuilders working in the field. On Friday, the teens developed friendships, enjoyed delicious kanafe and Arab foods, and welcomed in Shabbat. On Saturday, after a workshop on personal narratives and a tour of the city's different holy sites, JPB was joined by its new partner, Solutions Not Sides (SNS), who brought two Israeli and Palestinian speakers to discuss their experience of peacebuilding in the Holy Land. A powerful dialogue unfolded between the speakers and youth participants, leaving everyone with an enhanced perspective and new insight into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. With strong friendships formed in such a short amount of time, the teens were sad to leave the retreat but happy to have made new connections with other Arabs and Jews committed to peace in the Holy Land.