Feel Good Friday - Alliance for Middle East Peace

With news of the recent terrorist attack on Israel and the ensuing violence in the Gaza Strip, it’s difficult to feel hopeful about the state of the world. That’s the reason I started posting a Feel Good Friday blog 11 years ago. To remind myself that at the same time terrible things are happening, there are also people and organizations working to make a positive impact. This week, I’m highlighting the Alliance for Middle East Peace.

Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Washington D.C. the Alliance for Middle East Peace (ALLMEP) is a coalition of over 170 organizations, and tens of thousands of individuals. Their vision is “a Middle East in which its community of Palestinian and Israeli peace builders lead their societies toward and beyond a sustainable peace.” Many of the ALLMEP member organizations have issued statements about the current situation, opposing the violence and committing to an Israeli/Palestinian partnership to achieve peace and equality.

When not in a time of immediate crisis, ALLMEP amplifies the voices and impact of their member organizations by sustaining and scaling the work being done in support of peace. Some of that work is focused on capacity building and training on topics such digital media, grant writing, monitoring and evaluation. Another big portion of the work is around global advocacy and fundraising. 

ALLMEP is working with governments around the world to create an International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace, and has already secured financial commitment from the United Kingdom and United States. This is modeled after the International Fund for Ireland, which was used to make peace building investments in Northern Ireland.

An example of groups that receive funding from ALLMEP include: The Parents Circle, a group of Palestinian and Israeli parents whose children have been killed, now working together for peace; Hand in Hand, bilingual schools where Jewish and Arab children learn together; and Olive Oil Without Borders, a collaborative economic initiative among olive oil farming communities in Israel and the West Bank. Learn more about those organizations in this short video.

If you’d like to support organizations like those above and see peace in the Middle East, supporting ALLMEP is an actionable step you can take. Make a donation and amplify their message on social media. Follow the ALLMEP Facebook page and subscribe to their YouTube channel.

Feel Good Friday - EcoPeace Middle East

Another Feel Good Friday from Jordan, another post about a local organization. This time - EcoPeace Middle East.

With offices in Amman, Ramallah and Tel-Aviv, EcoPeace Middle East is "a unique organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli environmentalists." Founded in 1994, their primary objective is "the promotion of cooperative efforts to protect our shared environmental heritage."

The organization was formed because there are many shared resources, such as the Jordan River Basin, Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea that require regional cooperation in order to maintain and preserve. EcoPeace approaches this by hiring local researchers from Jordan, Palestine and Israel then identifying the root cause of the problem and developing a common vision of how the researchers can influence decision makers, the media and the general public in their respective countries.

EcoPeace uses both bottoms up and top down approaches and covers themes related to geographical context, socio-economic projects and climate change.

Bottoms up projects include Good Water Neighbors, a way to involve local communities in solving regional water issues, and an eco center where locals and tourists can learn about and experience the shared environment.

Top down projects are based on research, publication of policy briefs and events to focus each country on advancing policy recommendations. You can read details about all of the ongoing, active projects here.

If you'd like to support the work being done by EcoPeace Middle East you can make a donation and spread the word on social media by liking their Facebook page and following them on Twitter @EcoPeaceME

Next stop, Egypt!