Non-Funded
The Good Neighbours Jerusalem Project: creating a model for positive Israeli-Palestinian relations, based on shared interests and a mixed community.
The project seeks to reduce tension between Palestinians and Israelis along East and West Jerusalem, and create a model for positive Israeli-Palestinian relations, based on shared interests and a mixed community.
Target population
1000 direct beneficiaries
Location
Abu-Tor/Al-Thuri and East Talpiot/Zur Baher, Jerusalem
Duration
6 Months
Budget
£100,000
Partners involved
- The Jerusalem Foundation
Summary
The Good Neighbors Jerusalem model is built on partnerships between Community Councils and active residents in order to identify common needs and interests and work together to achieve concrete solutions that can strengthen joint initiatives in Abu-Tor/Al-Thuri and East Talpiot/Zur Baher.
The different languages, cultures, religion and ideological divides severely
limited social interactions led to misunderstandings. The programme includes weekly Language Café and courses offered in Hebrew and Arabic, joint youth soccer teams ages 6 and above, the Abu Tours educational tourism project, Abu Job economic developments projects including the online Directory of Local Services and a new project for employment readiness training and placement project with internships in the business, nonprofit and municipal bodies, a trilingual street library with a community garden.
For instance, The Talking together program had 30 language lessons and 7 joint meetings throughout the project. Also an advanced Arabic class was held throughout the year every week about 30 sessions. About 30 women (half from the neighborhood and half from the village) acquired basic conversational skills and got to know each other personally and culturally. This recognition was significant for learning, creating trust in change and motivation to continue
participating in a joint activity in the future.
The third cycle incubator program trained 12 women (5 Jewish and 7 Arab) for business and social entrepreneurship. After the meeting of the grants committee, 4 grants were awarded to two entrepreneurial couples (one from the village and one from the neighborhood) and two female entrepreneurs.
Other events were aimed at young families from the village and the neighborhood and in each of them about 80 mothers and children participated (about 30 from the village and 50 from the neighborhood). These events were a key strategic point for reaching a new target audience – Jebel women, with the goal being to add women from Jebel to the active resident team that leads the events at the station.
Goals
- Bring together Palestinian and Israeli residents of the Jerusalem neighbourhoods to create a model of shared civil society, mutual understanding and good neighbourly relations.
- Improve the overall atmosphere, resident involvement and empowerment and neighbourhood safety by fostering joint meaningful activities for families, women and youth.
- To disseminate this and other elements of the Good Neighbors Project as a model for replication in other Jerusalem neighbourhoods and in Israeli’s cities with mixed Jewish Arab populations.
