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Just Vision is a nonprofit organization that informs local and international audiences about under-documented Palestinian and Israeli joint civilian efforts to resolve the conflict nonviolently. Using media and educational tools, we raise awareness in order to encourage civic participation in grassroots peace building.

At Just Vision, we believe in the value of cooperative Palestinian and Israeli efforts to build a sustainable, free and safe future for all, and the importance of media coverage to raise awareness of these courageous endeavors.   We also believe that there is no silver bullet to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; a lasting solution will require participation from everyone in every sector. Civil society therefore has a significant role to play in catalyzing a diplomatic resolution to the conflict. 

Just Vision researches and documents the range of Palestinian-Israeli non-violent initiatives to end the conflict.  We create multimedia – including documentary film and the Online Network for Peace at www.justvision.org – to highlight Palestinians and Israelis who are adopting strategic methods to end the bloodshed and set the stage for a diplomatic resolution.  We seek to empower peace builders to become more visible, valued and effective in their work; to challenge stereotypes; to encourage participation among Arab, American, Palestinian and Israeli audiences in peace building; and to resource community leaders and organizations so that they can amplify the message of non-violence and civic participation in conflict resolution efforts.

Our goal is to expose Israelis, Palestinians, broader Arab and American audiences to non-violent civic peace builders from both sides of the conflict who are working together to foster understanding and trust.  Through education, we seek to inspire those who are not yet involved to explore and take part in the range of sectors in which conflict resolution work is happening. 

Who We Reach

Just Vision works alongside hundreds of grassroots organizations in North America and the Middle East to provide them with materials about Palestinian and Israeli civic peace builders.  We bring our materials to students, teachers, community and NGO leaders, journalists, university groups and others through community centers and schools, youth movements, the media, the Internet, and film festivals. 

Why Just Vision?

Today’s media provides far more attention to top-down political, military and militant developments than to civilians’ concerns and efforts in resolving the conflict. This creates a skewed perception of the region and the people living in it. The focus on politicians creates the erroneous impression – not only among Israelis and Palestinians, but among the world at large - that only politicians have a role to play. 

Just Vision’s multi-media programs seek to fill in the gap left by the mainstream broadcasters and journalists by documenting and disseminating the stories of crucial peace building initiatives happening on the ground. In so doing, we provide Israeli, Palestinian and American educators and community leaders with non-partisan digital, educational resources to teach about this conflict in constructive, responsible and compelling ways. 

Our materials offer insight into perspectives from the two sides and create connection, understanding, empathy and hope – critical elements to the long-term implementation of or adherence to any diplomatic process. In recognition of our approach, we received a letter of support from the Israeli Ministry of Education for our Classroom Screening Guide and documentary film.

Fulfilling Our Mission
 
Since our launch, we have created a media and educational platform for Palestinian and Israeli civic leaders that has connected them to high profile print and broadcast outlets, community leaders and networks of supporters around the world. In addition, we have engaged hundreds of educators, students and community leaders in the U.S., Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories to raise awareness about, and spark engagement in, the range of peace building initiatives happening today. 

Reaching Millions through Multi-Media - Just Vision has generated media coverage about the issue of non-violent civic peace building in outlets ranging from the Wall Street Journal to Al Jazeera, to the Jerusalem Post, Oprah.com and Yediot Ahronot.

Just Vision produced and released a feature documentary, Encounter Point, about Palestinian and Israeli civilians working to end the conflict. Since its premiere in 2006 to critical acclaim at the Tribeca Film Festival, the film has screened in over 200 cities across the U.S., the Middle East and around the world. Now available in Hebrew, English, Arabic, French, Spanish and Portuguese, Encounter Point has reached millions through television broadcast and continues to be licensed to channels worldwide. Encounter Point was screened twice in its entirety on Al Arabiya, one of the largest satellite television stations in the Arab world, reaching 130 million people. Immediately following the screening, Al Arabiya also broadcast a one-hour discussion, organized by Just Vision, showcasing two peace builders – non-violence activist and Parents Circle-Families Forum member, Ali Abu Awwad, alongside an Israeli member of Combatants for Peace.

The film has opened hundreds of doors to the film subjects, empowering them to reach audiences worldwide and to spread their message of hope and reconciliation. Thanks to Encounter Point, film subjects have been able to access influential figures on this issue ranging from the Jordanian Royal Family to the Spanish and Canadian Parliaments, from Bishop Desmond Tutu to celebrities and local political leaders. Our media and outreach has led to the unlikeliest of meetings.

Enriching the Field through Research and Documentation – Just Vision’s website is a rich living history archive featuring Portraits of civilians who work to stem hatred, and promote reconciliation, understanding and non-violence among Israeli and Palestinian constituencies. The Portraits (in English, Hebrew and Arabic) focus on the experiences of a diverse range of civic leaders, exploring their successes, challenges and how they incorporate these lessons into their work. Portraits provide models of hope and engagement, allowing educators, community leaders and NGOs to understand the complex landscape in which peace building is taking place. The website approaches the conflict through the lens of peacemakers, so novices and experts alike can learn about the multiple narratives of the conflict in dynamic, unbigoted ways.

Just Vision in the Community – Just Vision consistently reaches out to students, educators, journalists and persons of influence. We have engaged hundreds of people through workshops, presentations and dialogues that aim to spark involvement by providing the information, role models, inspiration and encouragement necessary to take part in non-violent civic peace building. These presentations shed light on the nuanced and complex aspects of this conflict and the people working to end it. Our materials support rich discussions about issues related to the conflict, such as bereavement, civic responsibility, obstacles and challenges and community responses to peace work. They also move people to seek out additional information and to get involved.

Organizations with which we have worked in the U.S. include the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education, the U.S. Institute for Peace, Interfaith Youth Core, the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University, the Middle Eastern Studies Association, the Unitarian Universalists, rabbinical students from every Jewish denomination, and many more. In Israeli society, we have facilitated workshops and screenings for the largest Israeli youth movement – Tnuat Hamoshavim, the Institute for Democratic Education and the Institute for Israel-Palestine Research and Information, among others. In Palestinian society, we are working through community centers in villages and refugee camps to reach leaders and youth with our materials as well as NGOs such as Al Tariq and Salam Society.

Just Vision reaches out to people with the power to make a difference on this issue. From a member of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on the Middle East, to the United Nations and the World Bank, Just Vision works to encourage individuals from across the political spectrum and the globe to lend their public support to non-violent civilian-led peace-building initiatives. We have received a letter of support from the Israeli Education Ministry endorsing the use of our materials in Israeli classrooms.

New Directions in Raising Awareness about Civic Peace builders

In addition to our ongoing efforts to research and document Israeli and Palestinian civic peace building initiatives, we are working on several new projects: 

Building Upon Our Extensive Online Tools - We are re-conceptualizing and redesigning our website to include new areas of functionality, as well as a Learning Center, a Media Center, a Press section, a revamped Homepage, and 'What You Can Do' section. The Learning Center will enable students, facilitators and educators to find aggregated, fact-checked, footnoted and translated resources. It will include links to primary source materials, timelines, a glossary, Portraits of peace builders, thematic highlights and media. Also, the Center will include searchable, modular lessons for high school teachers and college educators that they will be able to adapt for their own needs.

The Media Center will house a range of multi-media pieces, including excerpts of our new film and relevant screening information for film festivals and journalists. It will feature scenes from Encounter Point, audio and video clips and photographs and Screening and Classroom Guides. This marks the first time that all of this material will be available in one place on www.justvision.org. Users will be able to search by type of media, theme and name of subject or organization. Our aim is to make all of our media as accessible as possible to journalists, educators and community leaders in order to broaden awareness about Israeli and Palestinian peace workers.
 
New Film and Outreach Campaign - Just Vision is producing a timely and powerful new film, "Budrus Has A Hammer" (working title):

A Palestinian community organizer unites all Palestinian political factions along with Israelis in a Gandhian struggle to save his village, unleashing a non-violent movement that is still gaining ground today. In a 70-minute, action-filled documentary featuring exclusive archival footage of this 5-year movement from its infancy, Budrus Has A Hammer will inspire, charm and challenge audiences worldwide.

Budrus Has A Hammer is emerging at precisely a time when the world is hungering not only for signs of hope in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but for concrete proof that change is possible through non-violence. We intend to put the weight of our contacts and resources behind Budrus Has A Hammer, as we strongly believe that it is a story that simply must be told. The film will be widely distributed to ensure that it is seen on a massive scale – by millions of television viewers, as well as by teachers, students, community centers, religious leaders, refugee camp residents and others. We are committed to developing accompanying educational materials and websites to ensure that our films are seen, appreciated, and incorporated into pedagogical and community settings. We are also committed to getting our films into the hands of the people with the power to make a difference.

New Educational and Training Initiatives - In the U.S., we are focusing our outreach on four target cities with large concentrations of Arab, Jewish and Muslim communities (Washington DC, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit), where we are introducing facilitators, teachers, youth organizers and interfaith leaders to our materials, including our Classroom and Community screening guides, website and films,

We will continue to conduct outreach to ensure that Encounter Point and an accompanying Hebrew Classroom Screening Guide are incorporated into Israeli classrooms, community centers and extra-curricular youth programming. Likewise, we will continue to bring Encounter Point and accompanying Arabic Screening Guide to villages, refugee camps and community centers in Palestinian society. We will convene workshops for facilitators and teachers to publicize our resources and to guide them through ways of using them. Once available, we will do the same with Budrus Has A Hammer, which we anticipate will be in high demand in Palestinian communities.

Just Vision has been conducting "Best Practices" facilitation workshops for Jewish, Arab, Muslim, Christian and secular facilitators in the U.S. who tackle the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in order to share resources, methodologies and accrued wisdom. Last year, we also co-convened non-violence best practices workshops in Ramallah and Bethlehem with the International Center for Non-Violent Conflict and convened a Best Practices facilitation workshop in partnership with Al-Tariq. We plan to continue these workshops in 2009, with an educator's workshop in Israel, and a workshop in the West Bank for Palestinians interested in using Budrus Has A Hammer as an educational and organizing tool.

Organizational History and Capacity

Just Vision has earned a reputation for excellence, leadership and producing successful work on time and on budget, over the course of our nearly six-year history. We have been awarded multi-year, repeat funding from a range of national and international foundations, including the Nathan Cummings Foundation, Art Venture, and Ford Foundation-Cairo office. We were among 11 finalists in the Ashoka Entrepreneuring Peace competition, and we were awarded a Slingshot Fund grant. 

In addition to foundation and private grants, we receive revenues from screenings and speaking events, broadcast license fees and DVD sales. Given the urgency of the issue and its global relevance, as well as our steady growth over the last five years, we are confident that we will continue to garner ongoing and new sources of support.

We are based in Washington, DC and Jerusalem; we are non-partisan and religiously unaffiliated.

How You Can Help

Just Vision has grown since its inception in 2003 thanks to the generosity of hundreds of individual donors and small family foundations. Tax-deductible contributions can be made to Just Vision Inc. and sent to: Just Vision, 1616 P Street NW, Suite 340, Washington, D.C. 20036. For further information or to lend your support, contact info(at)justvision(dot)org.

Thank you for your interest in Just Vision.

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