Reflections and Photo Gallery: Israel/Palestine Panel

The Israel/Palestine panel was moderated by GU Law Center professor, Dr. Carrie Menkel-Meadow, and featured esteemed speakers including:

• Sen. George Mitchell, President Obama's Former Special Envoy for Middle East Peace,  
• Aziz Abu Sarah,  Co-Executive Director of Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University, 
• Mr. John Marks, Founder of Search for Common Ground,
• Dr. Kiernan McEvoy, Professor of Law and Transitional Justice at Queens University Belfast 

Each of the panelists spoke from both a personal place and their individual professional journeys. Senator Mitchell emphasized the need for continued non-violent deliberations and the salience of diplomacy; Mr. Abu Sarah recounted his lost family members and the ability of the wider world to connect to a seemingly "far off problem" thanks to innovative information technologies; Mr. Marks  discussed the importance of intention and the inertia that comes with comfortableness, and Dr. McEvoy drew connections between comedy and peace building. All of the panelists agreed that the current situation is unsustainable but there are pockets of hope thanks to the growth of a grassroots nonviolent movement in both Israeli and Palestinian communities. Palestine is also at an historic crossroads with the impending vote at the U.N. General Assembly, which, while likely will be struck down in the Security Council by the U.S., has symbolic significance and is interlinked with the ongoing "Arab Spring". Some highlights from the conversation included:

"Parents everywhere have the same aspirations for their children." - Sen. Mitchell

"Israel is part of the Arab Spring. Israelis are beginning to tell their government that, 'yes we wanted a state and got one but this is not the state we wanted' and this has repercussions for Israel's relationship with Palestinians." - Mr. Abu Sarah

"Three key elements common to comedy and peace building are: linguistic dexterity, audience management and courage." - Dr. McEvoy

"The eight steps to surviving and succeeding in the field of peace building: 1) genuinely believe a resolution is possible, 2) displace gratification, 3) 80% is just showing up, 4) one becomes engaged and then truly sees what the possibilities are, 5) incremental visionary (go one-step-at-a-time, you can't change everything at once), 5) have a high tolerance for ambiguity, 6) practice aikido, and 8) have an intuitive touch (a sense of where you are)." - Mr. John Marks 

Dr. Moghaddam, director of the M.A. program in Conflict Resolution, welcomes everyone.

Georgetown University President, Jack DeGoia, offers opening remarks to a diverse audience of students, faculty, and practitioners. 

Students, including Monica Curca and James Orre of Brandeis University, listen to panelists share their expertise and analysis on the future of  peace in the Middle East.

Professor Carrie Menkel-Meadow introduces Senator George Mitchell, the key note speaker for the conference, who reflected on his experiences in Northern Ireland and Palestine. 

Panelists from left to right: John Marks, Sen. George Mitchell, Aziz Abu Sarah and Kiernan McEvoy.

John Marks, founder of Search for Common Ground - one of the world's foremost grassroots peace building organizations - offered an 8-step "how to" guide to students for their future careers in conflict zones while Sen. Mitchell recounted personal anecdotes and what drove him to succeed in negotiating the Good Friday Accord. 

M.A. candidate Rebeccah Ratner (right) and recent M.A. graduate Rhea Vance-Cheng take notes during the panel discussion.

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