NEW YORK | Twenty Seeds of Peace supporters joined high-tech Israeli entrepreneur and peace advocate Yossi Vardi for a discussion over breakfast on December 2.
For over 40 years, Vardi has worked in both the public and private spheres as the CEO of TEKEM, Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Energy, and an advisor to the World Bank and UNDP. Vardi has also founded and built over 60 high-tech companies, driven by his vision that all sectors of Israeli society be included in the technology industry.
Vardi is one of the co-founders of Breaking the Impasse, a business-focused initiative to push for Israeli-Palestinian peace and a two-state solution. Breaking the Impasse urges political leaders to place the highest priority on working towards a peaceful end to the conflict. It also strives to amass domestic and international backing for the two states for two peoples solution.
Vardi spoke to Seeds of Peace supporters about the current state of Israeli leadership and the collapse of the US-led peace initiative. He stressed that successful peace processes are not exclusively dependent upon political leaders, but are also contingent on the overall political and social environment.
In a more domestic reflection, Vardi called attention to the new generation of Arab-Israelis in the technology sector and his advocacy for their full inclusion in the sector.
Speaker events like this provide opportunities for supporters to become better informed about the context in which Seeds of Peace works, as well as ways in which prominent figures are engaging in issues related to conflict and peace.