OTISFIELD | Over 350 young leaders and educators from communities divided by conflict will attend the Seeds of Peace Camp program in Otisfield (Maine) this summer.
When they graduate, they will join a community of nearly 6,400 alumni in 27 countries leading change in extraordinary ways as students in schools and colleges, and as professionals such as journalists, policy advisors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, educators, and artists.
On July 2, 181 Israeli, Palestinian, Jordanian, Egyptian, Indian, Pakistani, and American youth and educators will open the 25th summer of the Camp with a flagraising ceremony and inaugurate three weeks of dialogue, leadership development, and relationship-building across lines of conflict.
A second session of the Camp beginning late July will bring together 165 youth from Maine, Syracuse (New York), Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City.
These American campers will engage in a program that fosters self-reflection, allowing them to acknowledge and move beyond the stereotypes, prejudices, and mistrust of others and difference as a first step to tackling tensions within their schools and communities. These include issues ranging from race and racism to immigration, policing, bullying, poverty, and education policy.
Over the past 24 years, the Seeds of Peace Camp has graduated thousands of young leaders and educators from communities divided by conflict as part of Seeds of Peace’s mission to inspire and cultivate new generations of leaders uniquely positioned to accelerate social, economic, and political changes essential for peace.
“Our mission to inspire and cultivate new generations of leaders is more relevant than ever before,” says Seeds of Peace Executive Director Leslie Lewin. “Our alumni are uniquely positioned to transform conflict in profound and innovative ways.”
Media interested in covering the July 2 Flagraising Ceremony or visiting Camp this summer should contact Seeds of Peace Director of Communications Huberta von Voss-Wittig at huberta@seedsofpeace.org.
2017 Camp dates
Middle East and South Asia (Session 1): June 30-July 23
United States (Session 2): July 29-August 13
For 25 years, Seeds of Peace has inspired and cultivated new generations of global leaders in communities divided by conflict. We equip them with the skills and relationships they need to accelerate social, economic, and political changes essential to peace.