In March 2016, Seeds of Peace convened “The Mic and Pen,” a musical initiative that included a day of dialogue for a diverse assembly of musicians, music producers, music educators, film makers, and other artists, along with an evening jam session at Yafo Creative in Jaffa.
The work of peace is the work of generations. Education and culture play a critical role in this work over the long haul. For more than 20 years, Seeds of Peace has been building a community of educators—formal and informal, in the arts and the public sphere— working to advance the prospects for peace in regions of conflict even in the most difficult conditions.
As the political situation has deteriorated, those involved at the intersection of music, the visual arts and theater have continued to imagine and work for a more humane, more just future. In response to this energy on the ground, in the summer of 2012 Seeds of Peace offered a special two week course, “Expressive Arts; Educational Transformations,” at the International Camp in Otisfield, Maine. The culmination of this course included a performance of music, theater, poetry and visual art. This course then laid the foundation for a set of programs, including workshops for educators, youth art festivals, a book, a film and a musical album
In the midst of a difficult situation, we are exploring how to effectively inspire expression, dialogue, meaningful and productive conflict, respect, understanding, and even hope, through the arts. We are exploring both how to integrate the arts into education and how to educate, in the deepest sense, through the arts–how to amplify the voices of sanity, of humanity, of justice and yes, even of peace.
PROGRAM PHOTOS