The plan has two parts: (1) Development of the Kyle Harty Strang Leadership Program, an ongoing program and partnership between Seeking Common Ground and Berkeley High School’s CAS Program; and (2) A 2011 Trip to the Middle East for the first cadre of teen leaders. Twenty students and two CAS faculty will participate in the intensive leadership program and trip. Participants will engage in a series of leadership development and conflict resolution activities, conducted by Israeli, Palestinian, and American teen alumni of the SCG program. Leadership development will take place from November through March 2011, and will help participants learn about the Middle East conflict and related issues, as well as build skills and dispositions that promote listening, respectful discourse, and abilities to transform antagonistic relationships into partnerships. Leadership development activities will be designed specifically for the Berkeley High School students and their own experiences around race, ethnicity, and social class. In April 2011 the group will go on a 10-day trip to the Middle East, similar to the recent SCG Middle East Encounter Trip. On that trip the group spent time in the south, north, and center of the region. They also met with representatives from the Bereaved Parents Circle, Combatants for Peace, Breaking the Silence, and the Community Action Center. Israeli and Palestinian past participants helped plan the trip, served as local guides, and arranged incredible and welcoming host stays in Isifiyeh and Kibbutz Einat. Participants would have home stays and meet with teens like them who are struggling with/working through conflict.
