Givat Haviva Update 📫 Happy Jewish and Muslim New Year

From our Executive Director:

Dear Friends and Partners,
This month was a very significant one for Givat Haviva.
On the one hand, we fought against the Nation State Law that threatens to destroy the entire fabric of relations between Arabs and Jews in Israel. On the other hand, we succeeded in realizing two major accomplishments in the international arena and in the educational arena.
This month we were recognized as a consultative organization of the United Nations in the area of conflict resolution, education for a shared life and a common society amidst cultural differences. We are the first organization in Israel in this field to become part of the UN. We operate in a country that is recognized as a conflict state and not as a country that is known for its ability to connect people and resolve conflicts, which makes this a very considerable achievement.
In the area of education, after a process of nearly 3 years, we opened the first international high school for the development of young leadership for shared society and peace. Fifty-two students from 17 countries joined the Givat Haviva family as the school's first class. We received great support from the Ministry of Education, the Interior Ministry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and of course Havatzelet.
I congratulate everyone who worked so hard to reach this day, the staff and the school faculty.
The real work is just beginning, but Givat Haviva is already a different place. The school year opened with two schools on Givat Haviva’s campus - GHIS and the Sindiana - together with more than 450 students, of whom more than 100 are boarding at Givat Haviva.
The campus is renewed and invigorated with the influx of talented and eager new students, and our educational programming is growing even stronger.
This will indeed be a special school year!
Happy Jewish and Muslim New Year,

Yaniv Sagee
Givat Haviva Executive Director

To protest loudly
The times of Israel | September 2018
Givat Haviva Executive Director Yaniv Sagee responds to the Nation State Law.
Nothing prepared me for the moment when the populist political games of the Prime Minister and the coalition parties inflicted the racist Nationality Law on us, completely changing the picture. Read More...

ONLY JEWS CAN STOP THIS DISGRACE
The Jerusalem Post | Mohammad Darawshe | August 6, 2018
There is only an Israeli problem, and Israelis are the ones who will have to stand strong against the annihilation of democracy here. Read more...
<- Protests against the nation-state bill in Tel Aviv, July 14th, 2018. (photo credit: COURTESY STANDING TOGETHER)

Opening of the Givat Haviva International High School (GHIS)

53 Students from 17 countries around the world - Kosovo, Germany, Holland, Sudan, South Sudan, Armenia, Russia, the USA, Kazakhstan, Georgia, India, Austria, Canada, Liberia, Bulgaria, Tajikistan, the Palestinian Authority, and of course Israel - arrived for the opening of GHIS’ first school year. See pictures from the opening.

The Bara’em Hitech program gives promising Arab high school students a chance to start studying academic level computer science, paving the way for entry into the world of high tech. While the 2017-18 school year is wrapping up its summer semester, the first group of 2018-2019 have begun their Hebrew enrichment classes, to help them upgrade their spoken Hebrew and comprehension in preparation for the fall semester that will begin in October. This will help them both with their classes in the program and with their subsequent studies and in the workplace. The Hebrew courses for Bara’em Hitech students are based on Givat Haviva’s Hebrew Enrichment program, with additional content to strengthen the student’s technical vocabulary.

Women’s Empowerment
The first round of the course documenting women's stories is underway. The women are creating videos documenting their journey of getting to know each other, women’s life worlds, their families, their environment, the culture, daily life, and their hopes and dreams.

The International Day of Peace: 21 September 2018
Givat Haviva's Unit for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women invites you to a unique encounter with a group of women from Japan. The event will take place this Friday, September 21, at Kibbutz Ein Shemer, from 9:30 to 13:00. During the meeting we will distribute refreshments and pray together, and hear about their association's activities.
This is an opportunity to partner with amazing women and world-class women's energy. Participation is free but registration is required in advance, as the number of participants is limited.
please hurry to register here 👉 https://goo.gl/nRqYtA

Children Teaching Children:
Amidst preparations for the coming school year, the CTC program staff took time out for a gathering of the most recent group of Heart to Heart alumni and their families at the Kibbutz Barkai swimming pool following their return from Camp Shomria in Canada.

Almost all the families attended. It was clear that the participants formed close ties and the experience was powerful and meaningful to them. The parents and children told about the changes in them as a result of the CTC program and the Heart to Heart delegation. Both participants and parents spoke of being highly motivated to continue working for change and building a shared and egalitarian society. A team of parents was formed, which will be responsible for maintaining contact and conducting activities that include the parents.

Beneath the Lamp Post Festival
Intense preparations are already underway for the Collaborative Art Center’s biggest event of the year, the Beneath the Lamp Post Festival, a two-day regional art festival on the Givat Haviva Campus under the auspices of Givat Haviva’s Collaborative Art Center, the Menashe Regional Council, the Ministry of Culture and Sport, and sponsored as well by local Jewish and Arab businesses. The event will run for two nights and a day during the Sukkot holiday, and will include installations by dozens of Jewish and Arab artists from the region, and is free and open to the public. Thousands of Jewish and Arab families are expected to visit.