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"Rarely does a project of any kind live up to its stated goals. The Compassionate Listening Project is an amazing exception. The experience provided access to people few ever get to meet and learn from. I learned more in two weeks than I have learned in ten years!"

Israel and Palestine: Journey to the Heart with Leah Green and Yael Petretti
October 28 - November 9, 2008.

Compassionate Listening is based on a simple yet profound formula for the resolution of conflict: adversaries giving the gift of listening. To help reconcile conflicting parties, we must have the ability to understand the suffering of all sides.

On this basis, TCLP founder Leah Green has been leading delegations to Israel and Palestine since 1990. Journeys begin in Jerusalem with an intensive training in Compassionate Listening. We then practice with a wide spectrum of Israelis and Palestinians - seeking the humanity of each person we encounter, while practicing our craft of listening and speaking from the heart. Through our daily practice in the field and our group sessions, participants come away with a deepened understanding of Compassionate Listening, a powerful skill set for peace-building in our families, communities, and in all conflict situations.

Leah Green and Maha El-Taji, Jewish-Palestinian co-facilitators, 2005

Sample Itinerary
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Testimonials
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Who Can Participate: Delegations are limited to 20 participants. We seek participants who have a genuine interest in the experience, hopes, dreams and suffering of all Israelis and Palestinians. Our participants have come from every walk of life, and have ranged in age from 15 to 82 years of age. Couples and families are welcome. We welcome and honor participation of individuals from all nations and backgrounds.

Accommodations: We typically spend time based in a beautiful convent located within the walls of Jerusalem's magnificent Old City, in homes/hotels in the West Bank and time in the Galilee/North. Each trip is unique - itineraries are available two to four weeks before each trip.

Orientation/training: We begin in Jerusalem with a 1-day training in Compassionate Listening. Our group continues to meet on a regular basis throughout each trip to reflect on our experience and deepen in our understanding and practice of this powerful reconciliation tool.

Project Support: This project is guided and supported by several Israeli and Palestinian leaders actively involved in reconciliation work. They assist with project development and with our daily itinerary. Some have an active role in our delegation.

Wall Art - West Bank

Fundraising/Financial Assistance: Many of our participants successfully raise all of their trip expenses. We encourage participants to seek funding within their own communities. If you are a member of a synagogue, mosque, church, peace group, academic community or other organization, we suggest that you seek sponsorship from your local community. This will allow a wider number of people to become invested in the project and supportive of your experience. You might consider working together on a fundraising event. We also encourage you to request support from your network of family and friends - people often express tremendous gratitude for giving them a meaningful way to make a difference in the world (we can send you a sample fund-raising letter).
Participants also use our film, Children of Abraham, for their fundraising efforts - successful with both private and public screenings.

Reservations: To secure your spot on a trip, please send your $300 deposit along with your completed trip registration, or use our secure online-registration with pay pal.

Payment: The cost for the October 2008 delegation to Israel and Palestine is $2,600. Airfare is additional and purchased separately. We accept payment by check and credit card (additional 3% for credit card payment). Full trip payment is expected 90 days before the trip unless other arrangements are made with The Compassionate Listening Project.

What Your Trip Cost Includes: all accommodations based on double occupancy, with private bath and shower; breakfast and dinner daily; airport transfers (if traveling with the group) and ground transportation; trip leaders; guides; honoraria for Israeli and Palestinian speakers and hosts; Compassionate Listening training; and tips. Single rooms are available for an additional $300. If we are unable to provide a roommate, the single room supplement of $300 may apply.

Airline Tickets: For tickets purchased through our agent, participants may extend their stay on either end at no extra cost.

If you must cancel your trip, a cancellation fee will apply. Cancellations must be received in writing or by email. The following cancellation fees apply:

• 90 days or more: $300 will be retained;
• 30 - 90 days: 50% of the trip cost will be retained unless you find someone to take your place; *
• less than 30 days and "no-shows": we're sorry but we cannot provide any refund in this case due to the nonrefundable reservations we are locked into at this stage of the journey. *

No partial refunds will be granted for unused hotel rooms, meals, or other scheduled activities. Our trips are quoted as a package and credits are not given for unused portions.

If We Cancel a Trip: We reserve the right to cancel a trip due to dangerous political situations (we've never had to do this until now), or if we do not receive a minimum of 15 registrations (we've never had to do this either but you never know!). In such a case, we will refund your payments less $300 and you may apply $150 to any future delegation. If you have already purchased your ticket and we have to cancel the trip for any reason, airfare will be refunded according to the policy of the air carrier.

Travelers Insurance: We encourage participants to purchase travel insurance, which generally includes: trip cancellation, baggage, medical and/or emergency evacuation insurance. No one ever intends to cancel their trip; however, unforeseen circumstances can change travel plans. Baggage may be lost or damaged, and some medical insurance (including Medicare) will not provide coverage outside the U.S. For a modest price, protection can be provided for these and other concerns. Please check with a travel agent of your choice or there are many reputable companies on-line.

Bios - trip co-leaders:

Yael Petretti has a BA degree in International Relations from UC Berkeley. She lives in Israel where she worked for over twenty years as a tourist guide, facilitating encounters between her tourists and the various religious and ethnic groups who inhabit the Middle East: Bedouins, Jewish settlers, Druze villagers, Palestinians and Christians. During an eight-year stay in the United States from 1999-2007, Yael served as Executive Director of Promoting Enduring Peace, Inc. and trained as a Compassionate Listening facilitator, earning her certification in June 2006. She is now working to integrate Compassionate Listening techniques into Israeli/Palestinian peace and coexistence efforts, with a special emphasis on bringing Compassionate Listening into the schools: http://www.cl-middleeast.org.

Leah Green is founder and director of The Compassionate Listening Project. She holds an MA in Public Policy and completed her course work for an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Washington. Leah is internationally recognized as a leader in Jewish-Palestinian reconciliation, having led 21 citizen delegations to Jordan, Israel/Palestine, and Syria/Lebanon and produced three documentaries about the conflict: Speaking of Peace, Children of Abraham, and Crossing the Lines: Palestinians and Israelis Speak With The Compassionate Listening Project. In 2002, Leah co-founded the Jewish-German Compassionate Listening Project. Leah has taught Compassionate Listening in Israel and Palestine since 1999 and now teaches world-wide. Her work has been profiled in many books, including Gary Zukav's "Soul Stories", Susan Skog's "Peace In Our Lifetime", "Soul of Success: A Woman's Guide to Authentic Power" by Jennifer Hawthorne, and "Peace, Justice and Jews: Reclaiming Our Tradition." Leah is a 2003 recipient of the Yoga Journal's "Karma Yoga Award."