YOCOPAS
CROSSING BORDERS
THE JERUSALEM PROJECT
We seek to change the reality of the Israeli -Palestinian conflict by bringing together youth leaders from Israel, Palestine and the world to incubate mutual understanding, social entrepreneurship and collaborative action.
YOCOPAS is an Israeli-Palestinian-international action based youth leadership movement which aspires to be an incubator for local change makers and social initiatives which will positively influence the reality of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
We believe in action-based dialogue and collaborative, practical action of passionate youth leaders from Palestine, Israel and the rest of the world as a way to change the reality of the conflict and improve the state of communities which are influenced by it.
We provide bright, young leaders from Israel, Palestine and the world, who seek to change the reality of the region, with the platform and tools to become local change makers.
We do it through an annual conference, weekend seminars and a leadership program in development.
JERUSALEM PROJECT WAS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE GENERIOUS CONTRIBUTION OF THE APPLEBAUM FOUNDATION COMPASS FUND
This year, the EMIS Project topic that was chosen was Jerusalem.
Leaving academics aside, all EMIS staff and students packed their bags and set out to an investigatory mission in Jerusalem for three days. The students were split into 12 groups, each exploring a different aspect of Jerusalem’s complexity – the aspects explored were: civic status, religion, arts, holy places, political views, urban planning, sovereignty, economic development, education, borders, municipality, and the green line. These investigations were aimed to broaden the horizons of thinking and the understanding of the many different faces of Jerusalem.
The first day was spent touring the different sites of the city, and attending a panel in which an Israeli and a Palestinian representative held a political discussion about Jerusalem on stage, and answered questions asked by the students. The second day was wholly dedicated to the 12 group investigations conducted by the EMISers, that spent the day walking around the city, mingling with locals, and hearing lectures from professionals in Jerusalemite firms and the Hebrew University. All the students regrouped in the evening and were addressed by a Jerusalem Venture Partners executive about the economic development in the city and by the Office of the Quartet Chief of Staff on the political involvement of the Quartet in the region. On the third day, the students underwent a problem-based discussion workshop in the Eucalyptus restaurant and the different investigation groups presented their experiences from the previous day following a grand Middle Eastern meal. Tired and satisfied, the staff and students boarded the buses for the last time and returned to EMIS, satisfied and enlightened by the magic of the holiest city in the World.
CROSSING BORDERS
Once a year comes a week where the whole school embarks on an adventure in the most exciting places in Israel. This year, EMIS is going on a journey around the borders of Israel, the limits of our lives and the limits of our minds. Borders week is a project week where the whole school divides into the different 5 borders around Israel: Lebanon, Syria, Jordan Gaza and the West Bank. For 2 days, the groups explore political, economic and social aspects of the borders, and of the relationships between Israel and its neighbors. The students are given the leadership to determine what they want to see. whether it is talking to UN peacekeepers in the Syrian border or meditating on the border with Gaza, Borders week ensures a shaking experience where every student gets the opportunity to understand the complex dynamics of the Middle East.