[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9128]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    SEEDS OF PEACE 20TH ANNIVERSARY

 Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, today I wish to join with 
individuals across the world in recognizing the 20th anniversary of the 
founding of Seeds of Peace, an organization dedicated to the 
advancement of peace through understanding, reconciliation, acceptance, 
and coexistence among people, and established on the principle that 
long-term peace within or between nations can only be achieved with the 
emergence of a new generation of leaders who choose dialogue over 
violence.
  Seeds of Peace's first camp session in 1993 was a labor of love for 
the late founder and esteemed journalist, John Wallach. That summer, 
under the leadership of Wallach, Bobbie Gottschalk, and Timothy Wilson, 
Seeds of Peace hosted 46 Arab and Israeli teenagers at its first summer 
camp in my home State of Maine. Since that day, the organization has 
blossomed into a full-fledged leadership program, which spans 27 
countries with full staff in Amman, Gaza, Jerusalem, Kabul, Lahore, 
Mumbai, New York, Otisfield, Ramallah, and Tel Aviv.
  Today, for 3 weeks at a time, during the months of June, July, and 
August, on the beautiful shores of Pleasant Lake in Otisfield, ME, 
Seeds of Peace brings together young people and educators from areas 
immersed in civil conflict, war, and other political and social unrest, 
to learn about coexistence and conflict resolution at their 
international summer camp. Camp participants engage with one another in 
both guided coexistence sessions and typical summer camp activities, 
which expose the human face that lie behind ethnic, religious, and 
political differences.
  Now, under the acclaimed leadership of Leslie Lewin, Seeds of Peace 
has prepared over 5,000 alumni, known as ``Seeds,'' primarily from the 
Middle East, South Asia, the Balkans, and Cyprus, for roles of 
leadership by offering them not only the unmatched summer camp 
experience of sleeping next to, eating alongside, and swimming with 
those who are their alleged enemies, but also a robust and worthwhile 
slate of intensive, year-round programs encircling the globe, which are 
focused on further refining the skills learned and relationships built 
at camp.
  Seeds of Peace is a testament to the importance of conflict 
resolution and reconciliation programs as a tool for creating peace, 
and the program is indisputably making a difference in the lives of its 
Seeds each and every day. It is no surprise that Seeds of Peace is 
strongly supported by participating governments and many world leaders, 
and I urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing the organization's 
contributions to the advancement of peace--which all began with a 3 
week stint at a summer camp in Maine 20 years ago. Seeds of Peace 
provides a promise for a better future, and I enthusiastically welcome 
its continued efforts for years to come.

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