The Elders

Gali Agnon

Gali Agnon is 21 and was born in Jerusalem. A dedicated peace activist, Gali has devised a method to market Palestinian organic produce in Israel, helping Palestinians who cannot enter Israel find a market there for their produce.

Shira Avni

Shira Avni is 28 years old. She is the head of community development at Beit Yehudit - The International Cultural Center for Youth (ICCY) in Emek Refaim. Raised in the settlement of Efrat, she is a community social worker, and currently lives in Jerusalem.

Anees Barghouthy

Anees is a 22-year-old student at Bir Zeit University where he studies media and political science. Anees is the host of a proactive TV show which targets Palestinian youth and address difficult problems. As a young Palestinian he thinks the world needs to understand that Palestinians don’t have minimum human rights. Email: aneeswal[at]hotmail.com

Zaher Bassioni

My name is Zaher Bassioni I am 26 years old, I am Palestinian, I was born in Lebanon, my family now lives in Gaza strip and I live in Ramallah. I studied civil engineering in Birzeit University and now I work as an outreach officer in Leaders Organization.

B'Tselem

B'Tselem - The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, was established in 1989 by a group of prominent academics, attorneys, journalists, and Knesset members. It endeavors to document and educate the Israeli public and policymakers about human rights violations in the Occupied Territories, combat the phenomenon of denial prevalent among the Israeli public, and help create a human rights culture in Israel. More information at http://www.btselem.org.

Sari Freitekh

Sari is a published (Arabic) writer holding a BA degree in Economics and French from the University of Houston in Texas.I am fluent in both English and Arabic and was appointed as a language specialist/ Teacher's Assistant at the University of Houston Modern and Classical Language Department. He helped coordinating at the Faisal Al Husseini Foundation for a brief period. Currently, he helps run the Jerusalem stone operation in the US (Arabesque Inspirations) and continues to write.

Shooky Galili

Shooky has been writing about technology in printed and online media since 1993. A blogging since 2003, Shooky has edited twelve books, three of which were about political corruption in Israel. Shooky is an online activist, who uses blogging and web marketing techniques to induce change. He lives in Tel-Aviv.

Lisa Goldman

Lisa is a freelance journalist and translator based in Tel Aviv. Her articles have been published in The Guardian, Jewish Daily Forward, Time Out Tel Aviv, The Jewish Quarterly, Yedioth Aharonoth and Tablet.org, amongst other publications. She is the author of City Guide: Tel Aviv, a glossy history and style guide to Tel Aviv. Her blog, www.lisagoldman.net, is frequently quoted and mentioned in the international media.

Zaina Abu Hamda

Zaina is an 18-year-old Palestinian girl who recently graduated from the Rosary School in Beit Hanini, Jerusalem. She will start her first year at Birzeit University where she will study business administration and marketing. She also loves to write and is a reporter for PAYALARA, a Palestinian youth organization which she has been involved with since she was 13. She has also volunteered in the Helen Keller Centre Camp for the visually impaired for two summers. Email: justme_withu[at]hotmail.com

Dina Kraft

Dina is a journalist based in Tel Aviv, covering Israeli and Palestinian politics and society. Her reporting has ranged from covering children caught in the crossfire of the conflict and the recent war in Gaza to solar technology, Bedouin genetic diseases and Israeli and Palestinian women dieting together. She currently writes for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, the New York Times and the Daily Telegraph.

Tal Madar

Tal Madar is 27 years old. She is the head of the Ihud Hahaklai (Farmer's Union) Youth Movement. She grew up in Bet Itshak, an agricultural village close to Netanya, and currently lives in Moshav Gdolim in the area. She is married to Yadin and mother to a one-year-old girl named Yuval.

Fahmi Manasra

Fahmi Manasra is a resident of Wadi Fukin village in the West Bank, and is a tour guide and hotelier active in ecological issues. He believes in dialogue, cultural exchange and peaceful activities.

Eman Mohammed

Ms. Eman Mohammed is a 21 year old female photojournalist based in Gaza city, and has a bachelor’s degree from the Islamic University of Gaza in journalism and public relations. She was nominated for the Joop Swart Masterclass – World press photo 2009. Her photography has been featured in several prominent international media publications. Additionally, she has worked as a freelance photojournalist with several organizations including the World Bank, Save the Children, UNFPA, MAP and others. She is also a blogger who is keen on portraying the positive potential of the Gaza Strip despite the harsh realities she relays to the world through her photography.

Raanan Paz

Raanan Paz is 26 years old. He grew up in Moshav Orot, near Ashdod, and served as a paratrooper in the Orev Brigade of the IDF. Raanan is an actor, playwright and musician. He lives in Tel Aviv.

Emily Schaeffer

Emily Schaeffer, a specialist on the Village of Bil'in, is a 31 year old American-Israeli human rights lawyer, based in Tel Aviv at the Michael Sfard Law Offices. For 10 years, Emily has advocated both in Israel and the US on behalf of social justice and human rights, including housing, health and gender-based rights, most recently focusing on the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

As both a member of the Israeli legal team representing Bil'in since 2006, and a participant in its joint non-violent resistance movement, Emily has represented Bil'in in numerous international fora, including on panels at human rights conferences in Europe and Africa. She recently toured Canada on a month-long speaking tour with Bil'in's Mohammed Al-Khatib.

Yoav Ben Simon

Yoav Ben Simon is 27 years old, and a PhD candidate in cognitive neuroscience. He was raised in Jerusalem and today lives in Tel Aviv.

Hani Zubida

Hani was born in Baghdad Iraq and raised in Israel. He has been a social and political activist for many years. Having defended his PhD at NYU in 2006, Hani currently teaches and researches extensively in the areas of Israeli electoral system, social-mobility in Israeli society, Israeli democracy, its socio-economic and political realms, the Middle East peace process and voting behavior theories and analysis.