Economic/Environmental Resources
Nader Khatib
Water and Environmental Development Organization, Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ When I work towards preserving the Palestinian environment, I am primarily serving the Palestinian people. It is natural that the other side may indirectly benefit from our work. Any improvement in the environment on either side will have a positive effect on both sides, while deterioration in environmental conditions will harm us both as well. Air pollution in Israel eventually reaches the Palestinian Territories, and the cleaning up of the air in Tel Aviv and Hadera will let us breathe clean air in the West Bank. We work according to a Palestinian agenda. My priority is to serve my people and environment.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Yafit Gamila Biso
The Olive Tree
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ What I can say is that we make their lives hell. The trees are simply left there for all to see, testament to Israel's murderous policies. An olive tree feeds a child for a whole year and once you take it, he dies! Dies or becomes a terrorist. Don't ask later what made a twelve year-old child go and explode at a checkpoint. Don't ask where he came from.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Helmi Kittani
Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ In Bank HaPaolim, which operates in a very professional and business like manner, I aspired to work for economic development in the Arab sector. I wanted to use the bank's resources for the sake of the economic development of the Arab sector. I think the bank must not only be a commercial entity that gains money, but also contributes to the welfare of the community within which it operates. I think I was the first person that had the courage to say that the bank must act significantly for the sake of the economic development of the Arab sector. This approach is beneficial for the two sides. It will lead to more customers, larger turnover and more profits for the bank, and also to more businesses and a new level of business in the Arab sector.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Gidon Bromberg
EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ If you look at Sharon's plans for the West Bank, where he says that he is willing to give back 40% of the West Bank, that other 60% that he doesn't want to give back has strategic value, and much of it deals with water. Certainly all the areas on the western side [of the West Bank] deal with controlling water resources. The settlements were built with control of water resources in mind. The desire not to give back any of the Jordan Valley to Palestine is partly to have a barrier between Palestine and Jordan, but another big reason for it is in order not to share the waters of the River Jordan with Palestine. So water is a crucial aspect of the peace process.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Gidon Bromberg
EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ We focus on communities on either side of the Green Line or on either side of the border between Israel and Jordan, that share a water resource-a river, a stream, a wadi that runs through them. The communities utilize that common resource to try and better understand each other's reality-their water or environmental reality-but also to improve the environment they share and in the process build good neighborly relations. That's what peace is all about, being good neighbors.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Helmi Kittani
Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ In the beginning, the Center [for Arab-Jewish Economic Development] worked to encourage the establishment of joint businesses. I came and said that it would be very difficult to create joint businesses of Jews and Arabs if the economy of the Arab sector is very weak and the economy of the Jews is very strong. This gap makes it impossible to advance partnerships and cooperation. I said it is necessary to help to advance and to raise the level of economic development in the Arab sector and then you can develop true partnerships between the two sides. And so we began with the empowerment process of young Arabs, the human capital. Later we helped the Arab local authorities to develop the physical infrastructure. We said first you must begin with this approach and later you can move to the level of encouraging individual initiatives of Arab and Jewish businessmen.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Nader Khatib
Water and Environmental Development Organization, Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ These are [environmental] issues the Israelis can't solve alone, because the source of the problem is in Palestine. On the other hand Palestinians can’t solve them either because they don’t have the land in which to build a treatment plant. As a result of the attention of the local councils and the pressure they put on the governments, we reached an agreement.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Nader Khatib
Water and Environmental Development Organization, Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ Palestinians possess rights over water that they haven’t yet received. Palestine should have a basic role in regional development programs and receive its lawful share of the Jordan River water. In addition to the Dead Sea, we focus our efforts on the Jordan Valley between the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. We seek to draw attention to this area and to its historic and cultural richness. We are trying to win it the title of World Heritage Site as well. This area is important for us, Jordan and Israel, but the Jordan River is important for all the Christians in the world, partly due to Baptism sites located on it.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Yana Knopova
Coalition of Women For Peace
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ We think that whoever promotes the notion of a two-state solution holds a capitalist view. All the factories will move to Palestine, workers there will not have any social protection and will be used by the Israeli upper class, all the Palestinian-Israelis, Mizrachi people, and whoever works in the factories now will be left jobless. There is an upper class that benefits in Palestine too, but also in Israel. For me there is no view that furthers the existence of two states but an economic confederation. Economically speaking, we should be under joint jurisdiction, which would not threaten workers on both sides and would improve the status of workers in Palestine.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Yafit Gamila Biso
The Olive Tree
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ It's been very bad for us since the intifada began. The economic situation here in Israel has declined, in terms of tourism but also other things. We're tied to them in terms of tourism, but not only that, we're tied to them in every way. When the State of Israel doesn't permit the establishment of any factories in Palestine for people to work in then they're certain to infiltrate the border and come work here, so that the Israeli policeman will have work catching them and throwing them in jail. Let them establish factories there and be economically independent. I need them; the minute they have work there they won't be coming here, they won't infiltrate the border, they won't need us.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Itamar Shapira
Combatants for Peace
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Interview Highlights »
“ Because international audiences’ opinion potentially have financial importance, I think it’s important to convey the message to the world that this war can come to an end, that it isn’t a war centered on uncompromising religions that want to kill everyone, a holy war. That’s a common perception in Europe, as well as in Bush’s head. I also want to say that this has an end and that must begin with the strong side. If I could set European foreign policy, I would decide to boycott Israel or threaten to boycott Israel until it withdraws from the Territories.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Yafit Gamila Biso
The Olive Tree
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ I will demonstrate when lands are appropriated and olive trees are uprooted; for me every olive tree is a child. I told that to Chaim Yavin when I took him up to Jayous. There were still olive trees lying about. They take the big ones to sell and the little ones are thrown aside. I stood there and shivered and tears came, real tears, and he said, "What's wrong?" So I said, "It hurts me every time to see this sight. Every tree is a child. It's the corpse of a child. The tree was uprooted, at least take it.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Nasser Laham
Maan News, Bethlehem Television
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ Failure [to achieve peace] is the result of someone having a vested interest in war. When Palestinian refugees see that every settler received half a million while they lack food, what are they supposed to think about themselves and about the world?” [Source in Complete Interview]
Helmi Kittani
Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ […It] is possible to build a foundation on which Jews and Arabs can live together in the State of Israel. I believed that. Since then I have directed all of my thinking, directed all of my experience and knowledge to achieving this goal: cooperative living by means of shared economic development. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Gidon Bromberg
EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ From the people-to-people perspective, understanding one's shared environment, understanding the fact that the environment knows no borders, that water flows according to its natural flow, and the border is actually irrelevant-that's something people comprehend. There is a common interest; we are dependent on each other, and that is particularly true in a small region such as this one, where each of the countries is incredibly small, where all the water resources of all three countries-certainly Israel, Palestine and Jordan-cross borders; there is no water source that is purely Israeli or purely Palestinian or purely Jordanian. The environment is something that creates interdependence, and interdependence requires a common understanding if we're to manage that environmental resource properly.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Helmi Kittani
Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ Thirty students, Jews and Arabs [in a joint business program], live together and begin to build ideas. They say that this place can become the Garden of Eden. We must build a common Middle East business leadership. They believe they will be the foundation. We also believe that they will be the foundation because they serve as a good example. Today they can convey to the Jewish people in Israel, to the Arabs in Israel and to the Palestinians that it is possible to live together, that we can understand each other. Despite the difference, it is possible to respect each other and still understand that others are different but that I can live with them, I can learn with them, and I can establish businesses with them and everyone will profit from that. And I think that if we succeed in conveying this message to the Palestinian and Israeli leaders we can break down the barriers and help foster trust and the creation of a true and righteous peace in the region.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Nader Khatib
Water and Environmental Development Organization, Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ The daily deterioration of the environment is what drives our work. Environmental issues can’t be put off until a regional understanding and a peace agreement is reached. Widespread pollution is still taking place in many areas, and in a few years the land we have been fighting over for hundreds of years will become inhospitable…Water preservation is necessary for solving the current crisis and the prevention of future conflicts over water. We don't need any more reasons for conflict, we have enough already.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Gidon Bromberg
EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ Environmental justice includes issues of human rights, and fairness, and some sort of just notion of the division of natural resources. If one side grabs all the natural resources then the other side is going to lose out, not only on the natural resources themselves, but also on their economic potential. So there's a realization that we're not only dealing with the environment here, we're also dealing with political issues too.” [Source in Complete Interview]
Helmi Kittani
Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development
Portrait »
Interview Highlights »
“ We thought that through the joint [economic] ventures of Jews and Israeli Arabs with the Palestinian Authority there was an opportunity for Israeli Arabs to integrate into the Israeli economy and into the mainstream. Ultimately Israeli Arabs and Palestinians are the same people, and thus it is possible for them to coordinate a joint deal. […] It was part of our belief that a long-term peace cannot be sustained if Palestinians live in poverty while Israelis are rich. It cannot exist, it is just impossible.” [Source in Complete Interview]
