On May 31st, 2022, ALLMEP hosted its 2022 regional conference “Unite the Field,” which included a series of panels involving ALLMEP’s member organizations and their relative areas of focus. In addition to these panels, a keynote address was held to conclude the conference and included two prominent figures in the peacebuilding field.

The address was hosted  of ALLMEP, Kari Reid, and featured  MEPPA Advisory Board members: Rabbi Michael Cohen and Hiba Husseini. 

Much of the panel’s conversation revolved around the the Nita M. Lowey Middle East Partnership for Peace Act (MEPPA).  This fund delivers $250 million over the next five years to projects that support peacebuilding and Palestinian economic development. It represents the largest investment ever in the region’s peacebuilders, and grew out of ALLMEP’s 12-year campaign to establish an International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace, which continues to gain momentum among governments around the world.

Rabbi Cohen and Husseini had just attended the first MEPPA Advisory Board Meeting shortly before the Unite the Field conference. While talking about the importance of the fund, Rabbi Cohen said, “I also feel this fund really represents a historic decision by the US government that recognizes the invaluable importance of the work of Palestinian-Israeli civil society NGOs. That’s a huge turning point…We need to take that energy and run with it.”

Husseini added, ““I think this is what the MEPPA fund is really aiming to do- its to find common ground in order to sustain the development and sustain the opportunity for peacebuilding.”

Referring to the timeline of MEPPA, Husseini said, “Empowering people, creating public discourse about the conflict and empowering again youth, empowering women, empowering peace builders over time. This is an investment in time, an investment in the people and youth and women and all projects and programs that can really sustain us going forward.”

Rabbi Cohen added, “People need to see our work to realize what’s possible, to see the other alternative that is out there so it strengthens that aspect of Israeli-Palestinian society.”

Husseini’s and Rabbi Cohen’s encouraging words were a sounding conclusion to ALLMEP’s 2022 Unite the Field conference. For more highlights, recorded panels, and information about “Unite the Field,” please visit: https://www.allmep.org/unite-the-field/