Cyber Bridges: Quest for Peace
The purpose of the Cyber Bridges project is to electronically link youth in Palestine and the United States to encourage mutual exploration of fundamental questions of identity, justice and values. Through the use of internet technology, youth from Palestine and the United States communicate directly to share information, get to know each other and address important issues. This project also helps the youth involved to deepen their understanding of the world around them and establish themselves as leaders by helping them identify problems and take positive action in their communities.
Most Palestinian youth suffer from the ongoing political tension in Palestine, which greatly impacts their lives and their social opportunities. These young people have not yet been able to take on a leadership role in society. They suffer from frustration, apathy, disappointment, and recognize there may not be many opportunities for them in the future. Furthermore, these children do not take time each day to laugh or enjoy recreational activities, which greatly affects their psychological well-being.
Nicholas is just one of the Palestinian youth participating in the Cyber Bridges program.
Instead of enjoying their childhood, Palestinian youth spend most of their time dreaming about living in a peaceful world and establishing peace in the "Land of Peace." Many youth believe that they have the responsibility to achieve this goal and they see the Cyber Bridges project as a good way to make progress toward it because it helps to strengthen youth agents for peace from both the United States and Palestine. By improving their attitudes toward each other, building good relationships and treating each other as one human family, all of the participating youth work toward a greater peace. In working together, the youth have identified a common mission — "Solidarity can transform and with this kind of solidarity we can build peace and love in the world."
Nicholas' Quest for Peace
Nicholas is an 18-year old boy, living in Jerusalem. He is a student at College des Frere and an Arab Orthodox Union Club member. The club gives youth in Jerusalem the opportunity to interact with each other in an open, safe environment. Its primary objective is to promote cultural, social, sporting and scouting activities for Palestinians by encouraging youth to explore their hobbies, to improve their social relationships and to strengthen their sense of responsibility toward their communities. Nicolas actively participates in several of the club activities.
Similar to many other young Palestinians, Nicholas also suffers from the ongoing political tension in Palestine and the lack of social opportunities. Youth are often unable to take on a leadership role the society and grow to become frustrated and apathetic, living in somewhat of a vacuum that affects the stability of society. Nicolas dreams of living in a peaceful world, and he feels responsible for working to achieve this dream. He has often tried to find ways to work toward this goal, but he has been unsuccessful.
One day, while at the Arab Orthodox Club, the club's administration told the club's youth members about the Cyber Bridges project, and how the project works to build a shared vision of social justice and peace between U.S. Catholic secondary students and Palestinian youth. "I found it!" Nicholas realized. This project was the perfect opportunity to build youth agents for peace from both the United States and Palestine. Nicolas actively participated in the project activities through the Arab Orthodox Club, and he encouraged the other youth members to participate in the project and helped them to fulfill all of the project requirements. Nicholas has now taken on the role of a team leader, giving the project coordinator all of the support she needs to achieve the Cyber Bridges goal. Nicholas continues to work diligently on the project, always focusing on his goal to promote peace and justice.
