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We recently interviewed Rabbi Menachem Froman, an Orthodox rabbi of the West Bank settlement of Tekoa, famous for traveling to the Gaza Strip to meet with the late Sheikh Ahmed Yassin of Hamas and former Palestinian President Yasser Arafat. Later, we also interviewed Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bukhari, a Sufi Sheikh of the Naqshabandian Religious Method and head of the Uzbeke Community in Jerusalem.

Both Rabbi Froman and Sheikh Bukhari are interested in inter-religious dialogue and a nonviolent means for attaining peace, and both imparted a similar sentiment: When it comes to matters of Jerusalem, the politicians have their role, but the religious leaders have a role too. As Rabbi Froman shared, the issue here is not gold, nor oil: it's God. And since all three Abrahamic religions believe Jerusalem belongs to God, he asks, "Why not give Jerusalem to God?" Froman's view is also global: "If we can figure out Jerusalem, we can be a bridge for all humanity."

Perhaps the moral lesson of Jerusalem is simple and best described by Sheikh Bukhari: "Respect is like a mirror: if you show it, you will receive it in return." For him it's obvious that our destinies are entwined. "We all live here together and we are all going to die together. So why not support each other?" ...Read more

We were received as family members into the home of Ibrahim Ahmad Abu El-Hawa, and this we were told, is not unique. "I speak Hebrew, Arabic, Russian and English but my family taught me the most important language of all: the language of welcoming. I don't have a lock on the door and I never know who will be in my home. Everyone is welcome."

With a view of the separation wall from his window, Ibrahim's wish to make peace is visceral. "It is our destiny to live here in the holy land together, and only our heart can change the world." ...Read more

"I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees." —Ecclesiastes 2.6

BETHLEHEM, West Bank—We sit beside the ruins of King Solomon's Pools, backlit by a large and modern conference center that has only been used once since it was built. Behind it, a gun fight has broken out. It's graduation day, and celebrations respond in kind by shooting firecrackers. Surrounded by olive trees and broken glass, I notice—despite all the odds—a single, purple wildflower grows: a symbol of what is still possible in this land so full of bloodshed. At least that's what Sami Awad believes. Sami is the founder and director of the Holy Land Trust, a Palestinian NGO in Bethlehem working to provide Palestinians with the means to build a future founded on the principles of nonviolence, justice and peace.

With a view of the world as one body, Sami reminds us that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not unique, and we all suffer because of it. The real question, he asks, is how do we begin to heal? His answer is that we need a new vision for the Holy Land. "There is a light in humanity and every single human being has this light. Only, for some, it is covered in layers of dust." The dust of history, for example. "History puts nails in one's feet and doesn't allow for change. But the future is actually void and empty. We are all standing on a groundless ground."

His words are powerful and surprisingly full of hope. Like the purple flower growing in this barren landscape, near the springs that have long dried up, his words remind us that the future hasn't been written yet. Anything is possible.

When the camera stops rolling, he admits that in fact a little craziness is needed too—not only to hope but to dare the impossible to happen. Walking back to the car, I ask him how he raises the spirits of those who have given up hope, and his answer reminds me that—especially in this land—we are not alone with our struggles: "Maybe the spirit moves us."

Later, while sitting together over fresh lemonade, an ex-Israeli soldier who was present at the interview expresses the value of what Sami has shared. With deep sorrow and the weight of meaning, he tells us how rare someone like Sami is, and again I remember something Sami said earlier: "A simple cease fire is not enough, we also need the human spirit".

We certainly witnessed the human spirit ...Read more

Prior to her work here at Global Oneness Project, Denise was traveling and documenting her experiences through photojournalism and film in Switzerland, New York City, Syria, Iran and Afghanistan. It turns out that not only does Denise have an amazing sense of composition and an obvious ability to connect to her subject, but she also has an uncanny aptitude and love for language.

We've always been awed with Denise's ability to learn and speak five languages but never really made the connection that the openness and total lack of fear that we see behind the camera and in the editing room is so interconnected with the ease that she learns language and the way she approaches life in general. It was a lot of fun reading the article and it will definitely have a lasting effect on how the rest of us at GOP approach our own work, obstacles and fears.

Read the interview and pass it on. ...Read more

Goonj, a volunteer-run recycling center in New Delhi—profiled in our short film “Not Just a Piece of Cloth”—was recently awarded the Indian NGO of the year award.

In April 2007, we spent a day at the Goonj headquarters talking with founder and director Anshu Gupta, who along with more than 300 individual volunteers and 100 grassroots agencies recycles and distributes over 20,000 kgs of material throughout India. Not only does Goonj collect and distribute large quantities of ready-to-go recycled materials, like clothing and blankets, but they also specialize in creative alterations, like children's  backpacks made from old jeans, school notebooks from discarded paper and sanitary napkins from sheets and cloth.

Watch our short film "Not Just a Piece of Cloth" and then go to the Goonj website to learn more about their innovative project and how you can contribute ...Read more