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אם אינכם מצליחים לצפות במסר לחצו כאן

   Women Wage Peace                                            Spring 2022 Newsletter

Dear

Against the background of the war in Europe and the violence in Israel, we continue to make peace in all possible ways.

The newsletter this time is partially, but not only, dedicated to the historic event we held on March 25 on the shores of the Dead Sea, with our Palestinian sisters from the movement Women of the Sun.

April 2022 is a month of holidays: we wish our Muslim friends Ramadan Kareem, a Happy Easter holiday to our Christian friends and a peaceful Passover to our Jewish friends and supporters.

historic meeting of WWP and Women of the Sun

On a recent rainy, blustery day in the Judean Desert Women Wage Peace members at large formally met our new Palestinian partners, Women of the Sun, face-to-face. On March 25, a moving ceremony that included a joint signing of The Mothers' Call took place on the shores of the Dead Sea. There we formally pledged to work together as equal partners for the sake of future generations. The flags in the photo, while now associated indelibly with Ukraine, symbolize the turquoise and yellow of our respective logos.

Singer-songwriter Yael Deckelbaum, who opened the program with several songs in both Hebrew and Arabic, shared this message on Instagram: “Today we made history. Palestinian NGO Women of the Sun and Israeli NGO Women Wage Peace formally announced their alliance in a shared Mothers' Call for Peace. I know in my heart that we are paving a path that will be remembered as the historical act that put an end to bloodshed between Palestinians and Israelis.” (Deckelbaum’s Prayer of the Mothers, written as an anthem for WWP’s March of Hope in 2016, has been viewed nearly 7 million times on YouTube and 3 million more on Facebook.) For press about our two movements’ historic March 25th meeting at the Dead Sea, see this coverage in the Jerusalem Post here or here at Walla! News, a major Israeli news website; or see this article in The Arab News or in Al-Monitor here.

a second successful 48-hour fundraiser

We want to thank you, our supporters, for sharing our conviction that when women lead, peace follows. We thank you as well for your faith in WWP to act on this conviction, wisely and with determination. A total of 2,800 donors raised close to a million and a half shekels. This time, 90% of all donors were Israelis and their donations made up 75% of the total of all donations.

An equally impressive 77% of all donations came from the passionate engagement of 162 Women Wage Peace volunteers who brought friends, family, and even their dentists to our aid! In all, approximately 200 volunteers made our ambitious, second-ever yearly campaign possible. Such generosity will allow WWP to

(1) scale up our traditional and digital media presence
(2) further strengthen our interactions with decision-makers so that the Political Alternatives First Bill will pass during this current Knesset and enter the law books of the State of Israel
(3) collaborate more efficiently with our new partners, the Palestinian movement
Women of the Sun

The two movements are now working together to train more women to take their place in centers of decision-making, to grow our toolkit of peace-making knowledge and skills, and to plan a regional, women-led summit for 2023 that will accelerate the prospect of leaders from both sides coming to the negotiating table.

If you missed the campaign, you can donate here

Donate to WWP

diplomats meet WWP and Women of the Sun

Following the historic meeting of Women Wage Peace and Women of the Sun at the Dead Sea, the two peace movements conducted a zoom meeting with more than 20 diplomats. They were informed about the recent event at the Dead Sea, the signature of the Mothers' Call for Peace, and briefed on the joint plans of the two movements in the near future.

2021 initiatives in a nutshell

At the January 2022 meeting of the 100+ core activists who guide WWP’s policy-level decision making, WWP’s Steering Committee of four rotating leaders shared a month-by-month PowerPoint about the previous year’s major events and actions. For instance, in a year complicated by Corona and another bloody conflict with Gaza, May 2021 included

(1) WWP’s participation in a human chain for peace along the ramparts of Jerusalem’s Old City during the height of the war
(2) collaboration with other peace groups with an eye toward media exposure during news cycles that were otherwise saturated with images of revenge and destruction
(3) the formal presentation of WWP’s Political Alternatives First bill by Member of Knesset Emilie Moatti.

As another example, November 2021 included
(1) a special conference at the Knesset devoted to the Political Alternatives bill
(2) a meeting at the Swedish ambassador’s home along with members of
Women of the Sun
(3) a work meeting with Women of the Sun in Tel Aviv
(4) a meeting for young women members of WWP and other young women

weekly “Waging Peace” broadcasts

WWP launched an ambitious weekly television series in early July of 2021. The movement now broadcasts weekly on Facebook Live during prime time, Thursdays at 8 pm Jerusalem time. The shows highlight current WWP initiatives and members of the movement. A sampling of the programs, in Hebrew, can be found in WWP’s online archives.


WWP’s newsletter in additional languages

Our quarterly newsletter is now also available in German, French and Spanish. Please help us spread the word among your Spanish, French, and German-speaking friends, and of course among English-speaking acquaintances who haven’t yet joined us! On the WWP mailing list sign-up page, there’s a drop-down for choosing one’s preferred language for hearing from us four times a year.

a woman waging peace, Angela Scharf

When Angela Scharf, current coordinator of WWP’s Foreign Relations team, first came to Israel from Vienna at age 18 she had no knowledge of Hebrew – yet she enrolled at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, focusing on political science and Oriental studies. Courage, determination, and a singular vision, especially about how to overcome difficulties, have accompanied her from then until today. Angela also has an extraordinary talent for human relations, weaving connections that are personal, social, business-oriented, and international in scope.


She began a long and successful career as an entrepreneur, first bringing European textiles to Israel and later importing Asian textiles both to Israel and various European countries. Meanwhile, her family relocated numerous times following the assignments of her then-husband, a diplomat. Their first stop was Seoul, Korea, where business executives asked her directly, "What does your husband say about your working?" as she sat with them, a solitary woman, around a conference table. Her acquaintance with Asian culture and her personal-professional connections later helped her to enter the nearly inaccessible German textile market.

Angela’s years spent moving from country to country now serve her in a task undertaken on behalf of WWP – fostering solid, warm ties with foreign ambassadors and their staffs here in Israel. Several months ago, for instance, she arranged for the Swedish Ambassador to host both WWP and Women of the Sun, along with diplomatic staff from various other countries, at his residence. This event gave our new Palestinian partners an opportunity to increase their movement’s public exposure not long after its formation. Angela expects to continue to use her connections, networking ability, and entrepreneurial spirit to further both movements’ relations with the diplomatic world, as well as with our Palestinian partners, and with you, our supporters abroad.

Sent to by Yael.braudo@WomenWagePeace.org.il
Sender: Women Wage Peace
Sender's address: Harimon 9 Ramat Efal, Israel
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