Chapter 3: Sowing Seeds of Change Through Binational Encounters in Israel¹

This chapter draws on case studies of two Israeli encounter organizations, Sadaka Reut and Peace Child Israel, to explore the link between participation in the organization’s activities and the way former participants understand their long-term impact on their lives. I note three areas where encounter participation has significantly influenced participants: in their views about social change in Israel, their continued participation in social change activities, and their ethno-national narratives. I then address the way that divergent structures and programmatic emphases in the two organizations lead to differences in these areas of impact among participants, as well as how change is shaped by external factors such as ethno-national identity, before discussing the implications of this research for education policy and practice.