PAST EVENTS
"No Room for Small Dreams: Courage, Imagination and the Making of Modern Israel"
The Common good was proud to present an intimate conversation and celebration with Chemi Peres on the new memoir written by his father, Shimon Peres, former President and Prime Minister of Israel. This event was hosted by Marcia Riklis.
The Common good is proud to present an intimate conversation and celebration with Chemi Peres on the new memoir written by his father, Shimon Peres, former President and Prime Minister of Israel. This event was hosted by Marcia Riklis.
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Shimon Peres, a leading statesman in his country and around the world, penned the book, “No Room for Small Dreams: Courage, Imagination and the Making of Modern Israel”, shortly before his death late last year, intertwining the historic moments of his own life and Israel’s - and the future he hopes for his nation. Shimon Peres was one of Israel’s founding fathers and for more than six decades was an architect of its ascent from a fragile state to a global power. In 1994, he was awarded the Nobel Peace for his extraordinary efforts to forge peace between Israel and the Palestinians. in 1996, he founded the groundbreaking Peres Center for Peace and Innovation to focus on developing and implementing imaginative peacebuilding programs around the world. Peres died in September 2016, shortly after finishing his work on this book. He was ninety-three year old.
“By his unyielding detemination and principle, Shimon Peres time and again helped guide his beloved country through the crucible of moral challenge. But it was by his innate humanity, his decency, that Shimon inspired the world over”
“Shimon Peres started as Israel’s brightest student, became one of its best teachers, and ended up its biggest dreamer...THis book captures my friend’s lifelong belief in our potential to rise above our wounds, our resentments, and our fears to make the most of today and claim the promise of tomorrow”
“Shimon Peres was a giant of Israel’s foudning generation, a tireless advocate for peace, and an eternal optimist who lived his life with a sense of hope and possibility...All of us have much to learn form his story, which now belongs to the ages.”
Chemi Peres, son of the late president of Israel, Shimon Peres, is one of Israel’s foremost venture capital and innovation pioneers. He is the Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Pitango Venture Capital. Prior he served 10 years in the Israeli Air Force Chemi is currently the Chairman of the Peres Center for Peace.
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Special Screening of 'Budrus'
The Common Good hosted a special screening and discussion of the documentary ‘Budrus’ with director Julia Bacha and producer Ronit Avni, which showed the nonviolent Palestinian movement to save the village of Budrus from destruction by Israel’s Separation Barrier.
The Common Good hosted a special screening and discussion of the documentary ‘Budrus’ with director Julia Bacha and producer Ronit Avni, which showed the nonviolent Palestinian movement to save the village of Budrus from destruction by Israel’s Separation Barrier.
This documentary by Julia Bacha that examines one West Bank town’s reaction to Israel’s construction of the security barrier. The town, with a population of 1,500, was set to be divided and encircled by the barrier, losing 300 acres of land and 3,000 olive trees. These trees were not only critical for economic survival but also sacred to the town’s intergenerational history. The film tells the story of Ayed Morrar, a Palestinian whose work for Fatah had led to five detentions in Israeli jails, but whose momentous strategic decision that the barrier would be best opposed by nonviolent resistance had far-reaching ramifications.
Julia Bacha is a media strategist and award-winning filmmaker whose work has been exhibited at Sundance, Tribeca, Berlin, Jerusalem, and Dubai International Film Festivals, and broadcasted on the BBC, HBO, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya television channels. Julia started her filmmaking career in Cairo, where she co-wrote and edited Jehane Noujaim’s critically acclaimed documentary, Control Room (2004), for which she was nominated to the Writer’s Guild of America Award. Control Room marked the first time most Americans were exposed to an inside view of Al Jazeera and generated wide public debate about US media coverage during the war in Iraq.
Ronit Avni is an award-winning filmmaker and human rights advocate. She is the Founder and Executive Director of Just Vision, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing media coverage and support for Palestinian and Israeli efforts to end the conflict without arms. Her work has been featured in major news outlets, including Newsweek, The Washington Post, The BBC, NPR, and The Economist. Avni produced the documentary film, Budrus, which was hailed in The New York Times as “this year’s must-see documentary” and has won twelve international awards. Avni directed and produced the documentary film, Encounter Point, which received several awards including the San Francisco International Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary. Encounter Point has screened in more than 200 cities worldwide and continues to be widely used in classrooms and community centers in America and the Middle East.
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The Common Good has been hosting events since 2006 that cover important issues of today, highlighting speakers who have worked to bolster our democracy and can provide great insight on the issues that matter.