To accompany the Bridges Not Boycotts campaign, UJS is proud that it can bring nuance and meaningful responsible conversation to the table by running a series of Bridges Not Boycotts trips. Our trips to Israel-Palestine for Students of all faiths and backgrounds aims to show them both sides of the conflict, for them to then make a judgement based on a factual basis, rather than ideological and often coercive rhetoric on campus.
The first trip we ran, Bridges Not Boycotts: Let’s Talk Business brought students interested in the world of Business to Israel- the ‘Start Up Nation’, giving them a real insight into how tech plays such a crucial role in the Israeli economy. We also went to and stayed in Palestine to explore Palestinian business and start-ups. Looking at the conflict with the focus of business and economic development provided an eye-opening experience for these students. The participants could see the region in a completely different way and make judgements based on their passion for Business.
Our trip Bridges Not Boycotts: On The Record took student journalists to Israel-Palestine to meet a plethora of different people, from Bashar Masri, the billionaire philanthropist who helped build the city of Rawabi to Yesh Atid, Israels second largest party. The trip aimed to showcase the positive impact on the ground that journalists and media enterprises can have in helping to solve the issues facing the Israelis and Palestinians, while also providing participants with great insights into the world of media and journalism.