27 King George St.
P.O. Box 2239
Jerusalem 94581
Israel
- Democracy and community development
Ir Amim (“City of Nations” or “City of Peoples”) focuses on Jerusalem within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ir Amim seeks to render Jerusalem a democratic, pluralistic city for the Israelis and Palestinians who share it.
Ir Amim envisions a city that ensures the dignity and welfare of all its residents and that safeguards their holy places, as well as their historical and cultural heritages, and works to secure this vision—today, as well as in the future.
Ir Amim aspires to a sustainable political future for Jerusalem, achievable only through a negotiated process between Israel and the Palestinians.
Ir Amim is active on a number of key fronts and aims to achieve the following:
1. To monitor developments and trends in Jerusalem that have implications for the city's current equitability and political future within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; to analyze the significance of these developments on a future resolution of the city via a two-state solution
2. To help bring Israeli policy in line with the vision of a more equitable and viable city, offering solutions that will enable just living arrangements for the two nations and three world religions that share it, until a political resolution is achievable
3. To raise Israeli public awareness regarding Jerusalem; shift public discourse to a more pragmatic, fact-based exchange that enables Israelis to analyze the ramifications of current policy; and elicit public support for a political resolution
4. To promote the development of infrastructure and capacity building within Palestinian civil society
Ir Amim is widely recognized for bringing a profound understanding of Jerusalem in the context of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict related work and activities. It has earned a solid reputation as a go-to source for timely, accurate and reliable information about new developments in Jerusalem; its expertise in monitoring and advocacy, public outreach and education; and its programmatic partnerships within Palestinian civil society.
Ir Amim has successful experience in forming, coordinating and facilitating coalition and network efforts of Israeli NGO’s, Palestinian neighborhood committees and social activists.
The organization and its staff would greatly value the opportunity to expand cooperative efforts with other Israeli and Palestinian organizations—to share its considerable knowledge base and experience while being able to augment its work with the unique expertise of various partner organizations.
Ir Amim welcomes this vital opening to leverage resources in working towards a sustainable political future for Jerusalem in particular and the region as a whole.
Ir Amim is dedicated to promoting human rights and strengthening democracy, equality and pluralism between Israelis and Palestinians in East Jerusalem. Ir Amim prioritizes the importance of and has significant experience in forming coalitions and networks with organizations and individuals mutually committed to its vision and goals.
By joining the ALF network, Ir Amim seeks to engage in dialogue and cooperate with other organizations in Israel, the Middle East and Europe who share these goals, to benefit from their expertise with the goal of increasing Ir Amim’s effectiveness and expanding its impact.
Jerusalem is a microcosm of the Israeli Palestinian conflict, loaded with political, historical, religious and emotional implications.
Ir Amim is recognized for its work to generate a more pragmatic, nuanced public discourse about issues related to East Jerusalem while acknowledging and respecting differences in ideologies, narratives and perspectives. Ir Amim employs a myriad of educational tools to expose the intricacy of the situation in Jerusalem to the Israeli public. Approximately 25,000 Israelis have attended Ir Amim’s renowned study tours and thousands more have attended its seminars and film screenings of its annual Jerusalem Moments film project.
Through its multifaceted educational activities, Ir Amim aspires to re-orient Israeli public discourse on Jerusalem, helping the Israeli public to focus on the realities and ramifications of current actions on long-term Israeli interests.
In the absence of a foreseeable political solution in Jerusalem, Ir Amim is working to develop a new paradigm for understanding the needs of different communities in Jerusalem in order to increase equitability of access and enjoyment of rights for all of its residents—both in the present and toward the end goal of a political resolution for the city.
Ir Amim envisions a process that involves outreach to communities and individuals who have not formerly been engaged in public dialogue, consulting with them on how to develop mechanisms to ensure full citizen rights to all of the residents of Jerusalem.
It is particularly vital that Ir Amim be able to glean best practices from other organizations engaged in peace building activities in areas marked by intractable conflict, particularly those with demonstrated experience in facilitating respectful multi-cultural dialogue.
The organization aims to cooperate with other civil society organizations, involve them in the process of rethinking viable living arrangements for the diverse gamut of social groups in Jerusalem, apply their expertise and cooperate with them in translating visions to action plans.