Ranin Boulos and Noam Shuster report on their Peace is Possible' visit, January 2007

With twenty-four speaking engagements, over ten gruelling days and at a variety of venues, Ranin and Noam spoke to well over 1,000 people who came to hear them tell how it is to grow up in a unique place and to have a friendship that overcomes difference, mistrust and ignorance.

The unique place is Neve Shalom ~ Wahat al-Salam (NSWaS) in Israel and the subject to be overcome is the conflict between Israel and Palestine and its affect upon relations between Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel. Ranin's and Noam's parents had the good sense and courage to join the pioneering village of NSWaS in its earliest days in order to distance themselves from the separate, parallel existence of Jews and Palestinians in Israel. Along with 50 other families, they have brought up their children as friends and neighbours, attending the same primary school and learning each other's language and culture. What is normal at NSWaS is not normal in the rest of Israel, even in mixed towns such as Haifa, Ramle and Lod.

Noam says, "The Village is an example of what can be done. We are living proof that what is in the media is not the only way. We are trying to show people that there is something different being done and that we haven't lost hope." Ranin adds, "It's very important to raise awareness because a lot of people in England are victims of the media. We need their support because eventually they will be the ones able to influence."

The girls' affection for one another and their easy relationship was obvious to all as they spoke of the difficult issues that could test their friendship: Noam's call-up to military service and Ranin's experience of discrimination outside the Village. They spoke eloquently and passionately about how they respect and are able to share in each other's cultural and religious traditions while remaining aware of their own identity as a Jew and a Palestinian and taking pride in their heritage. They thanked their parents for bringing them to a place that does not judge people by their religion, nationality or ethnic background, and which has allowed them to develop their own egalitarian values and to see people as individuals no matter where they come from or who they are.

They stressed that although theirs is a beautiful village, set on a picturesque hillside, it is not a bubble. The complex politics of the situation affect the residents of NSWaS just as much as everyone else in Israel, but they don't sweep their problems under the carpet. They work out their differences through dialogue and do not have a consensus view depending on which 'side' they belong. Each person has his or her own opinion. Through the Primary School, School for Peace and Pluralistic Spiritual Centre they reach out to thousands of people in Israel and beyond.

So what does the future hold? Ranin says, "For me, as a Palestinian Israeli, this is the only place that I'm willing to live in and raise my kids because outside the Village I'm a second-class citizen." And Noam adds, "I know that I will maintain the values of the Village for the rest of my life. I want to raise my children next to my best friend in the Village."