OTISFIELD, MAINE | The Arab Spring uprisings have brought a new sense of optimism to young people from troubled nations as they spend time at a special camp nestled in the hills of western Maine where they confront and resolve their differences. “It gives me the feeling that everything is possible and nothing is impossible,” said 17-year-old Lina, who witnessed the regime change in her home country of Egypt, on a sunny afternoon at the lakeside Seeds of Peace camp. … FULL STORY

Last week, while Syrian President Bashar Assad explicitly declared war on his own people, I attended the opening, flag-raising ceremony for the 20th season of Seeds of Peace. Seeds of Peace is a charitable organization started by author and journalist John Wallach in 1993. Its purpose is to promote lasting peace to regions in conflict. One of the ways it does so is by bringing teenagers from war-torn countries around the world to a camp on a lake in Maine. … FULL STORY

DEXTER | Students and educators from the Middle East and South Asia are spending time in Dexter. TV 5 spoke with some of the adults taking part in the Seeds of Peace program. If the educators who filled the room at Ridgeview Community School in Dexter on Thursday were in their home countries, you likely wouldn’t find them sitting side-by-side. “It’s so important to teach values of respect and cross-cultural understanding and leadership,” said Daniel Moses, director of the educator … FULL STORY

DEXTER | Students and educators from the Middle East and South Asia are spending time in Dexter. TV 5 spoke with some of the adults taking part in the Seeds of Peace program. If the educators who filled the room at Ridgeview Community School in Dexter on Thursday were in their home countries, you likely wouldn’t find them sitting side-by-side. “It’s so important to teach values of respect and cross-cultural understanding and leadership,” said Daniel Moses, director of the educator … FULL STORY

The Maine summer camp for teens from countries in conflict opened Wednesday for its 20th season.

OTISFIELD, MAINE | The Seeds of Peace summer camp in western Maine is under way for its 20th season bringing together teenagers from countries in conflict. Located in Otisfield, the camp kicked off its first summer session on Wednesday with its traditional flag-raising ceremony. The camp brings together teenagers from countries that are at conflict in hopes of moving them beyond deep-rooted hatreds. More than 200 campers from Afghanistan, Egypt, India, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, Palestine and the U.S. are attending … FULL STORY

OTISFIELD | More than 200 teenagers from eight countries were tasked with a tall order Wednesday–to make the world a better place by putting aside generations-old conflicts and seeing one another as people. Then, to take those lessons home and help bring about peace. Wednesday marked the first day of the 20th summer of the Seeds of Peace International Camp. Timothy P. Wilson, Director Emeritus and special adviser to the program, gave the teens a more modest goal. “Be the … FULL STORY

Congressional Record 112th Congress (2011-2012) Sen. Olympia J. Snowe Mr. President, today I wish to join with individuals across the world in recognizing the 20th anniversary of the founding of Seeds of Peace, an organization dedicated to the advancement of peace through understanding, reconciliation, acceptance, and coexistence among people, and established on the principle that long-term peace within or between nations can only be achieved with the emergence of a new generation of leaders who choose dialogue over violence. Seeds … FULL STORY

When she learnt that her granddaughter was going to visit Lahore, Shershah Chadhar’s face broke into a huge smile, followed by spontaneous tears. “You cannot imagine her facial expressions at that time. She was so emotional and nostalgic because she grew up in Bhati Gate inside Lahore’s Walled City. Her family left Lahore after the Partition,” says Mumbai-based Ira Chadhar Sridhar, a young student of St. Xavier’s College. She visited Lahore for the first time last week as part of … FULL STORY