The Peres Center For Peace

As the Peres Center's future home will be in Jaffa, the Peres Center has officially begun a program of Jaffa community outreach activities. These projects, which are undertaken in cooperation with local partners, cater to the Arab and Jewish residents of Jaffa – youth and adults alike, and respond to the needs of the community. The Peres Center envisions fruitful cooperation in Jaffa with the local organizations that already exist there, partnering on endeavors to deliver even more programming and provide further services to the area.

The implementation of the Peres Center's 2008-2009 community activities in Jaffa was made possible through a generous grant from the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation.

An after-school program for youth: The Peres Center has facilitated the involvement of children and youth from "Shem HaGdolim", the neighborhood bordering the site of the Peace House, in an after-school program run by the Jaffa Institute. The program includes a hot meal, help with homework, and guidance from a trained social worker, thereby benefiting both the youth participants themselves and their parents, who may not be able to leave work once their children have been let out of school.

A women's empowerment program – technological training: The Peres Center, together with the Arab-Jewish Community Center of Jaffa and Cisco Systems, are delivering a technological training course to female residents of Jaffa, offering participants the opportunity to receive internationally-recognized Cisco certification and eases their entry into the professional high-tech field. In December 2008, four women proudly graduated from the first cycle of the program, having passed their final examinations and received internationally-recognized certification from Cisco Systems in “IT Essentials”. Upon completion of the course, the women expressed pride in their performance – both as individuals and as a network of Arab-Israeli women in Jaffa – and they look forward to utilizing their new skills in the job market. The program was supported by the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Israel.

In July 2009, the second Hi-Tech Professional Training Course for Arab-Israeli women in Jaffa was launched. Twenty highly motivated participants were recruited for this course. As part of the curriculum, the women learn about computer applications, hardware and software, and internet systems. Additionally, they receive intensive job-search support including effective resume writing, interview preparation, workplace etiquette, and women's empowerment sessions.

In December 2009, the women partook in a graduation ceremony at the new Peres Peace House in Jaffa, where theyeceived internationally recognized certification from Cisco in IT Essentials. They are currently interviewing for jobs in their new field of expertise.

The course took place as part of the Peres Center's Social, Training, and Enrichment Program (STEP) in Jaffa, and is generously funded by the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation.

A women's empowerment program – professional training: The Peres Center and local NGOs "Women's Court" and "Ashalim" are involved in a program that promotes women in the workforce. This unique endeavor provides local residents with invaluable confidence building, empowerment sessions, and skill enhancement, thereby encouraging participants' entry into and upward mobility within the workplace.

A youth safety and guidance program: The Peres Center, the Governance of Jaffa, "Echpat – Youth Advancement in Jaffa", and the Arab-Jewish Community Center of Jaffa have developed a unique initiative that caters to at-risk youth in the neighborhood of Ajami.Through this program, a "street counselor" works with 14-18 year old boys, developing trusting relationships with them and referring them to beneficial projects and safe, educational activities.

A community outreach program: Through its "Youth Safety and Guidance Program" in Ajami, the Peres Center has had the opportunity to meet and converse with a wide range of people living in, and dealing with, the difficulties facing this underprivileged neighborhood. Through these talks, a very real, pressing need has arisen, namely that the community faces many problems dealing with housing rights and issues concerning their overall quality of life. These issues need to be taken up in a professional, legal manner with the Municipality and as such, the community requires legal guidance, accompaniment and assistance. Accordingly, the Peres Center approached the Legal Clinic at Tel Aviv University Law School. The clinic has allocated a law student and lawyer to look into the issues facing the neighborhood and evaluate the needs of the local residents.