Thanks much to the Jerusalem Post for covering our first Generation Connect show. Read the story here:

My Journey Into Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories
by Trudi Morrison

Looking through the photos I took in Israel, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, (OPT) the Old Cities and the new cities, I saw children and adults from various cultures, living and working side by side, engaging each other in conversation. It doesn’t mean that war and hate do not exist there; it is just what I saw.

That hope and peace exist at all in the Middle East is extraordinary. It was not the impression I had before going there.  The little known fact that there actually are a number of peace organizations working with the youth and families of Israeli Jewish and Arab citizens, and Palestinians from the Occupied Palestinian Territories, is also extraordinary.

In the midst of producing the Generation Connect Radio show, I listened to the voices of the Young Adults from Israel, the OPT and the United States. They were excited to ask questions about each others lives and to talk about their experiences: going to the movies, going to the mall, hanging out with friends, living with discrimination, living with war in a divided country, not living with war in a very big country.

Most of all, they were excited about the election of President Obama. To all of them, President Obama means hope. That they could be honest about their hopes and dreams and the day-to-day challenges they all face, is the reason to encourage youth everywhere to have their own voice and be heard.

The next generation, Generation Connect as these young adults have named themselves, is our best resource and our hope for a better future.

To Gina, Maya, Mickey, Riley, Salam and Hagar, Layan, Maria, Noam, Tamara, Yara  and Yazan: Thank you for bringing me back to Earth, reminding me of what hope feels like. I now have hope for a better future because of you.

Peace, Harmony and Good Wishes,
Trudi

Monday, April 13, 2009 – We’re headed over to Beit Jala, West Bank to broadcast our first Generation Connect show. We are so pleased and excited to be bringing together Israeli, Palestinian and American youth, thanks to the global reach of Internet radio. We broadcast live today at 7 p.m. (Israel/Jerusalem time) and 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight time. Please listen as young adults talk to each other and ask questions about their daily lives, their differences and their similarities. It should be a fascinating and eye-opening discussion and we are so happy to be able to bring it to you. Thanks to Windows – Channels for Communication, for helping set up this show here in the West Bank. We have already met so many wonderful people here in Tel Aviv and Beit Jalat and we look forward to bringing you this show. Listen to Generation Connect today here at www.Earth2Parents.com. Thank you.

A new program is connecting young adults from Israel, Palestine and the United States through Internet radio with a show called Generation Connect.

Generation Connect is a show by young adults, for young adults, and is a way to get youth from varied backgrounds into conversation about their similarities and differences. The show connects youth by discussing issues of family, social structure, and even how they have fun.

The first show, which will air live at 9 a.m. Monday, April 13 (PDT) at redtulip.org, will bring together young adults from Israel and the U.S. In Beit Jalat, West Bank, we will bring together a group of Jewish and Palestinian young adults, from the 8th and 9th grades, who have been working together in a long-term process of building acquaintance and partnership for nearly three years. The group is made up of Palestinians from Bethlehem, Jewish Israelis from Tel Aviv and Palestinian citizens of Israel from Jaffa. In the U.S. there will be five young adults from the Portland, Oregon area, covering a diversity of backgrounds and religions – Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Palestinian and Indian.

After its inaugural episode, Generation Connect will continue on a regular basis. A group of four to six students will gather around microphones in the Small Plate Radio studios in Portland, Oregon and discuss their lives, their concerns, their likes, dislikes, hobbies and passions. It is meant to be an open discussion and a way for them to get to know and understand each other better. Youth worldwide will be invited to participate.

Generation Connect is the brainchild of a Portland socially conscious businesswoman and mother, Trudi Morrison, who used a trip to Israel to visit her daughter studying abroad as the catalyst for the show idea.

“Generation Connect is close to my heart,” said Morrison. “It’s young adults connecting with young adults, not adults interviewing kids, giving youth an opportunity to express themselves, be heard, find needed resources and interact on a global and local level. Only through education is there hope that the next generations will  learn to live side by side, understand, respect and appreciate their differences and their similarities and find peace and harmony worldwide.”

About Earth2Parents
Earth to Parents™ Productions was founded to bring families together through communication. So often, families don’t communicate enough, or they just don’t know how. Parents need to hear their kids and conversely, kids need to hear their parents. E2P opens the discussion by producing internet radio shows that enhance communication for families. www.redtulip.org.

About Small Plate Radio
Small Plate Radio (www.smallplateradio.com) is a live internet radio/podcasting company focused on content that tells compelling stories. Small Plate Radio, a Xhang Creative (www.xhangcreative.com) business unit, is a social radio platform that delivers highly specialized internet radio programming and content on the SPR Network and as “private label” projects for brands, advertisers and those with special interests. Shows from Small Plate Radio are broadcast live then available for podcast and downloading on the Small Plate Radio Network (coming soon).