During my last year at Humboldt, I studied abroad at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, pursuing my passion for languages and Middle East politics. It was an intense year that brought me face to face with life and death issues in ways I could never have imagined from my quiet life on the redwood coast. Israel invaded Lebanon the week I arrived and some of my classmates never came home from the front. I was fortunate to have courses taught by Israeli political leaders and historians, and I became active in Jewish-Palestinian reconciliation efforts – a path that I’ve been on ever since.

After graduating from Humboldt, I completed four years of graduate work at the University of Washington. I was generously supported with Foreign Language Area Studies fellowships (federal government grants) for Arabic language study. 
I received an internship to work in the Political Department of the U.S. Embassy, in Cairo, Egypt, but made the difficult decision to turn it down. I had always worked at the grassroots level as a community activist, beginning with my student days at Humboldt, and was very drawn to human rights work. 

I put my Public Administration skills to work for County government in Seattle for several years as a recycling planner, until I mustered up my courage and founded a non-profit organization called Mid-East Citizen Diplomacy. I brought American citizens to Israel and Palestine for cultural immersion programs and to meet people on all sides of the conflict. 
Eventually, my work began to focus primarily on conflict resolution and reconciliation and the organization evolved into “The Compassionate Listening Project.” I, along with our team of trainers, now teach Compassionate Listening as a tool for conflict resolution and peace-building all over the world – in schools, organizations, congregations, mediation centers, and even to elected officials. 

I’ve produced four films and we are respected as one of the oldest Citizen Diplomacy organizations working in Israel and Palestine.