Gershon Baskin - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Gershon Baskin

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2002

The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a v... more The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a variety of Middle East regimes. This Policy Brief provides an overview of different cases where changes of and within the regime have taken place, as well as yet unsolved situations, with a view to the upcoming Middle East Conference. Although the lack of progress in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as well as the international debate over the Iranian nuclear program are still contentious issues, the Arab Spring uprisings and their aftermath may provide a new context in which arms control initiatives could be more successful.It is too optimistic to think that existing dilemmas can be easily resolved in this new and changing environment, but the Arab Spring may provide strong momentum for change. For the Facilitator of the Middle East Conference and his team the following factors should form a checklist of issues requiring immediate attention: how domestic events positively or negatively a...

El Correo De La Unesco, 2001

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2003

Kurzfassung: Die vorliegende Studie beschäftigt sich mit dem tiefgehenden Einstellungswandel, wel... more Kurzfassung: Die vorliegende Studie beschäftigt sich mit dem tiefgehenden Einstellungswandel, welcher in den Sommer-und Herbstmonaten des Jahres 2000 innerhalb der jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit und insbesondere unter Sympathisanten der Friedensbewegung beobachtet werden konnte. Als bedeutsamer Einflussfaktor auf den plötzlichen Wandel der öffentlichen Meinung werden Informationen angesehen, die von Ehud Barak zum damaligen Zeitpunkt publiziert wurden. In diesem Artikel sollen zunächst die bedeutsamen Ereignisse und Fakten beschrieben, die Informationspolitik des Prämierministers evaluiert und abschließend die Einstellungsänderungen der jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit dargestellt werden. Die klassischen Modelle der Medienwirkungsforschung von Hovland und Kollegen dienen hier als konzeptueller Rahmen, um die Wirkung der massenmedial verbreiteten Information auf die Einstellungen der Öffentlichkeit zu untersuchen. Hovland geht in diesem Modell davon aus, dass massenmediale Beeinflussungseffekte durch die Art der Kommunikationsquelle, die Eigenschaften der Zuhörer und den Inhalt der Botschaft hinreichend erklärt werden können. Den Modellannahmen entsprechend wird also in dieser Studie der Einfluss von Ehud Baraks Informationspolitik auf die Einstellungen der (friedensbewegten) jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit untersucht.

This POLICY BRIEF approaches inter-religious dialogue, education, and action from two different p... more This POLICY BRIEF approaches inter-religious dialogue, education, and action from two different perspectives: the conceptual/theoretical and the practical views. The fi rst one concludes that one should not expect too little of religious peacebuilding, because religious institutions and leaders have enormous resources at their disposal for supporting peace. The second one holds that one should not expect too much: religion cannot be the main solution in the Israeli-Palestinian confl ict when it is not the core problem. In order to achieve a comprehensive peace which takes into account the religious and spiritual dimensions, believers on all sides need to become active on at least three levels: during offi cial negotiations, at the international/ regional level by religious authorities, and, fi nally, at the grassroots level. The latter is of special relevance since the challenge of transforming people’s hearts and minds after generations of confl ict requires a serious and systemati...

The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a v... more The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a variety of Middle East regimes. This POLICY BRIEF provides an overview of different cases where changes of and within the regime have taken place, as well as yet unsolved situations, with a view to the upcoming Middle East Conference. Although the lack of progress in the PalestinianIsraeli conflict as well as the international debate over the Iranian nuclear program are still contentious issues, the Arab Spring uprisings and their aftermath may provide a new context in which arms control initiatives could be more successful. It is too optimistic to think that existing dilemmas can be easily resolved in this new and changing environment, but the Arab Spring may provide strong momentum for change. For the Facilitator of the Middle East Conference and his team the following factors should form a checklist of issues requiring immediate attention: how domestic events positively or negatively a...

This paper reviews the achievements of Middle East environmental diplomacy under the multilateral... more This paper reviews the achievements of Middle East environmental diplomacy under the multilateral track and lays out a feasible program to build on these achievements. It argues that negotiations should be informed by three lessons from the history of international water diplomacy. These are: 1) unequal partners may unequally share the costs and benefits of cooperation; 2) third-party mediation is most successful if accompanied by “carrot and stick” policies; and 3) cooperation should proceed as a series of modest steps, rather than as a grand regional plan. The paper analyzes three issues in urgent need of multicountry cooperation. These are: 1) food for water trades to enhance food and water security in the region; 2) a transition to integrated pest management to halt the pollution of groundwater from agricultural runoff; and 3) the treatment and reuse of urban wastewater for health and water conservation. In addition, the countries of the region should, jointly and individually, ...

Peace Entrepreneurs and Social Entrepreneurship, 2021

Confluences Méditerranée, 2003

Distribution électronique Cairn.info pour L'Harmattan. © L'Harmattan. Tous droits réservés pour t... more Distribution électronique Cairn.info pour L'Harmattan. © L'Harmattan. Tous droits réservés pour tous pays. La reproduction ou représentation de cet article, notamment par photocopie, n'est autorisée que dans les limites des conditions générales d'utilisation du site ou, le cas échéant, des conditions générales de la licence souscrite par votre établissement. Toute autre reproduction ou représentation, en tout ou partie, sous quelque forme et de quelque manière que ce soit, est interdite sauf accord préalable et écrit de l'éditeur, en dehors des cas prévus par la législation en vigueur en France. Il est précisé que son stockage dans une base de données est également interdit.

Tikkun, 2010

E leven months have passed since the Obama administration took over. President Obama’s impact on ... more E leven months have passed since the Obama administration took over. President Obama’s impact on the entire world has been dramatic and impressive. But it seems that the issues that confront the president on every front are much more complex than hoped for, and, as we say in Hebrew, “as large as the expectation—the size of the disappointment.” There is an opportunity here and now to make a strategic change in Israeli-Palestinian relations, despite the fact that it cannot be done by traditional means. There is close to zero chance of a bilateral negotiated Israeli-Palestinian agreement at this time, given the political constellations in Israel and in Palestine. It is a waste of time and even dangerous to try to resume a negotiated process that will lead to open-ended negotiations with no real progress. In this region, we have already proven over and over again that we love to negotiate. We love peace processes. What we don’t like is making tough decisions. Another set of bilateral negotiations is a waste of time. There is nothing that can be added to the equation that was absent in the past. There is no chance of agreement at this time, and even getting to the negotiations will demand the fulltime attention of Middle East envoy George Mitchell. Both sides speak of no pre-conditions and both sides have put down pre-conditions that cannot be easily bridged. It is dangerous, because, as we have seen in the past over and over again, a failed and frustrating negotiation process can easily end up with another round of violence. The current economic growth in the West Bank is viewed by many as a sign of stability, and it creates the illusion that there is no real pressure to move forward with a political peace process. There is new investment and new building, employment is on the rise, young people are out every night in Ramallah, a cinema opened in Nablus, and a new passage for cars has opened in the Jenin area. At the same time, perhaps a bit less obvious to most Israelis, the territories are percolating with political activity. The popular resistance campaigns all around the territories are on the rise, and with them continued confrontations with the Israeli army. The Palestinian campaign to boycott Israel is gaining support, and a conference held in November was widely attended by Palestinian officials as well. The newly elected bodies established by the Fatah conference are working, organizing, and consolidating support for the future, including for a future uprising. It is important to remember that both the first and the second Palestinian intifadas erupted at times of great economic growth and hopes. The territories are ripe for real movement forward on the peace agenda. At the same time, they are also ripe for a new explosion. The continued settlement growth and the failure of Mahmoud Abbas to achieve a settlement freeze, coupled with the great disappointment that Palestinians already feel about the

This Working Paper is published by the CEPS Middle East and Euro-Med Project. The project address... more This Working Paper is published by the CEPS Middle East and Euro-Med Project. The project addresses issues of policy and strategy of the European Union in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the wider issues of EU relations with the countries of the Barcelona Process and the Arab world. Participants in the project include independent experts from the region and the European Union, as well as a core team at CEPS in Brussels led by Michael Emerson and Nathalie Tocci.

El Contemporani Revista D Historia, 2001

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2002

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2002

The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a v... more The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a variety of Middle East regimes. This Policy Brief provides an overview of different cases where changes of and within the regime have taken place, as well as yet unsolved situations, with a view to the upcoming Middle East Conference. Although the lack of progress in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as well as the international debate over the Iranian nuclear program are still contentious issues, the Arab Spring uprisings and their aftermath may provide a new context in which arms control initiatives could be more successful.It is too optimistic to think that existing dilemmas can be easily resolved in this new and changing environment, but the Arab Spring may provide strong momentum for change. For the Facilitator of the Middle East Conference and his team the following factors should form a checklist of issues requiring immediate attention: how domestic events positively or negatively a...

El Correo De La Unesco, 2001

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2003

Kurzfassung: Die vorliegende Studie beschäftigt sich mit dem tiefgehenden Einstellungswandel, wel... more Kurzfassung: Die vorliegende Studie beschäftigt sich mit dem tiefgehenden Einstellungswandel, welcher in den Sommer-und Herbstmonaten des Jahres 2000 innerhalb der jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit und insbesondere unter Sympathisanten der Friedensbewegung beobachtet werden konnte. Als bedeutsamer Einflussfaktor auf den plötzlichen Wandel der öffentlichen Meinung werden Informationen angesehen, die von Ehud Barak zum damaligen Zeitpunkt publiziert wurden. In diesem Artikel sollen zunächst die bedeutsamen Ereignisse und Fakten beschrieben, die Informationspolitik des Prämierministers evaluiert und abschließend die Einstellungsänderungen der jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit dargestellt werden. Die klassischen Modelle der Medienwirkungsforschung von Hovland und Kollegen dienen hier als konzeptueller Rahmen, um die Wirkung der massenmedial verbreiteten Information auf die Einstellungen der Öffentlichkeit zu untersuchen. Hovland geht in diesem Modell davon aus, dass massenmediale Beeinflussungseffekte durch die Art der Kommunikationsquelle, die Eigenschaften der Zuhörer und den Inhalt der Botschaft hinreichend erklärt werden können. Den Modellannahmen entsprechend wird also in dieser Studie der Einfluss von Ehud Baraks Informationspolitik auf die Einstellungen der (friedensbewegten) jüdisch-israelischen Öffentlichkeit untersucht.

This POLICY BRIEF approaches inter-religious dialogue, education, and action from two different p... more This POLICY BRIEF approaches inter-religious dialogue, education, and action from two different perspectives: the conceptual/theoretical and the practical views. The fi rst one concludes that one should not expect too little of religious peacebuilding, because religious institutions and leaders have enormous resources at their disposal for supporting peace. The second one holds that one should not expect too much: religion cannot be the main solution in the Israeli-Palestinian confl ict when it is not the core problem. In order to achieve a comprehensive peace which takes into account the religious and spiritual dimensions, believers on all sides need to become active on at least three levels: during offi cial negotiations, at the international/ regional level by religious authorities, and, fi nally, at the grassroots level. The latter is of special relevance since the challenge of transforming people’s hearts and minds after generations of confl ict requires a serious and systemati...

The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a v... more The transformations broadly grouped under the term Arab Spring have shaken the foundations of a variety of Middle East regimes. This POLICY BRIEF provides an overview of different cases where changes of and within the regime have taken place, as well as yet unsolved situations, with a view to the upcoming Middle East Conference. Although the lack of progress in the PalestinianIsraeli conflict as well as the international debate over the Iranian nuclear program are still contentious issues, the Arab Spring uprisings and their aftermath may provide a new context in which arms control initiatives could be more successful. It is too optimistic to think that existing dilemmas can be easily resolved in this new and changing environment, but the Arab Spring may provide strong momentum for change. For the Facilitator of the Middle East Conference and his team the following factors should form a checklist of issues requiring immediate attention: how domestic events positively or negatively a...

This paper reviews the achievements of Middle East environmental diplomacy under the multilateral... more This paper reviews the achievements of Middle East environmental diplomacy under the multilateral track and lays out a feasible program to build on these achievements. It argues that negotiations should be informed by three lessons from the history of international water diplomacy. These are: 1) unequal partners may unequally share the costs and benefits of cooperation; 2) third-party mediation is most successful if accompanied by “carrot and stick” policies; and 3) cooperation should proceed as a series of modest steps, rather than as a grand regional plan. The paper analyzes three issues in urgent need of multicountry cooperation. These are: 1) food for water trades to enhance food and water security in the region; 2) a transition to integrated pest management to halt the pollution of groundwater from agricultural runoff; and 3) the treatment and reuse of urban wastewater for health and water conservation. In addition, the countries of the region should, jointly and individually, ...

Peace Entrepreneurs and Social Entrepreneurship, 2021

Confluences Méditerranée, 2003

Distribution électronique Cairn.info pour L'Harmattan. © L'Harmattan. Tous droits réservés pour t... more Distribution électronique Cairn.info pour L'Harmattan. © L'Harmattan. Tous droits réservés pour tous pays. La reproduction ou représentation de cet article, notamment par photocopie, n'est autorisée que dans les limites des conditions générales d'utilisation du site ou, le cas échéant, des conditions générales de la licence souscrite par votre établissement. Toute autre reproduction ou représentation, en tout ou partie, sous quelque forme et de quelque manière que ce soit, est interdite sauf accord préalable et écrit de l'éditeur, en dehors des cas prévus par la législation en vigueur en France. Il est précisé que son stockage dans une base de données est également interdit.

Tikkun, 2010

E leven months have passed since the Obama administration took over. President Obama’s impact on ... more E leven months have passed since the Obama administration took over. President Obama’s impact on the entire world has been dramatic and impressive. But it seems that the issues that confront the president on every front are much more complex than hoped for, and, as we say in Hebrew, “as large as the expectation—the size of the disappointment.” There is an opportunity here and now to make a strategic change in Israeli-Palestinian relations, despite the fact that it cannot be done by traditional means. There is close to zero chance of a bilateral negotiated Israeli-Palestinian agreement at this time, given the political constellations in Israel and in Palestine. It is a waste of time and even dangerous to try to resume a negotiated process that will lead to open-ended negotiations with no real progress. In this region, we have already proven over and over again that we love to negotiate. We love peace processes. What we don’t like is making tough decisions. Another set of bilateral negotiations is a waste of time. There is nothing that can be added to the equation that was absent in the past. There is no chance of agreement at this time, and even getting to the negotiations will demand the fulltime attention of Middle East envoy George Mitchell. Both sides speak of no pre-conditions and both sides have put down pre-conditions that cannot be easily bridged. It is dangerous, because, as we have seen in the past over and over again, a failed and frustrating negotiation process can easily end up with another round of violence. The current economic growth in the West Bank is viewed by many as a sign of stability, and it creates the illusion that there is no real pressure to move forward with a political peace process. There is new investment and new building, employment is on the rise, young people are out every night in Ramallah, a cinema opened in Nablus, and a new passage for cars has opened in the Jenin area. At the same time, perhaps a bit less obvious to most Israelis, the territories are percolating with political activity. The popular resistance campaigns all around the territories are on the rise, and with them continued confrontations with the Israeli army. The Palestinian campaign to boycott Israel is gaining support, and a conference held in November was widely attended by Palestinian officials as well. The newly elected bodies established by the Fatah conference are working, organizing, and consolidating support for the future, including for a future uprising. It is important to remember that both the first and the second Palestinian intifadas erupted at times of great economic growth and hopes. The territories are ripe for real movement forward on the peace agenda. At the same time, they are also ripe for a new explosion. The continued settlement growth and the failure of Mahmoud Abbas to achieve a settlement freeze, coupled with the great disappointment that Palestinians already feel about the

This Working Paper is published by the CEPS Middle East and Euro-Med Project. The project address... more This Working Paper is published by the CEPS Middle East and Euro-Med Project. The project addresses issues of policy and strategy of the European Union in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the wider issues of EU relations with the countries of the Barcelona Process and the Arab world. Participants in the project include independent experts from the region and the European Union, as well as a core team at CEPS in Brussels led by Michael Emerson and Nathalie Tocci.

El Contemporani Revista D Historia, 2001

L Avenc Revista De Historia I Cultura, 2002