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Steering and Monitoring Committee, which led negotiations with Israel, invited civil groups, including NGOs, research organizations, and business organizations with an interest water issues, to be involved in discussions on the final status negotiations . Meanwhile, during the good years of the Oslo process, Friends of the Earth Middle East was informally invited as an observer to Joint Environment Committee meetings and asked to contribute ideas. In 2003, the Water Commission also became more open for dialogue on transboundary issues. While Friends of the Earth Middle East has always pushed the government to move forward on the peace process and prepared documents with creative ideas on how to resolve transboundary environmental issues, other Israeli organizations have shown less interest in being formally involved in the process. A final way in which civil society can influence the peace process is through encouraging international involvement. This could include international mediation by a neutral third party—an idea suggested independently by both the World Water Council and Green Cross International. This could be invaluable if both sides were willing to accept that, left to themselves, they may have difficulty in reaching a mutually acceptable agreement. Conclusion In the light of population growth, existing water stress, and climate change, it would not be unreasonable to propose that without cooperation on water management between the Israelis and the Palestinians (and their neighbors) both sides face an uncertain future. Cooperation to improve water infrastructure, to share technologies for desalination and recycling effluent, to promote an ethic of water conservation and preservation of water resources, and to find a resolution to disputed transboundary water sources offers some hope of a sustainable future for the people living in the region and for the environment. Civil society organizations, especially cross-border organizations, offer a way to move beyond the political crisis and address water issues without the heavy political baggage that surrounds the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They can also offer innovative ways beyond the impasse, including engaging international civil society. Practical contributions by civil society organizations toward resolving the conflict include generating shared research as well as offering practical support through technology transfer and capacity building. On a grassroots level, connections between neighboring communities forged by groups such as Friends of the Earth Middle East are invaluable in terms of raising awareness of the environmental justice issues. Perhaps the most important role of civil society toward resolving the transboundary water issues is, therefore, the personal connections and trust forged in communities and by environmentalists and scientists who have worked together on common concerns over the years. Such work has led to shared understandings and assumptions about these issues and has provided a forum for ongoing discussion, despite the changing political situation. The Role of Civil Society 291 Areas of shared interest include the following: • Avoiding damage to shared water sources (both streams and groundwater) through both sewage treatment and prevention of overpumping is important to both sides. Both Israeli and Palestinian NGOs are focused on preventing pollution. For Palestinians, this issue is framed in terms of creating the relevant infrastructure to avoid contamination, and for Israel this issue is framed in terms of protecting the environment and preserving open-air spaces. • There are some forums for cooperation. Some Israeli and Palestinian NGOs recognize the value of building long-term and personal connections and creating “water and environment community” of experts, academics, and officials, and their members work together based on shared assumptions in spite of the political situation. • Greater voice in the peace process is an area of shared interest for Palestinian NGOs keen to avoid another situation like the Oslo Accords, for joint Israeli and Palestinian organizations, and for Israeli NGO’s focused on environmental justice and human rights issues. Areas of disagreement include the following: • Due to the drastically different socioeconomic situations in Israel and the Palestinian territories, NGOs from each respective political entity often have different priorities. • Most Israeli environmental NGOs are not interested in addressing Palestinian water issues, apart from where they impinge on Israel. Most Palestinian environmental NGOs have no choice but to deal with transboundary water issues. • Palestinian environmental NGOs are keen to influence the peace process based on a desire to achieve an equitable and reasonable agreement over transboundary water issues. In Israel, only human rights organizations and cross-border NGOs are interested in influencing the peace process. references Friends of the Earth Middle East. 2005. Good water neighbours: A model for community development programs...

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