HEAL THE RIFT:

Heal the Rift is a student-run, non-profit organization which aims to promote peace and reconciliation between the Muslim World and the West. HTR was founded by four Middlebury students (including one MiddCORE graduate). Two are from the West and two are from the Muslim World. With $10,000 in seed money from the Davis Foundation Projects for Peace program, these social entrepreneurs have moved their organization from Middlebury to New York City to plan and prepare their inaugural event this summer: a public forum/festival entitled "Heal the Rift 2008".

"HTR 2008" will take place in late July in Washington Square Park and will feature high-profile speakers, musical performers, and Olympic athletes from both worlds. By capturing national, if not global, media attention, HTR 2008 will counter-balance the disproportionate amount of negative images of both sides in the public consciousness. HTR's goal is to alleviate the hysteria and suspicion that has been encouraged on both sides and to definitively prove that the "Clash of Civilizations" is pure illusion. People will finally be able to identify a tangible alternative to fringe elements that have regrettably come to characterize our two civilizations. Large-scale attendance and widespread coverage of HTR 2008 will demonstrate mass rejection of the message of radicals on both sides. It will promote a new atmosphere of optimism in relations between both cultures, and put our differences into perspective.

HTR 2008 is not geared towards policy change, nor is it a political protest -- it is simply an opportunity to celebrate solidarity between two cultures that share the same basic values. For additional details visit our website at www.healtherift.org or check out the attached documents

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

-In March 2008, HTR received $10,000 in seed money from the Davis Foundation's 100 Projects for Peace program. Here is a link to their website: http://www.davisprojectsforpeace.org/

-Three NGOs, Bridges of Understanding, Americans for an Informed Democracy, and the Islamic Society of North America (the largest Islamic organization in the United States) have decided to sponsor our summer event: Heal the Rift 2008. In the coming months, we intend to build a large coalition of educational foundations, charities, student groups, socially-conscious corporations, and academic institutions.

-We are currently applying for status as a 501c3 non-profit organization with the help of the NYC-branch of "Linklaters", a London-based law firm that has agreed to do HTR's legal work pro-bono.

-HTR has received the official endorsement of Afghanistan's ambassador to the United Nations, Dr. Zahir Tanin.

-The Vermont-based Corporation 'Life is Good', has agreed to provide HTR staff members with custom-made merchandise.

-Dawn, the largest English-speaking newspaper in Pakistan, has agreed to feature HTR when it suits the organization.

-$3,500 of additional capital has been raised in addition to the original grant from the Davis Foundation. This sum includes $1,000 from Hart-Boillot and $2,500 from Bridges of Understanding.

CHALLENGE TO THE MiddCORE COMMUNITY

"HTR 2008" in New York City is only the beginning. Heal the Rift is a movement which is rapidly gaining momentum and intends to continue with events held annually in major cities all over the world. These events will help counter-balance the negative images and conceptions that both sides have of the other, building a new atmosphere of optimism and understanding. This is our task and our challenge.

Our challenge to the MiddCORE community is to help us make "HTR 2008" a spectacular and inspiring event which will represent a turning point in the way our cultures engage and interact. Our goal is to double our current budget of $13,500 by June 8th.

The HTR founders have given up internships at prestigious corporations and investment banks to "boot-strap" it as social entrepreneurs; help us make the "HTR experiment" a successful model for building peace and reconciliation.