The Future Is Peace

Israeli and Palestinian authors come to TC to discuss the power of peacemaking

If you ask co-authors and peace activists Maoz Inon, an Israeli, and Aziz Abu Sarah, a Palestinian, anyone can be a peacemaker. The key is to reject the othering binaries by which we classify people as “us” versus “them.” 

“If you must divide us, it should not be based on race, religion, or color,” Abu Sarah says. “It should be based on those who believe in justice, peace, and equality, and those who don’t—yet.” 

Regardless of who you are or what you believe, it’s never too late to become part of “the greater us that are trying to make that change,” he adds. It’s this message of hope that the pair perpetuates in their collaborative book, The Future is Peace: A Shared Journey Across the Holy Land.

Join Abu Sarah and Inon as they take the National Writers Series stage on Sunday, April 19, at 7pm for a book talk presented in partnership with the Traverse City International Affairs Forum. 

Forgiveness Is a Powerful Choice

Their story begins on October 7, 2023, when Inon’s parents, along with thousands of other Israelis and foreign nationals, lost their lives in the surprise attack launched by Hamas that ostensibly marked the start of the ongoing war.

Though the pair had met briefly about a decade earlier when their travel work brought them to Jerusalem, they hadn’t connected since. Nevertheless, when Abu Sarah learned of the tragedy, he knew he had to reach out to Inon. 

“It was my first instinct,” he explains in the book. “I understood too well the pain he was going through.”

Having grown up in East Jerusalem during the First Intifada (i.e., a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation) in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Abu Sarah was no stranger to grief caused by hate and division. In fact, his own peacebuilding journey began as a result of his brother Tayseer’s death, who died when Abu Sarah was just 10 after spending nearly a year in Israeli prison.

Per Inon, it was this simple gesture of recognition and shared humanity that pulled him back from the brink. 

Since then, the pair have forged an inextricable partnership and through it convened a host of advocacy work—including the nonprofit InterAct International, of which they’re co-CEOs—geared towards ending the war in Gaza and fostering lasting peace in the Middle East and beyond. It was their celebrated talk at TED2024 in Vancouver that provided the impetus for The Future is Peace. 

“I’ve learned that the best way to motivate people, and to promote and choose reconciliation, is by action,” Inon adds. “Forgiveness is a powerful choice, and this is exactly what Aziz and I model [in the book].”

Walking the Land in Peace

The rest is, quite literally, history: specifically, that of the coastal swath along the eastern Mediterranean known as The Holy Land. 

This cultural and religious epicenter of a landscape is not only highly-contested in terms of geopolitical and occupational boundaries—particularly in the aftermath of the Israeli War of Independence following the Holocaust, and the resultant Nakba, or catastrophe, which displaced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the late 1940s—but is also an ancient historical crossroads wherein tenants of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity meet. 

In other words, residents of the region have been staring down a holy paradox for decades: with so many narratives, languages, and histories within its scope, the very land over which so many people are divided is also what unites them. 

The book encompasses an eight-day tour  through some of the region’s most contentious and historical hubs—from Inon’s childhood home in the southern Negev and the modern cityscapes of Tel-Aviv and Jaffa, to the tension-steeped Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank, biblical Galilee, and beyond—with the goal of giving voice to unheard stories and cultivating understanding and empathy as the foundation of lasting peace. 

“This is the only destination that is waiting for us,” Inon says. “That’s why the book is a journey: it’s not about logic or arguments, and definitely not debates. It’s about walking the land in peace, with peace.”

Shaping a Better Future

As Abu Sarah highlights, however, the rise of geopolitical tensions often poses a hindrance to peacebuilders seeking solutions, and visualizing a societal framework that’s both peaceful and sustainable becomes more difficult. 

“The people around us become victims of thinking that bombs and wars [are] the only way that they can be safe,” he says. “It’s up to us to remind them that we can shape a better future.”

As for what possibilities that future might hold? 

For starters, both writers underscore the importance of the shared values the book establishes: dignity, justice, recognition, healing, safety, and security for everyone. In other words, a world wherein the lives and rights of all people are equal. 

This, they believe, is attainable by means of more than one political option, including both one- and two-state structures. (Abu Sarah highlights a confederation, wherein both Israel and Palestine are autonomous with access to their respective holy sites, as the most likely solution.)

Per Inon, implementing strong international support and involving diverse voices with activists at the fore are also key considerations. He suggests a resolution between Israel and Palestine could be in the cards by 2030. 

The first step towards achieving this, the pair says, is daring to commit to the belief that achieving peace is possible, even when it feels like it isn’t. 

“The moment that we accept that a reality of conflict is [our] only potential is the moment we give up on life itself,” Abu Sarah says. “So, our message is saying you must believe in a future based on peacemaking.” 

Next, it’s time to take action. 

This part might feel overwhelming at first, so Abu Sarah suggests first focusing on the choices we can make, no matter how small. They recommend forging partnerships and crafting a roadmap toward a peaceful outcome. 

Once you have your framework in place, amplify, amplify, amplify! Per Abu Sarah, this could look like pursuing additional education; supporting peacemaking voices in the mainstream and on social media; legitimizing advocate voices; and when possible, inviting them into our communities.

“The book is a reminder that humanity will always overcome,” Inon concludes. “Peace will always prevail! There is no other destination for humanity—we just need to start walking the path.”

About the Event 

An Evening with Maoz Inon and Aziz Abu Sarah takes place on Sunday, April 19, at 7pm at Traverse City West Senior High School (5376 N Long Lake Rd.) in Traverse City and via livestream. In-person and virtual tickets for the event can be purchased through the links on the National Writers Series website. Select bundles include a copy of Abu Sarah and Inon’s featured book, The Future is Peace: A Shared Journey Across the Holy Land. The guest host for the event is Ed Ronco, a veteran reporter and news director at Interlochen Public Radio. For more information, visit nationalwritersseries.org.

For more information on Maoz Inon and Aziz Abu Sarah’s peacebuilding initiatives, visit their nonprofit website, iinteract.org. Find the book at thefutureispeace.com, and to learn more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, visit dualnarrative.org.

Pictured: Inon and Abu Sarah at a September 2025 Union Square NYC Peace Rally. Photo by Gili Getz.

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