Seeds of cooperation unreported by the BBC

We have noted here before that BBC journalists in Israel usually refrain from informing their audiences of the many stories of cooperation and coexistence which do not fit into the conventional narrative on the Middle East.  

Here is one such recent story:

“Last Wednesday and Thursday two groups of Palestinian farmers (60 persons in total) had left the Gaza Strip in order to attend an agricultural seminar in northern Israel, designed to further facilitate the Gaza agricultural sector. Farmers, heads of agricultural associations and merchants had arrived at the conference sponsored by Origins Seeds Company, a company which exports cucurbitacae (pumpkins, squashes, etc.) and field cultivation seeds to 17 world countries, including the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Last years, the farmers had purchased seeds from the company and were pleased with their quality, and so it was important for them to attend the seminar and learn more about the product they’re using. During the seminar, the farmers completed several workshops on cultivation methods, planting schedules, soil preparation, proper use of irrigation and fertilizer and disinfestations methods.

In addition, the farmers focused primarily on watermelons, and had stated that this year, owing to the training programs conducted frequently in Israel; growers had achieved unprecedented crop yields – 11 tons of produce for each decare of cultivated fields – A twofold increase compared with the preceding year.”

Courtesy of the No Camels website comes news of another interesting case of Israeli knowledge traversing borders:

“The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has started teaching its global course in partnership with Coursera, which provides free online courses from senior lecturers at some of the world’s leading universities.

The course, Synapses, Neurons and Brains, has approximately 40,000 students from around the world registered, including students from Lebanon, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, India, Azerbaijan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco and Algeria, as well as  Europe, South America, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

The online course will acquaint students with the human brain’s functioning and basic components, exciting aspects of current brain research, and the future of brain research. The nine-week course, which will begin on May 31, is taught by Professor Idan Segev of the Hebrew University’s Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences.”

Curiously, the BBC appears not to find such stories newsworthy. 

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