As part of my senior capstone, I was tasked with the biggest and most complicated group project I have ever had: negotiate the Israeli-Palestinian peace. My professor divided our class into three teams (the Israelis, Americans, and Palestinians) and asked us to simulate peace talks by formulating our own peace plan. Throughout the semester, we sat and negotiated. I was the leader of Team Israel, meaning that many times the negotiating decisions for my team came down to me. It was truly one of the most arduous tasks I had during my college career, but I believe we negotiated a relatively feasible solution.

Middle Eastern international political culture is often dominated by one question: which state is more powerful? This question is often most visible when looking at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Since the start of the conflict, each side’s actions can be looked at through a model of realism. However, this realism is grounded within the cultures of each side, which dictates that the pride of each side is dependent on the amount of power shown. The more power a side shows, the more pride each side can have. Thus, it is because of this grounding that the dream of peace in the Middle East can only be solved through understanding and working within the Israeli and Palestinian cultures.