Post on 07-Jul-2016
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ANNUAL REPORT 2015
THE PACE OF NATURE
A big thank you for your extraordinary support in 2015!
It has been a year of many changes and challenges (and some unexpected opportunities) along the Abraham Path and in the Middle East at large. Today we find ourselves swimming against a current of conflict and division that threatens the safety and basic values of many of the communities along this ancient route. It is in times like these that walking the path of hope is perhaps most difficult, but at the same time most necessary. It is in times like these that the hospitality of perfect strangers reminds us that whatever divides us, what unites us is far greater. Our common story began here, on the same earth that is constantly besieged and disputed today.
By supporting the Abraham Path, by being part of our global community, you
are defying those who instill fear, and announcing the presence of hope. You have helped us to reach a goal that but a few years ago seemed wildly improbable: over 1,000 miles this year passing through 150 communities throughout the Middle East. You are helping walkers from around the world connect with families and guides who couldn’t be more proud and delighted to receive them, in a world where many would prefer they were kept apart. Amazingly, the number of walkers on the path, reinforced by locals, keeps rising year by year, a promising sign of resilience and hope.
I hope that you can all experience the path for yourself one day, to walk in the footsteps of the Friend, as Abraham is known, and to ‘meet the family,’ as we like to say. There are always homes and hearts open and waiting for you. Until that day comes, we will continue to work to bring the path to
you, through our online guidebook, through social media and videos, and through walks and events for our circles of friends around the world.
I feel honored that you choose to support this audacious project, in all its complexities and triumphs. Each homestay or wilderness guide training, partnership with a local NGO, and waymark along the trail, has been possible because of you.
Please accept my deepest gratitude. Step by step with you along the path,
Dear Friend,
William Ury | ChairAbraham Path Initiative
We invite you to participate
in a grand adventure: to walk
together in the cradle of
civilization, to meet people
from different cultures and
traditions, to learn something
new about ourselves, others,
and the world, and to serve
the larger community.
The Abraham Path is a cultural walking route
through the heart of the Middle East, Rated the
world’s #1 new walking trail by national
geographic in 2014
“Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“The Abraham Path is an exercise in the
possibility of change.”
– Peter Beaumont for The
Guardian
December 2015
abraham path in the news 2015:
2015 in numbers
14 NEW Regions ALONG THE PATH
17NEW communities
930 MORE kiloMETERS
2,800 MORE walkers
IMprovement over 2014:
2015 TOTALS: 29 REGIONS, 128 COMMUNITIES, 2,008 KM, 5,800 WALKERS
2015 has seen many successes for our partnership project with the
World Bank, Masar Ibrahim: Economic Development Across Fragile
Communities. The project has continued in its second year to make
progress in its all components, with a strong focus on:
• the capacity and the institutional sustainability of the local actors
across the value chain of the path
• development of the path
• promotion of the path and expansion of the private sector
engagement on the path
• action research via engagement of experts on experiential
tourism in fragile and conflict affected societies
PARTNERSHIP WITH the WORLD BANK
Completed activities together with those still
ongoing contribute to rural development,
employment, and women’s empowerment
in communities normally excluded from
the mainstream economic development
and investment in the West Bank, and often
disconnected from one another. The project
has been extended to June 2017 and is poised
to build on this foundation, scale up its impact,
and achieve its full potential.
Investing in peopleBeyond the development of local
trails, the Abraham Path Initiative
is committed to investing in local
talent and entrepreneurship that
can enhance outdoor culture in the
region at large. One shining example
of this skill-sharing is Osama, an
experienced wilderness guide
from Jordan for whom API
funded a Wilderness
Emergency Medical Technician
certification early in 2015. With his
background in eco-tourism and new
medical credentials from the SOLO
School of Wilderness Medicine in
New Hampshire, USA, Osama has been
teaching Wilderness First Aid to guides,
adventurers, and outdoor enthusiasts
throughout the Middle East.
Thus far Osama has taught 4 sponsored
courses through partnerships with Mercy
Corps, Operation Mercy, and Bethlehem
University, with approximately 40
completing the training in Wilderness First
Aid. Participants have included current
wilderness guides and trainees, as well
as people from other ends of the tourism
sector, including staff of an award-winning
eco-lodge in Jordan.
This year, the ever-expanding resources in our online guidebook, which is
the only comprehensive database of Abrahamic sites and routes, brought
walking the Middle East to new terrain.
Under the care and hospitality of Bedouin tribes, groups of walkers explored
the arid landscapes of the Sinai from the Red Sea to Saint Catherine.
In December, two British walkers embarked on an
epic journey of over 1,000 miles through the Middle
East. Documented on walkthemasar.com, their
experience of slow travel through rural communities
showed the world the warmth and openness of the
region that media so often obscures.
Finding real-life adventure
“I walk and talk; sweat and breathe. I clack my hiking poles together at
barking dogs, and I drink deeply when I find a spring. I look to the sky regularly for more rain, and I scan hilltops when I hear the greetings of a shepherd. I head south at 3 miles an hour. Onwards, along the masar.” – Leon McCarron
While the path continued to grow in miles
and impact in 2015, our global community of
supporters had numerous firsts and reached new
audiences this year. In June, our friends group
in Brazil hosted another successful Caminho
da Paz run through São Paulo, celebrating the
religious and ethnic diversity of the city and of
Brazil. In addition to registering Abraham Path
in the Netherlands for European donor outreach,
this year saw the great success of our first ever
crowdfunding campaign! We raised over $32,000
thanks to social media outreach and the personal
passion of supporters like you. Thank you for
being such a supportive, enthusiastic family!
Building a global community
Herve Aaron Najah Abouelafia Cheryl Alexander Judith Ansara & Robert Gass Gidon Ariel Loes & Stan Asmus Molly Baldridge Joe Bamberg David Baum Simon C. Bell Jerome Bellion-Jourdan Alice Bender Mark Biddle Ihab Bishara Anders Bjerkholt Sergio Bondi Charles & Jonelle Boteler Ellen Brock & Larry Kaptein Branwen Cale James Carty Connery Cepeda Alexandre Chade Adolf Chang Jean Pierre Chatelain Gabrielle Chatelain Colleen Clark Alice Clough Ty Cobb Bert & Barbara Cohn Susan Collin Marks
Michael Collins & Beverley Freeman Cynda Collins Arsenault & Marcel Arsenault Rich Curd Shaynna Cutler David Dantzic Lance Davis Roger de Freitas Julie de Gongre Zachary DuBow Krzysztof Dziedzic Celeste en Lennard Scholtz Keith & Lorraine Fairmont Bob & Joan Feitler The Flora Family Foundation James Patrick Finerty Elisabeth Forney Mimi & Peter Frankel Morris Friedell David Friedman Benjamin Friedman Terry Gilman Ellen Giordano Stephen Goldberg Morton Goldfein Anthony Gonzalez Claire Lieberman Goulding Catherine & Matthew Grainger Paul & Dedrea Gray
Marcia Greenblatt Martin Grottenthaler Isabelle Guy Susan Hackley & Paul Henry Nohad Harati Matt Harms Leigh Harrison Thomas Hast John Hawks Katrin Henkel Ronit Herzfeld Frances & Timothy Hester Fiona Hodgson Daniel Hogan Jenna Hornsby Ron & Janet Hornsby Sophie Howarth Nancy Huntingford Forsan Hussein Katrina Jacobs Nicolas Joly Ginny Jordan Hilary Kalisch Tad Kelly Ron & Sue Kertzner Anthon Keuchenius Laura Klemt Susan Klemt Saadi Neil D. Klotz Dominik Knill
Anna-Marie Krahn Buddy Kring & Ellen Dale Otto Laurila Stephane Le Cam Judith Litjens Katie Lunday Donald & Lissa Lundgren Cully Lundgren Bettina Müller Barry Madani & Dyala Roda Jamil Mahuad Veronica Martini Cherise McGivern Anisa Mehdi & Peter Zimmerman Rev. Elizabeth Mirante Thomas Modern Nicole Montgomery Hana Nečasová JS Noël Tyler Norris Simon Olsen Lene Ostergaard Christie Platt Oliver Pospisil Bernard Prat Mary Elizabeth Pratt Neil & Trudie Prior Barbara Reiner Lis Rhodes Elsi Rizvanolli Riana Robert
Jane Roberts Judy Robinson Debbie Rolfes Craig Rosenberg Russ Rosenzweig & Lucy Liu Rosenzweig Ron Rubenstein Amaia Sánchez-Cacicedo Frank, Thomas & Alison Sander The Sandpiper Fund Zeynep Satana Jerome Sauvage Lionel & Ariane Sauvage Stefan Schütz Ivan Schouker & Cynthia Anderson James K. Sebenius & Nancy Buck Martina Sedlakova Linda Sena Ross Sherbrooke Dorothy Sherwood Louise Sibley Fay Simcock Dick Simon Ian & Caroline Smith Bud & Charlotte Sorenson Jan Stahl & Cynthia Ruggero Charles Steinberg & Torkin Wakefield John Steiner & Margo King
Hannah Stork Stefan Szepesi & Kirsten Asmus Raymond Taraila Nelson Teixeira Jocelyn Tetel Peter & Barbara Thornton Mark Tinglof Carl and Tinbet Tinstman Barbara Trager Dan Urbach Gabi Ury William & Lizanne Ury Andrew & Lucie Ury Elizabeth Ury Brenda Valiente Sharon & Leaf van Boven Philip Van Dyke John Vermilye Jan Volkmer Victor Weisberg Josh Weiss Rick & Rebecca White Mary White Kelsey Whiting-Jones Glenn Whitney & Conner Middelman-Whitney Andrew Wilson Mark Yolleck Anonymous
We want to express our deepest gratitude to those who donated in 2015:
William Ury | Chair
Anisa Mehdi | Vice-Chair
Raed Saadeh | Vice-Chair
Lionel Sauvage | Vice-Chair
Board of Directors
Mona Adeljawad
Alexandre Chade
Paul Gray
Jamil Mahuad
Verónica Martini
James Sebenius
Ivan Schouker
Louise Sibley
Stefan Szepesi
Josh Weiss
Aseel Zahran
Our work would not be possible without the leadership and commitment of our Board of Directors:
Board members and friends walking in Jordan in March 2015
Financial InfoRMATION
World Bank Income: 32%Other Institutional Income + Interest: 3%
INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS: 57%In-Kind Donations: 8%
Total Income $1,410,765
Administration: 20%Program: 80%
Expenses: $1,171,744
World Bank Income: 53%Other Institutional Income + Interest: 1%INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS: 41%In-Kind Donations: 5%
Total Income $2,036,899
Administration: 20%Program: 80%
Expenses: $1,980,077
2014 2015
*Audited financials will be made available as soon as 2015 audit is complete.
USA Mailing Address:
Abraham Path Initiative PO Box 473 Concord, MA 01742 USA
USA Physical Address:
Abraham Path Initiative 1563 Massachusetts Ave Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
European Address:
Abraham Path Initiative PO BOX 25209 3001 HE – Rotterdam Netherlands
UK FRIENDS OF ABRAHAM PATH:
Friends of Abraham Path 7 Mill Plat, Isleworth London TW7 6DY United Kingdom
Partners
In partnership with the Harvard
Program on Negotiation, API held
our first ever public symposium,
which was attended by over
100 guests from throughout the
community, and featured expert
speakers from around the world.