Environmental teaching and research program that prepares Israeli Arab and Jewish undergraduate and graduate students to address the region’s environmental challenges cooperatively. The Arava program runs during the academic year and is comprised of two 14-week semesters. The student body typically includes Israelis (both Arabs and Jews), Palestinians, Jordanians, North Americans and often a student or two from Europe, South America or Africa. Participants live together in a dormitory on Kibbutz Ketura and eat in a communal dining room. Students are required to take part in the Arava Institute’s Peace-building and Environmental Leadership Seminar (PELS), which is comprised of activities in three areas: a speakers’ forum, structured dialogue sessions and special sessions built into the field study trips.