Campus Voices: Civil Engagement in an Era of Division
Overview:
Campus Voices is a podcast series dedicated to equipping college communities with the tools, strategies, and inspiration to engage respectfully across differences, including confronting the rise of Jew-hatred on campuses. Across five episodes, distinguished guests including scholars, journalists, filmmakers, lawyers and public intellectuals share their expertise in civil discourse, debate, and conflict navigation. Each conversation offers actionable insights, models constructive dialogue, and highlights the real-world experiences of those fostering understanding in polarized environments.
Why This Matters:
College campuses today face heightened tension, where students, faculty, and administrators often struggle to discuss challenging topics without conflict or disengagement. Online discourse, social sensitivity, and ideological polarization can inhibit meaningful conversation. Campus Voices empowers listeners with practical strategies, amplifies courageous voices, and strengthens the capacity of communities to engage thoughtfully, respectfully, and with confidence.
Interested in what this season will bring? Be sure to subscribe to be the first to listen.
Brought to you by Trauma Informed Learning Alliance. Our Stories Matter uplifts personal and collective stories as pathways to healing. Each guest brings forward a narrative that celebrates resilience, fosters recognition of our shared humanity, and helps change the narrative toward empathy and unity. Through these conversations, we cultivate connection and community healing.
As journalist Lauren Gilger profoundly states, “the power of the story will save us all.”
Thank you to the Academic Engagement Network for supporting Our Stories Matter; Courage on Campus. We hope this initiative can help advance DEI efforts in colleges and universities, fostering unity and reducing polarization.
In honor of Jewish American Heritage Month and Jewish Heritage Month in Canada, the Our Stories Matter; We Will Dance Again podcast has been selected for inclusion in the Artists Against Antisemitism gallery.
Please click link to view the gallery.
💔 How do you choose peace, humanity, and coexistence in the face of devastating grief?
In this episode of Campus Voices: Civil Engagement in an Era of Division from Our Stories Matter, Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, Gazan-American writer, peace advocate, Founder of Realign For Palestine, and Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, shares a deeply personal conversation about grief, identity, extremism, coexistence, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Proudly pro-Palestine and pro-peace, Ahmed speaks openly about growing up in Gaza, losing family members in airstrikes, and navigating the pain, trauma, and political complexity surrounding Israel and Palestine.
This conversation explores:
• The Israeli-Palestinian conflict
• Gaza, grief, and personal loss
• Peacebuilding and coexistence
• Anti-Hamas perspectives from Gazan voices
• Human rights and civil discourse
• Extremism and political polarization
• Israeli and Palestinian dialogue
• Turning trauma into purpose and advocacy
Rather than embracing hatred or division, Ahmed discusses his decision to connect directly with Israeli survivors and hostage families while advocating for empathy, accountability, dignity, and long-term peace.
✨ This episode challenges reductionist narratives and asks what it means to keep humanity at the center during conflict and loss.
If you care about peacebuilding, Middle East dialogue, coexistence, civil engagement, human rights, resilience, or difficult conversations across divides, this episode is for you.
🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen on your favorite podcast platform.
❓If grief can fuel hate… can it also fuel peace?
Our Stories Matter is honored to share the stories of a diverse group of activists, artists, and healers.
Our Stories Matter is proud to work with these fierce co-hosts.
Meet the team that makes the Our Stories Matter podcast possible!
We are raising money for Trauma Informed LA’s new podcast, Our Stories Matter, which celebrates the complex lived experiences of activists and healers by sharing their inspiring stories. We are invested in its mission to foster resilient communities that promote healing and well-being.
Our Stories Matter is proud to work with these fierce co-hosts.
