The Mission Projects

EMIS is a student-led peace-building and environmental leadership initiative in which students engage in dialogue, workshops, and collaborative projects to promote coexistence and understanding across communities. It empowers young people to become active citizens, developing skills in communication, empathy, and leadership while addressing real social challenges.

This signature EMIS tradition takes place several times throughout the school year and offers students a unique opportunity to present their cultures and traditions, meet diplomatic representatives, and engage in meaningful dialogue. Students share their personal experiences of living and learning in a diverse international community, while diplomats and embassy representatives speak about their work, global cooperation, and the importance of intercultural understanding. The guests are often deeply impressed by the students’ maturity and global outlook, and they, in turn, offer insights, advice, and professional perspectives that inspire our students to see themselves as future leaders and active global citizens.

Each year, EMIS hosts a two day Model United Nations conference, fully planned and led by our students. The student organizing team selects the themes, designs the program, invites guest speakers, and welcomes delegates from schools across Israel, and at times from abroad. With around 200 participants, including approximately 100 visiting students, the conference offers an immersive UN style experience that builds diplomacy, public speaking, critical thinking, and leadership, while encouraging meaningful dialogue on global issues.

Every few years, EMIS hosts a student Hackathon designed to encourage creativity, innovation, and problem solving with real-world impact. Past themes have focused on sustainability challenges and using digital tools to promote the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In 2025, EMIS partnered with Wix to run a Hackathon where students built fully functioning websites to raise awareness and support for social and environmental initiatives they developed. Students worked in diverse teams, combining coding, design, marketing, and storytelling skills, while learning how technology can be used as a powerful tool for change. Several teams submitted their projects to a global youth competition, and one EMIS team won first place for their inspiring project “RootScape.” Their idea began as a student garden bed design on campus and grew into a scalable, marketable product that schools worldwide can adopt to promote sustainability education. The Hackathon is a highlight of the EMIS learning experience. It allows students to innovate, collaborate across cultures, and transform ideas into meaningful action, reflecting our mission of “Education for Change.”

Humans of EMIS is a documentary that tells the perspectives of 8 young students who belong to a unique international community and are constantly exposed to conflict. It is a mosaic of human experiences that attempts to shift the focus from big narratives to personal stories when dealing with conflict. The universal message of this project is that at the end of the day, even if we all have different backgrounds and unique experiences, we all share the same human emotions of fear, hope and love.

Every year, the Peace Simulation brings together EMIS students with the goal of equipping them with dialogue and conflict-resolution skills. Teenagers from Israel, Palestine, and around the world engage in discussions and negotiations about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, discovering just how complex these conversations can be. Through this experience, they learn the importance and difficulty of truly listening to “the other side” and gain a deeper understanding of the many intertwined factors shaping the conflict. Beyond gaining knowledge, students feel empowered, realizing that they can contribute to positive change. This transformative annual event is made possible by Tzili Charney and the Leon Charney Resolution Center.

Longer version: In this module, students become changemakers by leading hands-on, impact-driven projects that respond to real needs within our school community. With guidance from mentors, students transform ideas into meaningful action while bringing the school’s core values to life. Through collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving, students take ownership of projects that reflect their voices and priorities. Initiatives have included reimagining a student lounge to create a space designed by and for students, developing sustainability projects such as building a garden bed and creating up-cycled bird feeders, and launching a student-run newspaper. By working on tangible projects with real impact, students learn how local action can strengthen community and inspire positive change.

This module focuses on building the skills needed for respectful, meaningful dialogue around complex and sensitive topics. Students engage in guided conversations to develop empathy, active listening, and the ability to hear and understand perspectives different from their own. Through structured dialogue methods, students practice discussing challenging regional and social issues in ways that strengthen trust and community at EMIS. The module also invites students to reflect on identity—examining how personal experiences, assumptions, and societal influences shape who we are and how we communicate. By connecting self-awareness with dialogue skills, students learn how thoughtful conversation can reduce polarization, deepen understanding, and support a more inclusive and resilient school community.

In this module, students engage in creative, hands-on projects that link innovation with EMIS values and impact-driven action. Opportunities to make a positive impact is just a matter of creative thinking and taking initiative - students are empowered to find their own personal approach to doing good for their communities and the world at large. This learning might come in the form of beekeeping and understanding the important role of bees in ecology, working with AI, online campaigns, or the creation of art.

Field trips are designed to deepen students’ awareness of their environmental impact. We practice sustainability through conscious choices—reducing waste, respecting natural spaces, and learning directly from ecosystems and sustainability initiatives in the field.

Through shared experiences outside the classroom, Mission Week field trips foster empathy, dialogue, and understanding. Students practice peaceful communication, conflict resolution, and respect for difference in both structured activities and everyday interactions.

Field trips strengthen our sense of community by requiring cooperation, trust, and care. Living, traveling, and learning together helps students build meaningful relationships and a shared sense of belonging.

Mission Week experiences expose students to diverse perspectives and real-world contexts related to justice and human rights. Field trips encourage critical reflection on inequality, access to resources, and our role in promoting dignity and fairness for all.

Mission Week field trips connect learning to action by showing students how individuals and groups create change. Students are encouraged to ask questions, engage responsibly with communities, and reflect on how they can contribute positively beyond the trip.

During Mission Week field trips, students take responsibility for themselves, each other, and the places we visit. This includes being punctual, prepared, and mindful of how our actions reflect on our community and our host environments.