Right to Listen
transformative initiative
partners:
Fortuna Records,
Farah Raslan,
THE HUS.institute,
Staatsoper Unter den Linden,
RightsCon
organization:
Tel Aviv University,
Harvard Cultural Agents
speakers:
Doris Sommer,
Yirmiyahu Danzig,
Samer Sinijlawi,
Dr. Ada Aharoni,
Milette Shamir,
Dr. Nimrod Rosler,
Yirmiyahu Danzig,
Samer Sinijlawi
text:
Afrodet Zuri
About R2L project
The Right to Listen (R2L) is a bold transformative initiative that elevates listening and empathy as powerful catalysts for peaceful coexistence. R2L events create spaces where thought leaders, policymakers, artists, and citizens engage in deep listening—blending intellectual discourse with musical performance to show how listening shapes governance and peacebuilding. Following impactful gatherings in Milan, Athens, and global virtual forums like RightCon, R2L has emerged as a trusted platform for meaningful dialogue.
The Israel Edition of R2L | 2026
Where Listening Becomes Action
As R2L was introduced to Israel’s rich and complex social fabric, it convened a diverse chorus of voices to reimagine the act of listening in a region urgently seeking new pathways to understanding. Hosted in partnership with Tel Aviv University, this initiative underscores the transformative potential of active listening and cultural dialogue in conflict resolution — positioning Israel as a powerful lens through which to explore these dynamics. R2L highlights the critical role of soft power and human connection in advancing conflict transformation.
Pre-Texts
The Israel Edition of R2L took place over four days and featured Doris Sommer, Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures and Director of the Cultural Agents Initiative at Harvard University, leading a select group of guests in a Pre-Texts workshop. Pre-Texts is a methodology developed by Doris Sommer for education professionals to stimulate close reading and critical thinking by making art based on challenging texts. As an arts-based literacy program, Pre-Texts engages participants in creative interpretation, reflective writing, and group dialogue, using artistic production as a catalyst for deep textual analysis. The methodology highlights the vital connection between art and literacy, demonstrating that artistic engagement enhances comprehension, fosters empathy, and sharpens analytical skills. By inviting learners to respond to complex texts through artistic creation, Pre-Texts transforms passive reading into an active, imaginative, and collaborative process.
Doris Sommer | Harvard Professor & Cultural Agents Founder
A Symphony of Culture and Memory
The first day of R2L encompassed a rich sensory experience that celebrated culture, connection, and creativity. Attendees were immersed in a rich sensory experience that celebrates culture, connection, and creativity. A transportive musical performance by Fortuna Records drew from the forgotten soundscapes of the Middle East, evoking a profound sense of time, culture, and collective memory.
Zach Bar | Fortuna Records
The culinary reception, curated by Chef Farah Raslan of Knafeh Kaa — a celebrated finalist from MasterChef Israel Season 8 — guided guests on an intimate gastronomic journey bridging local and Lebanese kitchens. Drawing inspiration from the culinary traditions of Bilad al-Sham, the offering showcased the region's rich flavors through carefully crafted dishes that tell stories of shared heritage across borders.
Farah Raslan | MasterChef Season 8
The Clairmont Concert Hall | The Buchmann-Mehta School of Music | Tel Aviv University
The speaker program featured keynote remarks by Doris Sommer, Milette Shamir, Tel Aviv University Vice President International, and Dr. Nimrod Rosler, the academic head of the International Program in Conflict Resolution and Mediation, alongside leading voices in dialogue and peacebuilding, including Yirmiyahu Danzig and Samer Sinijlawi, who explore listening as a catalyst for connection across differences, and poet and peace researcher Ada Aharoni who offered a special reading of her poem, Peace is a Woman.
Through dialogue, art, music, and shared experience, Right to Listen invites participants to engage listening not as a passive skill, but as an active force—one capable of reshaping relationships, narratives, and futures. Designed as a flexible, place-responsive platform, Right to Listen can be adapted to any country or context—inviting partners worldwide to bring its practice of deep listening to life within their own communities.