Iraqi high school students visited the University of Denver to have the opportunity to see faces, hear the voices, ask questions and begin a dialogue of mutual respect and understanding with teens in Israel representing Arabs, Jews, Christians and Moslems.
 
The teenage Iraqi students were guests of ISIME on the University of Denver campus. These Iraqi teens are in Denver on the Iraqi Youth Leaders Exchange Program sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U. S. State Department.
 
The Israeli students were teenagers from the Galilee and the Negev regions of Israel. Their backgrounds were Arab, Jewish, Christian and Moslem. They traveled to the AVCOM facilities in Tel Aviv where they will be led by Shaul Amir, the ISIME Israel Director.
 
ISIME is a center at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of International Studies and is devoted to the scholarly, cultural and economic study of Israel and its neighbors in the Middle East, providing education in the pursuit of peace. Attention is paid to both internal and regional issues confronting Israel, with an emphasis on delivering diverse points of view. All work at the Institute is done with the intention of pursuing peace and prosperity for all peoples living in the Middle East.
 
The videoconference used the LifeSize Room HD videoconferencing system and a Codian MCU 4500 Series conferencing bridge with a Codian IP-VCR video conference recorder.
 
The relationship between Israel and Iraq has been a challenging one since 1948. From the early stages of Iraqi and Israeli statehood, relations between the two countries have remained at best hostile. After enduring two wars (1948 and 1967) and strategic missiles volleys from both sides (1981 and 1991), the young states of Israel and Iraq matured as enemies, and, to this day, the two countries have yet to reconcile their differences.
 
“This historic event shows how communications technology, when thoughtfully and creatively applied, can help break down barriers that have existed for generations,” said David Holloway, CEO of Codian. “We see limitless potential for high-definition video to foster better understanding among countries, their peoples, and their cultures.”
 
The Codian MCU 4500 Series includes full Continuous Presence for all conferences, and with Codian® ClearVisionTM, it enables the mix of high, standard and enhanced-definition, so that organizations make the most of high-definition installations.
The Codian IP VCR 2200 Series is a unique digital recorder specifically designed for video conferencing, enabling valuable video content to be preserved for future viewing. This innovative system streams live or plays back content on-demand to a PC or any video conferencing endpoint.
 
RJ Macklin Associates, an innovative nationwide systems design and integration company,  based in Centennial, Colorado provided technical support for the event. More at: www.rjmacklin.com.

About LifeSize
LifeSize is the first company to develop and deliver high definition video communications products.  Founded in 2003 by industry veterans, LifeSize’s award winning solutions combine exceptional quality, user simplicity and administrator manageability to make video communications a productive, true-to-life experience.  LifeSize is headquartered in Austin, TX with subsidiaries in the U.K., Germany, Hong Kong and Singapore and has a network of channel partners in more than 20 countries.