Sixteen teenagers from Haifa, Israel will be attending a pilot program designed to create and promote peace and cultural understanding.

Project TRIUMPH (Today's Revolution is Understanding: Make Peace Happen), will take place at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute in Simi Valley from June 4 to 16.

The participating teenagers are high school sophomores and juniors and come from Muslim, Jewish and Christian backgrounds.

The leadership conference is jointly sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of Newbury Park and Haifa. Students from the Conejo and Simi Valleys will also participate in a portion of the conference.

"These kids come from a very volatile part of the world," said Ilan Migdali, a Newbury Park Rotarian who emigrated to the U.S. from Israel in 1982 and who was instrumental in creating the program. "They were not chosen necessarily because of their aca

demics, but because of their strong leadership skills. We want them to take what they will gain from this experience and motivate others."

The mission of Project TRIUMPH is to facilitate peaceful dialogue and respect between faith cultures, to develop future leaders and to create stronger communities both here and in Israel.

Each of the 16 teens has committed to undertake a community project for one year following the conference. They have been meeting every two weeks in Israel since December.

The Rotary Club of Haifa supervised selection of the teens.

CEO2, a Ventura County organizational leadership development company, created the twoweek program. The Haifa teens will take part in leadership and team building programs, participate in outdoor activities, attend local high schools, meet local dignitaries, visit Southern California sites and spend time with Rotarian families.

Their workshop sessions will also include an open dialogue with a rabbi, imam, pastor and each other; cultural exchanges of customs and beliefs and journaling their thoughts and experiences.

The Newbury Park Rotary Club is committed to Project TRIUMPH for 10 years.

The cost of the program is about $50,000 annually. Funds were contributed by the following Rotary Clubs: Newbury Park, Haifa, Simi Sunrise, Thousand Oaks Noon Club, Thousand Oaks Sunrise, Simi Noon Club, West-lake Sunrise, Simi Breakfast Club, Moorpark and Romania, making the program an international collaboration.

The Jewish Community Foundation and Calvary Church were large contributors.

For more information, visit the Newbury Park Rotary website, www.nprotary.org or the Brandeis-Bardin Institute web-site, www.thebbi.org.