Understanding Israel

How much do Americans really know about the people and culture of Israel? How can we foster a better understanding of this intricate state and its neighbors?

Join Professor Nancy Koppelman as she explores 12 features of Israel’s history, diverse ethnic and religious ways of life, governance and justice structures, and educational system. This talk sheds light on the people who reside in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, and aims to provide history and context for this complex nation—the only state in the world with a majority Jewish population.

Nancy Koppelman (she/her) has been a faculty member at Evergreen State College in Olympia for 26 years. She teaches interdisciplinary programs that combine American history, literature, philosophy, and writing, among other fields. She holds a three-year appointment as Visiting Research Scholar with the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies at Brandeis University, where she was a faculty fellow in 2019. Koppelman lives in Olympia.