By: Miranda Lapides, Hasbara Fellow '13

It’s been quite an exciting semester for the pro-Israel community here at George Mason! The Israel Student Association has had two big events this semester, our first one being a fundraiser for Syrian refugees called Step Up for Syria. We had papers face down and for every $5 that was donated to a paper, we would flip that piece over. Ultimately, the flipped papers created a larger image of a Syrian child, a fact about the conflict, and an inspirational quote by Anne Frank. We raised about $360 that would go to the Red Cross to improve the quality of life for refugees. Our group along with members of Alpha Epsilon Pi and Sigma Alpha Epsilon helped make this successful event possible.

By: Ron Feingold '13 & Shira Frishman '12, Hasbara Fellows

One of the most basic concepts discussed in an introductory economics class is that people respond to incentives. Whether they are used to reward positive and wanted behaviors or to punish unwanted ones, incentives play a major role in the decision making of individuals.

Governments oftentimes use incentives to promote a certain policy amongst their citizens. Last week, for example, the Israeli government released 26 Palestinian prisoners — all convicted murderers — as a goodwill gesture to encourage and expedite the American-brokered peace talks.