Support Palestinian& Jewish Youth Leaders in Jaffa

After an eventful summer, we were excited to open another year with more groups in each one of our main projects!

We began this project year in Community in Action with two new groups.

According to the new project format, one group follows our traditional model, which brings together local Palestinian and Jewish high school graduates to engage in bi-national learning, local volunteering, and social action; whereas a second group is run in cooperation with AJEEC and brings to Jaffa Jewish participants from the Jewish Scouts to learn and volunteer at local schools alongside Palestinian Jaffa residents.

The new groups include a total of 20 participants; of them, twelve Jewish and eight Palestinian participants, fifteen females and five males. The first group meetings took place in September, including uni-national workshops as well as bi-national discussions and activities. In the very beginning of the group process, emphasis is put on the uni-national work, with the purpose of building up the participant's confidence and comfort within their own identity. At this point, the Community in Action group is already preparing their first tour of the year – a participants-led tour of Jaffa.

Meanwhile, Sadaka-Reut staff started their own staff development process. Two days in October were dedicated to personal, political and professional introductions between new and old coordinators and facilitators from the different projects, and activities that encouraged staff members to reflect and situate themselves within group dynamics. Since our student project is expanding and now includes its own team of facilitators, our first staff development days were attended by no less than 22 people! We can't wait to see where eles this year will take our new participants and staff.