See more photos of the program
From the 8th to the 19th of February 2016, the JAI has organized a program in Palestine for 12 global studies students, plus their teacher, from its partner Rønningen YMCA-YWCA Norway related FolkHighSchool.
Their program included meetings and chattings with Palestinian youth / students at the YWCA center in Ramallah and at Bethlehem University. This is beside meeting some Palestinian refugees at Aida and Dhaisha refugee camps in Bethlehem. It also included sessions and briefings or guided tours with Israeli activists from ICAHD, and international groups including the EAPPI and the TIPH.
The students did planting of sponsored olive trees through the Olive Tree Campaign, for three half days, at threatened Palestinian fields in the Bethlehem area, two of these days were together with the Olive Planting Program participants. In Ramallah, a trip was organized to the village of Nabi Saleh, which organizes weekly popular resistance activities and demonstrations against the wall and settlement in the village. There, they got the chance to meet the family of Bassem Tamimi, whose also one of the JAI’ beneficiary farmers.
Guided tours were organized in the Bethlehem area, Hebron old city, Ramallah, Jerusalem and Jericho, where they got the chance to witness the YMCA and YWCA centers and facilities in Beit Sahour, Ramallah, and Jericho. Professional presentations were also provided on the JAI and it Olive Tree Campaign, Refugees and the ongoing displacement of Palestinians by Badil center, the BDS Campaign, Palestinian Christians and Kairos Palestine.
The visit to Palestine has followed a week trip by two Palestinian JAI-trained youth and a JAI staff to the Rønningen FolkHighSchool in Norway by the end of January 2016. This is the 7th year of partnership between the JAI and Rønningen FolkHighSchool.