Building community and social facilities in Bethlehem
       Bethlehem          December 14 - December 27, 2010

Volunteer project: The project seeks to bring people of various cultures together to build bridges of understanding, reconciliation, and peace. The long term goal of the project is to prepare youth to make positive contributions to their future and society through the values of understanding, helping, contributing tolerance, and respectful coexistence. These goals are achieved through education, awareness, youth empowerment and international volunteer projects.

The volunteers will work in different villages in Bethlehem and they will help the municipality of Bethlehem in achieving the projects they’re working on.
They have started to build a kindergarten, a parking, youth houses, gardens, a hospital and so on. The volunteers will work in this area along with the people from the municipality, taking up different tasks every day, such as painting, farming, cleaning, etc.

The volunteer project will be running at Christmas time in Bethlehem, the best place to celebrate Christmas in. The volunteers will have the opportunity to celebrate Christmas with the Palestinians, sharing their celebration and solidarity.

Language: English

Cultural activities: The afternoons will be used to give volunteers an intercultural learning experience, with a focus on showing them the Palestinian culture within the context of the occupation and hopes for the future. This will involve visits to refugee camps in Bethlehem, tours of places of interest, lectures, meeting Palestinian politicians and authors and most importantly, interaction with the local people. The volunteers will be able to visit the different associations and centers in the city where they can watch documentaries about the situation in Palestine and the Middle East. The volunteers will also have the opportunity to visit other cities in the West Bank, like Ramallah, Hebron, etc.

Accommodation: In a rented apartment.

Location: Bethlehem is considered a central hub of Palestinian cultural and tourism industries. The city has significant value for Christians as it is considered the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth according to the Gospels. Bethlehem is also home to one of the largest Palestinian Christian communities in the Middle East. In addition, Bethlehem has three Palestinian Refugee Camps (Dhisha, Al-Azza and Aaida). The construction of the Israeli apartheid wall has had a severely negative impact on Bethlehem politically, socially, and economically. The wall runs along the northern side of the town's built-up area, within meters of houses in 'A'ida refugee camp on the one side, and Jerusalem on the other.

Age range: 18 and over

Extra fee: 200 Euro
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

 

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