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Baladna Projects
05/09/2011 - 06:21

Baladna reaches its various goals through its core projects, which has been ongoing since the organization was founded in 2001 and its goals are as follows:

Leadership program

 

The Youth Leadership Program encourages the youth to participate, to be engaged, and to facilitate understanding about community issues. It aims to engage young Arab students to gain skills and knowledge necessary to lead civic engagement, education reform and community organizing activities.

     

Youth leadership training course:

 

The annually leadership training course introduces concepts and characteristics of leadership skills that helps students gain an awareness of their community. It addresses the different challenges faced by young Arab Palestinian citizens of Israel  aiming to enrich the skills needed to build a strong civic society among Arab Palestinian citizens of Israel and a more aware and active Palestinian youth.

 

A group of selected young students undergo an intensive course that allows them to gain the required tools and skills to implement active change in their community. The course enriches the young leaders with means to put into practice the program's goals.

     

Youth group Project

 

During September, at the beginning of high schools' calendar year, the new leaders establish youth groups, made up of 10-15 selected students, from their own village or city's high schools. The leaders take charge of their groups arising awareness of the youth to matters and issues that relate to their own community, and implementing a community service project to alleviate the problem.

 

To create a space in which youth can explore issues of identity and develop the capacities to effect change in their own communities. Within the youth groups project secondary school students participate in: *Public Achievement project - Allows the youth to identify problems within their own community and act upon these by engaging in a project which will make a difference in their local community. *Interregional Encounter - Youth from the different regions throughout the country will meet together to recognize their shared society, culture and history.

 

Youth Centre

 

Nadi baladna, the youth center of the Baladna- association for Arab youth, is the club that hold its various cultural activities. It gathers the youth in events along the year, and it is known to be the place that withholds many workshops, concerts, cultural and social events for the Arab youth community.

 

 Thousands of youth benefited from the youth centre annually, and about 70 youth from the branches of the leadership program use the centre regularly.

 

Campaigns

 

Baladna is responsible for campaigning for the rights of young Arab Palestinian citizens ofIsrael. Each year we initiate a new campaign. Few campaigns continue on for further additional years, it depends on the significance of the campaign.

 

 Against the Civic Service Campaign

 

Currently we have joined hands with a group of political, social and national organizations in Israelto form The Coalition of Youth against the Civil Service, which is taking a stand against the Israeli government's proposal for the Civil/ National Service project for young Arab Palestinian citizens of Israel, for its third year now. It is an active campaign to promote awareness and educate the Arab youth population as to why the civic service project is in fact a disabling project for the Arab community. This campaign goes to show that the civic service program is not as democratic and civil as it is presented by the government ofIsrael. Instead, it is a full attempt by the state to strip the Arab population of its Palestinian identity by the process of Israeli acculturation.  

 

 Anti Violence Campaign

Baladna- Association for Arab youth has continued its campaign to reduce the risk of violence by educating the youth about non-violent methods, and encouraging them to seek non violent solution to problems they face in their daily lives.

Therefore, “The Count to Ten” campaign has continued on for its second year, aiming to promote anti-violence. This campaign teaches youth to be more tolerant while facing a situation that can provoke them to use violence.

 

Media Projects

 

The association formal website enables easy access to more widespread communities, as well as Baladna's youth, reaching to around 40,000 users a month. At www.momken.org you can find reliable information about the different campaigns and activities that the association holds on monthly bases. This website also provides various ranged information about the organization and its approach to community issues. Our users can find job opportunity pages, scholarship offers, links and so on.

 

Other youth projects

 è International activities and Exchanges: Baladna organizes several international exchanges throughout the year, which gives young people the opportunity to experience youth participation and community work in a variety of cultural, social and awareness-raising activities in support of anti-discrimination and anti-racism efforts in communities all over the world. Baladna is also the official branch of Youth Action for Peace, an international peace movement which aims towards societies of peace, justice and self-determination.

è Courses for Youth: Baladna hosts a number of courses throughout the year, which give young Arab Palestinians of Israel the opportunity to develop and enhance their skills in a range of fields, for example photojournalism and drama courses.

 
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