Name of organization:
Palestinian Center for Communication and Development Strategies (PCCDS)
Description of Organization:
PCCDS works since 2009 in the West Bank in the areas of youth, human rights and development. They build the capacity of youth on the issues of democracy, justice, social accountability, non-violence and human rights.
Context:
PCCDS decided to address the pervasion of intra-faith, political and socio-cultural divisions within Palestinian society, namely between Islamist, Secular and Liberal viewpoints and discourses. For PCCDS, these divisions harm the social cohesion both within and between the societies of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and also pose a challenge to the progress of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and the chances of resolving the conflict. Young people in general and university students in particular are among the most affected and targeted by these divisions.
Proposed Project and Expected Results:
PCCDS’s project proposes to open new doors of dialogue among Palestinian Islamist, Secular and Liberal youth, animated by the belief that young men and women have a strong power to change themselves and effect positive social change. It also aims to further empower young Palestinians to be part of the solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and contribute to peacebuilding. By the end of the project, they expect to:
- Train 50 students from 2 universities on intellectual and cultural dialogue;
- Sensitize 390 young Islamist, Secular and Liberal young people on the necessity of intellectual and cultural dialogue;
- Issue two booklets written by young Islamist, Secular and Liberal participants on intellectual and cultural dialogue and distribute them in cooperation with university administrations;
- Launch an online forum for intellectual and cultural dialogue giving space to the multiple perspectives and a platform for their interaction;
- Hold an anti-extremism youth national dialogue conference and mainstream its outcomes with the media, government, political parties and community leaders.
Project coordinator: Ms. Fida Abu-Turky
Contact information: info@pccds.com
Website: www.pccds.com