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Ruwwad works closely with leading grassroots and international NGOs in the West Bank and Gaza--with a focus on organizations that specialize in youth programming and/or community assistance. Some of Ruwwad's past and current partners include:
Understanding
the connections with Ruwwad
partners through yarn
The Aspen Institute
Founded in 1950, the Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering enlightened leadership and open-minded dialogue. Through seminars, policy programs, conferences and leadership development initiatives, the Institute and its international partners seek to promote nonpartisan inquiry and an appreciation for timeless values. The Institute is headquartered in Washington , DC ; in the West Bank, Ruwwad works with Aspen to carry out the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership.
The Case Foundation
Jean and Steve Case founded the Case Foundation in 1997 to reflect their family's heartfelt commitment to finding lasting solutions to complex social challenges. Today, the foundation is pursuing a number of initiatives, and is particularly focused on three strategies: Encouraging collaboration, supporting successful leaders, and fostering entrepreneurship in the nonprofit sector. To date, Case has supported more than 150 organizations. The foundation's work stretches across the United States and around the world—and in Spring 2008, Case was instrumental in bridging these divides, by bringing Ruwwad youth from the West Bank to the U.S. for a unique leadership exchange. Ruwwad is now working with the foundation to deliver the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership.
The Palestinian Ministry of Youth and Sport
A key player in the new Palestinian Authority government of Dr. Salaam Fayyad, the Palestinian Ministry of Youth and Sport provides nation-wide services and resources to the country's young citizens and sporting organizations. The Ministry's main goals are to improve the mental and physical development of children and youth, improve the quality of national sports facilities, and develop strong extra-curricular programs across the West Bank . Ruwwad is currently advising the Ministry in key capacity-building areas, as the Ministry prepares to establish four Youth Development Resource Centers and oversee a new National Youth Corps.
Life and Hope Association
Life and Hope Association is a Gaza-based NGO that engages in various community service projects aimed at ensuring healthy lives for the poor and marginalized in the Gaza Strip: During the recent collapse of a sewage treatment facility that flooded the town of Um al-Nasser, the association provided 150 volunteers to assist homeowners in cleaning up the wreckage, among many other successful projects. In mid-2007, Life and Hope was awarded a Self-Reliance sub-grant from Ruwwad, so that it can coach youth to help distribute small farm animals —mainly hens and rabbits—to families in need, so that the families can have a source of food in their homes, but can also earn income by selling animal products.
Johoud for Community and Rural Development
Johoud promotes local Palestinian development by giving disadvantaged community members the skills and resources they need to become economically self-reliant. Johoud was awarded a Self-Reliance sub-grant from Ruwwad in mid-2007, which it will use to improve the skills, living conditions and livelihood opportunities of young women and men who are small business owners in the Ramallah and Tulkarem governorates: Through the Johoud sub-grant, young businesspeople will receive training in small business operation, marketing, and promotion—increasing the viability of their business ventures.
The Civic Forum Institute
The Civic Forum Institute ( CFI) was founded in 1995 as a grassroots civic education program managed by the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), as part of that organization's efforts to support and strengthen a democratic Palestinian society in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. CFI was awarded a sub-grant from Ruwwad in mid-2007, which it will use to organize leadership training seminars for young men and women—and to help these youth plan and carry out community activities like tree-planting and outdoor cleanup. Through these initiatives, CFI aims to increase the civic participation skills of young people in rural and marginalized areas of the West Bank, and give youth the chance to demonstrate their leadership skills.
Palestinian Livestock Cooperative Union
The Palestinian Livestock Cooperative Union is a local non-profit organization that primarily works to improve the livelihoods of Palestinian farmers and their families—and strengthen the agricultural sector of the Palestinian economy. In mid-2007,The organization received a Self-Reliance sub-grant from Ruwwad, which it will use to give goats and sheep to young farmers in the towns of Azzoun (Qalqilya governorate) and Zbuba and Kofr Dan (Jenin governorate)—and then train these farmers on animal health and husbandry, milk processing, and farm management.
The Palestinian Council for Development, Dialogue and Democracy (PCD3)
Since early 2006, Ruwwad has worked in close cooperation with local non-profit PCD3. Initial joint efforts centered around Ruwwad-supported, PCD3-led summer camps that ran in six districts (Ramallah, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus, Jericho and Jenin) during the summer of 2006. In total, approximately 1,900 youth aged 10 – 18 enjoyed summer-long fun and learning, led by 210 Youth Leaders—with the support of 30 small business operators in the West Bank, who supplied the camps with necessary equipment. Ruwwad is now working with PCD3 to run a series of organizational capacity-building courses for the NGO’s staff—on topics ranging from financial management to staff team-building.
East Jerusalem YMCA
The East Jerusalem YMCA is a vibrant and integral part of the Palestinian social fabric. As a member of the World Alliance of YMCAs , the EJ-YMCA is committed to a unique vision of community based on the universal values of human dignity, peace, and justice. Through diverse programs and activities with a focus on holistic youth development, the YMCA aims to work toward the building of a viable Palestinian state based on equality and social justice for all.
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