Birzeit University is once again bustling with students. A month into our placement and we have now met all 40 volunteers who work on the Right 2 Education Campaign each and everyone has so much to offer!

Now that the new semester has begun the Right to Education team has divided its volunteers into teams to work on different aspects of the campaign. The Campus Activities group is thinking of new ways to raise awareness on campus: 'grab a coffee' day and 'build a wall' are just a couple of ideas the team has in mind. These activities ultimately raise awareness about the campaign on campus, as the R2E students feel a level of normalisation is apparent amongst Palestinians regarding the political situation. The Skype Conferences team focuses on our international audience, trying to connect with international institutions and gain overall solidarity from around the world. Furthermore we are in the process of working on a video that will give an insight into lives of children and their struggle for an education in Palestine. To ensure people are up to date with our campaign we are now up and running on many social media platforms such as Instagram (@Right2edu), Facebook (Right to Education Campaign Palestine), Twitter (twitter.com/Right2edu) & YouTube (tinyurl.com/Right2EduChannel), tell everyone and get following!

Besides our work on and off campus, we visited Nablus in the North of the West Bank. We visited the charming old city, a very old soap factory and saw how Knafeh (sweet delight) is made, we also paid a visit to Tomorrows Youth Organisation & An-Najah Univeristy. 

TYO is an amazing organisation that works with disadvantaged children and mothers mainly from nearby refugee camps to realise their potential as healthy, active and responsible community members. They offer educational programmes for both children and mothers such as computer skills and English as well as critical thinking, problem solving and cooperation. TYO also pays home visits after the children and parents 3 month placement is over to ensure they are utilising the skills learnt and monitors their progress.  

Through visiting other educational institutions in Palestine we have been able to gain a broader perspective on education in Palestine generally. We visited An-Najah University, the biggest in Palestine and the campus is quite impressive. Here we spoke to the Dean of the University and Professors about the various ways they think the Right to Education is being violated. What stood out was the strong focus on resilience. The Occupation has only sought to strengthen the educational system in Palestine and any obstacles are met with creative solutions

Apart from our Visit to Nablus we also visited Bil'in, a town famously known for its struggle against the wall and of course the film Five Broken Cameras. Bil'in is breathtakingly beautiful! The landscape is so picturesque and hosts a small community of just 2000 people. These people are the flag bearers of hope in Palestine for all they've achieved and how they continue to demonstrate against the current political climate. 

On the whole the campaign is going extremely well with so many exciting plans due to unfold in the coming weeks! And Palestine is incredibly inviting no matter where we go, it doesn't fail to charm us.