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This bulletin provides an update on the most important events and activities carried out by the Foundation's projects and programmes in January and February 2009. |
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| In Solidarity with the Freedom Theatre and the Al-Kamandjati Association | |
| The A.M Qattan Foundation regards the latest attacks on the Al-Kamandjati Association and the Freedom Theatre in Jenin with great concern. These dangerous attacks represent a threat to the spirit of the Palestinian national project, which we believe must be based on freedom of thought and expression, as well as non-violence and the respect for diversity. The Foundation extends its support to these two organizations and calls upon all responsible parties to take the necessary measures in order to protect cultural organizations from attacks and hold accountable those who attempt to undermine them. | |
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| Newsletter content | |
| General News | |
| Qattan Center for the Child | |
| Culture and Arts Programme | |
| Qattan Center for Educational Research and Development | |
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| Solidarity with the Gaza Music School | |
| In the context of solidarity campaigns with the Gaza Music School whose headquarters were entirely demolished during the latest Israeli war on Gaza, friends, artists, musicians and members of various organizations around the world, including from Germany, Sweden, the UK and the US were able to raise approximately $69,000 to support the rebuilding of the school and the resumption of its activities. |
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| AND…The Gaza Music School opens its new premises | |
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| This wonderful support enabled the Gaza Music School to celebrate the opening of its new premises on the 15 th of April in the “Ambulance Building” which belongs to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. Students resumed their lessons on the 18 th of April. | |
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Arab Foundations Forum meeting and World Council for Muslim Philanthropists conference in Abu Dhabi |
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| Ziad Khalaf, the Foundation's Executive Director, attended both the Arab Foundation's Forum Meeting and the World Council for Muslim Philanthropist conference in Abu Dhabi from March 20 to 23. | |
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Network of Art Centres |
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| On 31 st March, the Foundation hosted a meeting for members of various cultural and arts organizations in Palestine to discuss ways in which the network can be revived and broadened. The meeting aimed to reach a broad body of cultural and arts organizations in Palestine, which can collaborate among one another. | |
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| Progress on architectural design of Foundation's new headquarters | |
| Work continues on finalizing the architectural drawings for the Foundation's new Palestine headquarters. | |
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| Belgian delegation visit the Foundation | |
| A Belgian delegation accompanied by Ms. Leila Shahid, Palestinian Envoy to the European Union, Belgium and Luxemburg, visited the Foundation in Ramallah on the 14 th of April where they were briefed on the our activities and the potential for future cultural collaboration. | |
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| Publications | |
The 29 th issue of Educational Visions |
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Issue 29 of Ru'a Tarbawiyya (Educational Visions), the Centre's quarterly magazine is now out and includes a special section on the culture of science written by researchers at the Centre. It also includes a number of translations, most notably of texts by French writers and thinkers. |
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To obtain any of the Foundation's publications in Palestine or abroad (click here) |
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| Emergency entertainment programmes for children in areas damaged during war | |
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| Emergency educational and entertainment programmes have continued to take place in Gaza after the war. These activities include drawing, games, drama, storytelling, puppet shows, and film and music screenings. They have reached over 380 children. | |
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| Palestinian Child's Day | |
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In coordination with the Damir Association for Human Rights, the foundation organized an open day on the occasion of Palestinian's Child's Day on May 4 th . Attended by hundreds of children, the activities included singing, face drawing, creative writing, and a painting exhibition. |
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| Book donations from QCC to Sakhnin Primary School library | |
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| The Centre donated 1,200 books to Sakhnin Primary School in the Attara district in northern Gaza. This donation is also part of a fund to rebuild the school library after its demolition during the last war on the Gaza strip. | |
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| 14-year old wins Ministry of Culture Prize for best short story | |
| 14-year old Taqwa Al-Ghoul wrote her story “Politics and I” as part of the Centre's creative writing activity for gifted children. | |
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World Book Day |
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The Centre organized an event to celebrate World Book Day, including the highlight puppet show “Books are my Friends”. |
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| Music and theatre performances in several cities | |
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| With support from the Foundation, The Fursan al-Arab Troupe produced and staged its most recent play this March entitled “Enough Acting”. The Programme also supported 3 productions of the comedy play “Gaza Ramallah – Ramallah Gaza” at the University of Bethlehem, Al-Quds University in Jerusalem and at the Arab American University in Zababdeh, Jenin. The Programme also co-funded “The Black Light”, a play written and directed by Fathi Abdel Rahman. As part of its funding programme for the performing arts, the Programme also supported three musical performances by Nizar Rouhana in which he played from his new album “Sared”. The shows took place in Jerusalem, Ramallah, Bethlehem and Haifa. |
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| Local Festivals | |
| The Programme supported the International Lighthouse Days Theater Festival organized by the Al-Kasaba Theatre and Cinématèque. For the fourth consecutive year the Programme also funded the Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival organized by the First Ramallah Dance Troupe. The Festival had also received the Qattan Prize for Best Cultural Work in 2008. | |
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| Cultural and Literary Events | |
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| On the occasion of the publication of Akram Mussalem's “Diary of a Sweating Spider” (published jointly by Dar el Adab in Beirut and the Qattan Foundation), winner of Best Novel in the Young Writers Competition 2007, the Programme organized an evening of readings and discussion with the author. In cooperation with the French Cultural Centre, it also hosted the French comics writer Guy Delille who spoke about his writing career and his entry into the world of cartoons and eventually comic book writing. | |
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| Preparations for the “S” Video Art and Performance Festival | |
| Together with the Instant Video association in Marseille, the French Cultural Centres in Ramallah and Gaza City, the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre, the Mahatta Gallery, the International Arts Academy in Ramallah, the Ethnographic Arts Museum in Birzeit University, the Al-Maamal Foundation for Contemporary Arts, the Al-Hoash Palestinian Art Gallery in Jerusalem, the Programme is preparing for the launch of /S:in/, the International Video Art and Performance Festival, which will take place from the 19 to the 24 th of May, 2009. | |
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| Narrating Gaza | |
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The Programme is preparing to launch a new website under the title Narrating Gaza , which will include a collection of testimonies and stories by those who lived through the last Israel war on the Gaza Strip as well as texts by Palestinian and Arab intellectuals and artists. The site aims to be a platform for an alternative contemporary Palestinian history. |
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| 2nd edition of “Jerusalem: Nation and Spirit” | |
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| The Centre organized a meeting in Ramallah to discuss the implications of the book “Jerusalem: Nation and Spirit, A Reference” published by the Ministry of Higher Education on the occasion of Jerusalem Arab Cultural Capital for the year 2009. The book is intended as a text book for a single school year. The academics and intellectuals attending the meeting made remarks concerning the book suggesting it needed to be revised and improved. | |
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| Workshop in Greece on the use of drama in expressive writing | |
| The Centre's director, Wasim Kurdi, led a 2-day workshop in Athens for teachers with the Greek organization Narratives, which specializes in dramatic arts and their relation to language, education, dialogue and development. Through stories and photographs the aim is to cultivate techniques to encourage children to express themselves through writing. |
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| Optimism, pessimism and school achievement | |
| The Centre organized an entire school day around the theme of optimism and pessimism entitled: “Emotional Intelligence: Optimism and Pessimism and their Relationship to School Achievement” as part of a research study by Liana Jaber and Maha Qur'an. Thirty teachers and experts from the Ministry of Higher Education took part in this day-long event. | |
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| The Forum on Education for All discusses cases of epilepsy | |
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| The Centre organized the 4 th and 5 th meetings for the Forum on Education for All under the guidance of researcher Nay Shoumar. A filmed case study of a boy afflicted with epilepsy was analyzed followed by the elaboration of an action-plan based on his needs and the learning gaps between himand his peers. The 5 th session entailed a discussion of another student who suffers from speech and language disabilities. The teachers worked in small groups to create a work plan and curriculum to allow this young girl to be mainstreamed in school. | |
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| Workshop on Creative Language Learning | |
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| A teacher's training workshop was held on the 25 th of April for primary school English language teachers under the supervision of Belgian professor Marion Gotnik who gave lessons on outreach and creative language teaching. | |
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| 2 workshops on developing young research | |
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29 students took part in the Centre's 2-day training workshop that included theoretical and practical components of how to conduct research. The participants took part in research on children's rights, the role of the atom in the development of scientific research, and the role of Arab and Muslim scholars in the progress of civilization. |
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