Bringing Partner Organizations Together
When we told Derrar, the co-funder of our partner organization BuildPalestine, about our new project in Jenin, he was keen to support us. Derrar will now work alongside forumZFD’s project manager Torge. Together, they will consult the artists from Fragment Theater in building a vision, a mission and a business plan so that they can work sustainably in the future. The benefits of having an international and a local consultant working hand-in-hand became obvious during the first meeting. Derrar grew up in Jenin, knows the legal and administrative requirements for organizations in Palestine and has supported dozens of successful Palestinian startups. Torge brings the outsider’s perspective together with a structured way of working. He is a trained organizational consultant, provides theories and models to the process, and has founded a theater himself. Combining these two sets of skills and personalities, Torge and Derrar complement each other to the benefit of our partner.
Derrar has also joined forumZFD’s work with a Palestinian women’s group. Together, they build a safe space in which the women can develop business ideas and exchange experiences.
In Palestine, spaces for civil society are shrinking. New laws, violations of digital rights and lacking financial means make it harder and harder for NGOs to survive. The constant race for donor money creates a deeply competitive environment in which everyone is left fighting on their own. As a result of this struggle, there is little room for cooperation and exchange between civil society organizations.
Rather than sending peace consultants directly to partner organizations, forumZFD is working with the so-called “external approach”. This gives us the privilege to work with multiple partners, each of which brings in unique skills and capacities. The diversity of our partners has a lot of potential for synergies in which partner organizations can support each other and work together to achieve a common goal.
We are excited to see the fruits of this process!
BuildPalestine is a platform that connects supporters from around the world to social impact projects in Palestine. Have a look at their latest crowdfunding campaigns here.
Fragments Theater is a cultural initiative that creates a space for art in Jenin. By using art, Fragments counters fragmentation within Palestine and between Palestinians and the rest of the world. Find out more about our first visit to Fragments here.