Projects    

Gmunden, Austria,2000 Vienne, France, 2000 Commercy, France, 2000

International Visits

To achieve our goal of educating our children as part of an international community of children, ACFA developed a relationship with French, Dutch and other European institutions in order to build a bridge between Palestinian children and youths in Israel and the children and youths of Europe.

The first summer camp was held in Commercy, France, in the summer of 2000. The Municipality of Commercy welcomed a group of 20 youths accompanied by three adults for two weeks. The Mayor of Commercy along with the Priest of the Catholic Church of Commercy (see photo at the bottom of the site) contributed greatly to the program, including financial support and travel arrangements. The Palestinian youths spent these days and nights at the houses of their French hosts. Both guests and hosts exchanged their culture and language and tales of friendship. Together, they visited different areas of France.

The Exchange Program will continue when the French youths travel to Israel in order to see the Palestinian culture first-hand with their Palestinian friends in the summer of 2002.

ACFA is currently working towards conducting a second program with the municipality of Dunkerqe in France. ACFA intends to send a new group of Palestinian youths to share an exchange with a new group of French youths in the summer of 2002.

Along with youth exchanges, ACFA Director Mohammad Badarni participated in a children's education campaign in France for one-month in the winter of 1999, organized by Caritas France. Along with educators from France, he visited universities, schools, libraries, theaters, and voluntary children's service centers. During this campaign, Mr. Badarni exchanged experiences and approaches to children's education with his French colleagues.

Paris, France, 2000

The Mobile Library Network (MLN) in Holland conducted ACFA's mobile library in Haifa in 1990, and requested an exchange of activities. Since that time, ACFA and MLN have exchanged visits, and at MLN's request, ACFA has sent Arab children's publications to their libraries to service the Arab children of the Netherlands.

ACFA continues to seek out opportunities to arrange further exchange visits that give Palestinian children and youths in Israel the chance to share their culture and traditions while learning about those of others. In all of its magazines, ACFA invites children from around the world to send a message by mail and to exchange letters with Palestinians from Israel.