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PARTICIPATORY VIDEO Project 2013

For this project, MEND worked as a regional partner in the global Participate initiative launched by the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, and Beyond 2015. The initiative aims to shed light on action and participatory video as a tool for change in global policy making by enabling communities affected by extreme poverty and marginalization to give voice to the changes they seek the most. The project seeks to impact the UN decision-making process vis-a-vis the UN Millennium Development Goals (UNMDG).

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MEND worked with two groups of women in the Al-Jib and Nabi Samuel communities whose lives have been directly affected by the construction of Israel's separation wall. These facilitators were trained to impart basic camera and production skills to the groups of women. Fourteen women, aged 16-46, took part in the initiative.

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At the end of the training, participants created short films about their lives under Israel's occupation. These films were then aired at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

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Through their films, the participants hoped not only to reveal the extent to which Israel's occupation has affected them, but their personal and emotional experiences of being a woman caught in conflict. The films show the loneliness of segregation, nostalgia for the past, and highlight the inequality that has permeated all aspects of their lives. Most importantly, however, participants wanted their audience to understand the need for their message to be heard.

ABOUT US

Recently there has been a growing interest in alternatives to violence even at the level of long-term
political activists. In fact these activists and community leaders have specifically expressed their
dissatisfaction with the cycle of violence and its results, and requested information and training for active
nonviolence.

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MEND, having built its reputation on a holistic and creative approach to violence in schools, has taken this
approach further to reach the general population. Working through film, the internet, radio, bumper
stickers, posters, and news advertisements, MEND has changed the local attitude to nonviolence from one
of scepticism or dismissal (when MEND was first established in 1998) to one of interest and appreciation - so that now even the Palestinian President talks about nonviolence. If there can be a visible nonviolence
movement, this will give hope to all those on both sides who fear the cycle of violence and cannot see
any partners for peace.

FACEBOOK

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CONTACT

T: (972) 2 6567310

F: (972) 2 6567311

E: lucynusseibeh@gmail.com

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