While the reality Palestinian youth  face is not simple, they are constantly  seeking creative solutions to express  their feelings and opinions, increase  their skills and capacities, and actively  engage in their communities to overcome the difficult economic, social and political situation. 

Palestinian youth form 30% of the overall Palestinian population. Yet, youth unemployment remains an acute challenge, with  rates reaching more than 35.7% according to  recent European Commission statistics.  The current political situation and restrictions  on freedom of movement of Palestinians in  general, and Palestinian youth in particular,  affect everyone’s life, providing fewer and fewer  opportunities for a better quality of life, including  education and job opportunities; on the other  hand, many youth look at the bright side of the  situation and choose to think outside of the  box through creating their own space to be  active participants in society and bring meaning  to their lives using the minimum resources  available, such as social media, and local TV and radio stations. 

Just a few months ago, about 20 youth (nearly half of them female) from Jenin,  Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem, and Hebron,  some of whom are currently studying in  universities or recently graduated without any  job opportunities, participated in a project  implemented by a local NGO in Ramallah  aiming to increase their skills and capacities  in media production, acting, and stage  performance. The overall goal was to give  the participants tools to better express their  feelings and opinions about topics such as the  performance of the Palestinian Justice Sector,  and to shed light on women’s rights as they play  out in Palestinian courts and legal institutions.  As a member of the project’s team, I always  questioned whether these youth would be  able to produce quality outcomes, taking  into consideration their poor life experience  and the limited resources available to them.  Surprisingly, participants were able not only  to write scenarios for TV episodes and plays  tackling women’s social issues in relation to the  justice system, but they also filmed and acted in  four television episodes that were broadcasted  on five local TV stations, and one play that was  performed live in five governances in the West Bank—Qalqiliya, Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, and  Abu Dis, a village east of Jerusalem. 

Now, after this short-term intervention,  participants continue to apply their acting  and script-writing skills in producing short TV  episodes tackling other youth-related social,  political, and economic issues in Palestinian  society. Looking back at the Program, Rawan  from Jerusalem recalls: “This project provided  me with additional knowledge and information  about the Palestinian Justice System, as  well as skills in script writing. It was a great opportunity to meet people from all over the  West Bank.” 

Two participants decided to create their own  YouTube show, using their smartphones to  film scenes and basic computer software to  edit. The series was shared widely by local  media and top Palestinian Facebook pages,  which provided more support and visibility  to these youth and their work. Further, two  other participants were selected to act in a  joint media production series filmed in Jordan  with the participation of leading Syrian and  Jordanian actors. When asked about the  program, Mohammad from Hebron replied  excitedly: “The project gave me the chance  to apply my acting skills and gave me the  opportunity to understand the TV production  process. This project opened new opportunities  for me and I have already started working on  my TV show with some friends. I have also met  new friends.” 

Palestinian youth lack the formal infrastructure  that would allow them to showcase their  creativity, skills, and abilities to promote change  and support their communities. We should all  feel a duty to believe in them and work hard to  provide as much support as possible to improve  their situation.  

Working with youth is very challenging,  yet always meaningful, and it is so  inspiring to watch as they discover  their hidden resources and utilize them  despite the unstable political situation  that affects all aspects of their day-to day life.