Rebuilding a Future in Palestine!

Summary

Al Aqaba, a small West Bank Palestinian Village located in the Jordan Valley is at a watershed moment. That town is under threat of demolition- as are 149 Palestinian towns in the area now controlled by Israel. The village is initiating a sustainable community development plan, asking your help to bring architects, engineers, families, the village council, local banks, guarantors, and media together this July in a 3 week design collaborative to plan affordable, eco-sustainable homes with dignity progress report read updates from the field

How Donors Like You Helped

Thanks to donors like you, a total of £15,183 was raised for this project.

Received $24,796 from 166 donations from people like:

(Anon.)

Donna Baranski-walker

Haitham Najjar

Rob

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More Information About this Project

Project Needs and Beneficiaries

Palestinian families are prohibited from building on their own land. Since 1967 the Israeli army demolished over 24,800 Palestinian homes, displaced more than 180,300 people, and built Israeli-only settlements on land that belongs to Palestinian families. Demolition orders now blanket the Jordan Valley. This man-made policy can be changed. Start in Al Aqaba. Families are ready to move home despite the risks. They need good design, mortgage financing, solid advocacy to build trust and a future.

Activities

To address the critical need for enduring housing, help the village convene a “Design Charrette” this July. Goal: To design, with direct community involvement, modular homes to be built with local labor and materials, through affordable 15K mortgages matched by donated down payments. Deliverables will include construction strategies, drawings, and financing options. This process will be chronicled daily to showcase to all parties involved, the village’s choice to create a viable peaceful future.

Funding Information

Total Funding Received to Date: £15,183

Funding Information

This project is now in implementation and no longer available for funding. Received funds will be used to accomplish concrete objectives as indicated in the project's "Activities" section. Updates will be posted under the "Progress Report" tab as they become available.

Donors' contributions and pledges to this project totaled £15,183. The original project funding goal was £14,991.

Additional Documentation

This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).

Resources

Why this Project is Important

Potential Long Term Impact

Palestinians are entitled to their collective right to plan towns and issue building permits on the land they own — just like towns anywhere in the world. Al Aqaba’s example will provide a blueprint, a way to secure appropriate planning to meet the needs of the 150,000 Palestinians who live in the 60% of the West Bank now administered solely by Israel. Their housing development plan, created to world-class standards, will be a catalyst for community organizing, equal rights, and fair housing.

Project Message

If you want to envision neighborliness, Al Aqaba is good. 17 countries, agencies have come, visited and like what they saw enough to invest. We believe in peace. Share our dream, help us grow!
- Haj Sami Sadeq, Head of Al Aqaba Village Council

Latest Update from the Field

Matching Grant starts in just a few hours!

By Donna Baranski-Walker - Founder & Executive Director, Rebuilding Alliance, October 18, 2011 12:29 PM

Al Aqaba schoolchildren with their origami

Thank you so much for your past support of Rebuilding Alliance's workl We've used every dollar donated to remarkable results. I ask for your help once again.

In just a few hours time, GlobalGiving will match by 30% every dollar donated, up to $1000. They have $100,000 to give away in just 24hrs on Wednesday Oct. 19th, Eastern Time.

We need your help to rebuild Palestinian homes, schools and playgrounds.

Please go to RebuildingAlliance.org, click the donate button and donate as early in the day as you can, before the funds run out.

Questions, suggestions? Please call me at 650-325-4663.

P.S. Your donation, large or small, really matters. GlobalGiving is providing a grant to the project with the most donors, and also a grant to the project that raises the most donations. We can do it... last time Rebuilding Alliance came in second. This time, help us to win!

P.P.S. One of our earlier GG Match projects helped create housing for teachers in Al Aqaba village. Here are photos of the Japanese teacher who came this past Sunday to give the children an overview of Japan!

Yuhki Ohnogi, a visiting teacher from Japan