Dear Friends,
I just got back from visiting friends, supporters, and partners in the UK and across the US. It was so good to have the opportunity to meet many of you face to face and share with you the current situation in Palestine and what we are up toat the Dalia Association. Supporting community led development is critical now more than ever. We need to work together to create alternatives to the international aid system to mobilize resources to the communities in Palestine.
I volunteer teach a Pilates class every Saturday morning. One of my students explained that the aid is ‘drying out’. She has been working for USAID for nearly 10 years and told me that there is not much work anymore. The international aid system has been destructive to the Palestinian community and local economy leaving us Palestinians dependent on external aid with a foreign agenda.
We need better mechanisms to mobilize the resources that exist within our own society in Palestine as well as from the diaspora and those in solidarity. This is one of the areas that we will focus on in the nextyear. Despite the grim situation in Palestine today where our young people are being murdered daily, I am optimistic for our future. A team from the Dalia Association participated in a local conference this week focused on active citizenship and local economy. There is a growing realization in Palestine that we must free ourselves from the imposed colonial and neoliberal structures that exploit our resources and impede our development. Please join us in this struggle to re-develop our towns and villages into sustainable, productive, and just communities.
Support community led development. Donate now.
As always, if you have any specific thoughts or ideas, feel free to email me directly at [email protected].
Salam,
Aisha