A discussion relates volunteering to community change

The Faculty of Law and Public Administration at Birzeit University held on May 4, 2017 a symposium on the role of voluntary work in social development by exploring the challenges, problems and prospects on community work in Palestine, the culture of volunteering and how to propagate it.

Dean of the Faculty of Law and Public Administration Yaser Amouri and the head of the Public Administration Department Mayada Badawi said in their welcoming remarks that these academic meetings are part of the university’s mission to strengthen youth’s awareness on such vital issues.

Public Administration instructor Noor Matour pointed out that the symposium tackles both theoretical and practical issues focusing on the culture of voluntary work. “We believe that voluntary work must be regulated through a legislative framework. The prominent roles of Birzeit University and other institutions in the field of voluntary work must be highlighted to learn from their experience and strengthen ours.”

The symposium discussed four main pillars. The first highlighted the definition of voluntary work, its importance and its reality in Palestine. The second pillar focused on the importance of voluntary work at the university, and how it affects a person’s personality and the community in general. It also discussed the lack of legal and legislative rules that are needed for organizing more efficient voluntary work initiatives. Bader Zamaareh presented the third part from Sharek Youth Forum and Ashraf Abahreh from Palestine Red Crescent Society. Both Zamaareh and Abahreh shared their institutions’ experience in voluntarism. The last part including success stories shared by Birzeit University students, where they described their experiences in volunteering in different charities and civil society institutions.

At the end of the symposium, the participants emphasized the importance of following-up with students to help them implement their ideas and projects.