Raghad Abu Shamma, Sari Dar Yousef awarded the Yousef Nawas Award

Raghad Abu Shamma, student at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Nursing and Health Professions, and Sari Dar Yousef, student at the Faculty of Art, were awarded the 2021–22 Yousef Nawas Award for Innovation for their local community engagement and activism during an honor ceremony held on campus.

Abu Shamma distinguished herself through multiple community engagement efforts. She, along with students Hadeel Khader and Miral Al Bandak, created a health app titled Give Life, which encourages and motivates users to donate blood. Birzeit University’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit supervised the development of the application and registered it with the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Give Life will be launched on July 22.

Dar Yousef was awarded for his distinguished artistic and poetic skills and publications.

President of Birzeit University Dr. Beshara Doumani gave Abu Shamma and Dar Yousef the award on behalf of the University Council on July 6, 2022, wishing them more success and greater contributions to their communities.

The Yousef Nawas Award for Innovation, launched in 2006 at Birzeit University, aims to encourage students’ creativity and innovation in all fields and support their positive engagement in their local communities. To be eligible for the award, candidates must be regular students with a cumulative grade average of no less than 80 percent, with unique contributions to their community in line with the Palestinian vision.