My experience with Inspire Dreams in the Dheisheh refugee camp in the West Bank in 2011 demonstrated the profound impact an educational opportunity can have on young individuals that are not usually afforded such. Many of the participants in this camp were all around my age at the time, and it was electrifying to see the faces of my peers illuminate with joy and excitement with each day of educational workshops. But it was also bittersweet. I had so much in common with many of the participants, yet we were also worlds apart.
I am Palestinian-American, and that hyphen carries a tremendous amount of privileged status. It was sobering to realize that I was and would be given opportunities that many in the world will not receive due primarily to my parent’s income and the geographic area of the world I grew up in. I cannot imagine where I would be in life right now had I not been fortunate enough to be born to American citizens, allowing my family to escape the West Bank during the violence of the Second Intifada and start anew in California.
My brothers and sister-in-law.
Life under Israeli-Occupation and the assertion that I am from a non-existent homeland and a member of an imaginary people has had a profound impact on my worldview, serving as motivation and crafting a proverbial chip on my shoulder. Marginalization has only bolstered my convictions, and witnessing injustice and violence in the West Bank has led me to have a passion in social justice—not just in the arena of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict, but wherever systematic injustices and inequalities exist. I cannot imagine myself finding joy out of a career that does not have a strong emphasis on social value creation. I aspire to use my knowledge and experience to create a platform to help those that did not have the same opportunities I did due to the socio-political constraints of the societies that they live in. This desire, as well as my background and studies, links me back to the Middle East.
The crossing to Kala’s house.
I study Political Science and Arabic, Islamic, and Middle Eastern Studies at Santa Clara University. I’ve long been motivated to create change within Palestine and the broader Middle East, but had held the conviction that political channels were the only avenues to drive the change I wanted to see. During my study abroad term in Morocco, I conducted a small independent study research project with young Moroccans about individual freedom within Moroccan society. While a small study and a short period, I was academically exhilarated. I really enjoyed discussing topics such as religious and sexual freedom in a Muslim state with individuals that live in said state to gain a unique and different perspective that no online or scholarly source could convey. I had long felt that my studies had confined me to a career of macro foreign policy and that this route was the most effective to my aspirations of social change, but this small research project in Morocco had shaken that notion and I felt as a loss as to how to proceed. When I discovered the Global Social Benefit Fellowship, I felt as if fate had driven me to a solution to the dilemma of how to continue my professional and personal development through the application of my passions. GSBF offered the opportunity to aid an organization in the developing world that is making a positive impact in the community that it operates in. I wanted to spend more time immersed in the developing world and was intrigued about the potential intersection between social science and business as tools for positive social change. I was curious to see if I could handle the challenges of conducting a large research project in the developing world for an extended period of time and learn about social entrepreneurship as a strategy for social impact.
Soaking up the Sahara Sun during my study abroad term.
GSBF showed me all of that and more. I learned just how challenging and rewarding action research could be, and that working to disrupt unjust social equilibriums is my passion. My time with Empower Generation this past summer also demonstrated that I have the skillset necessary to engage in a dialogue about complex, socio-economic issues on a grassroots, communal level. I learned about the viability and importance of social entrepreneurship as a driving force for social change. I have gained a tremendous amount of respect for and belief in the social entrepreneurship model and grassroots, bottom-up approach to social change. I still believe that macro-level policy and (rightly guided) government action is essential to creating change. But social enterprises and individuals that operate on communal levels to induce positive social change that is specialized towards the unique problems facing each community is paramount to meet the complex challenges the global community is facing today.
Candid mid-interview shot.
Looking back one year ago, it is difficult to have imagined just how transformative this fellowship would be. Despite the vocational insights GSBF has helped me realize, I still don’t know what the next step is. As I peruse through graduate study programs, I am torn between what fields I want to study. International Affairs, International Development, or law school all feel like attractive and logical choices. It is a daunting decision to make, due in part to the significant personal and fiscal resources required for graduate studies. I do know I have a clear focus on researching, developing, and implementing sustainable solutions to socioeconomic and political problems in the Middle East. This focus is why I have decided to take a gap year between the completion of my undergraduate studies and pursuit of a graduate degree. I hope to enroll in an intensive Arabic immersion program abroad, to achieve fluency in Arabic and get closer to realizing my career aspirations.
Very sweaty, very happy.