Our Network
Our network consists of individuals, groups and organisations both local and international who broadly share our goals and whose work we support. Some we work with closely, some we have worked with in the past and others we hope to work more closely with in the future.
Partners in the local community:
Abed Rabba: www.abedland.com
Abed is a farmer from the village of Al Wallaja close to Bethlehem. His land lies close to the Israeli settlement of Gilo, and when the Wall is finished, it will be in the seam-zone between the Wall and the Green Line. Currently, Abed is struggling to keep his land against real-estate developers who want to appropriate it for settlement expansion. He is fighting a legal battle in the Israeli courts, and in addition, he is living on his threatened land in a small cave. There is no water or waste infrastructure in place, and none is likely to be provided in the near future. We are supporting Abed, bringing volunteers every week to help him cultivate his land and devise waste management strategies so that he can live there comfortably and sustainably.
Artas farmers/ popular committee
Artas is a small village on the southwest of Bethlehem, very close to where the Wall cuts south along the west side of the town, annexing the Gush Etzion settlement bloc to Israel. Artas is an agricultural community with a rich farming heritage, and a beautiful natural spring that has nurtured the community for hundreds of years. Today Artas is under threat. The village has lost over 2500 dunums of its land since 1991 (out of a total of 4400 dunums), due to land confiscation for settlement construction and expansion, and for the building of the Separation Wall (learn more.... ).
In 2007, further land was lost as the route of the Wall was changed to accomodate a wastewater facility for settlers (see video of demolition of apricot orchard belonging to the Abuswai family). Today a huge drain has been built to accomodate sewage water from Gush Etzion bloc settlements, directing it onto valuable farming land and towards Artas’ fresh water spring, the residential area of the village and Artas Valley itself. No evidence of any sewage treatment infrastructure is in view yet. There is a huge risk of catastrophic pollution if untreated sewage water is directed through this drain. In addition, Israeli settler activity in the area is increasing, with efforts to establish a new outpost on the mountain above the village leading to land closure and access difficulties for farmers owning land nearby.
Every week, we are working with farmers from Artas to support them in accessing their land, trial permaculture techniques for increased water efficiency and soil conservation, and to devise a strategy for coping with possible sewage contamination from the settlements.
SOS Childrens’ Village: www.sos-childrensvillages.org
The SOS Childrens’ Village in Bethlehem comprises 14 housing units that are home to around 50 orphaned children. The compound also contains a kindergarten and school that are open to the local community. Bustan Qaraaqa staff are acting as consultants in ‘greening’ the village, offering advice on setting up composting schemes, food gardens, greywater recycling, and composting toilets.
The Siraj Centre for Holyland Studies: www.sirajcenter.org
The Siraj Centre facilitates international volunteers in coming to Palestine, organising work placements, home-stays with Palestinian families, educational and cultural events and tours of the area. We are working with the Siraj Centre to offer environmental tours of the West Bank, focusing on the political-environmental situation, as well as hosting volunteers, and developing ‘responsible tourism’ in Palestine.
The Alternative Information Centre: www.alternativenews.org
The Alternative Information Centre is a joint Palestinian-Israeli organisation focusing on offering alternative analyses and perspectives on the conflict and current events in the region. We work with the AIC to publish articles and give lectures about the environmental crisis and its political dimensions, as well as working with the womens’ program to do workshops on environmental issues and practical actions that individuals can take to ameliorate them.
The East Jerusalem YMCA Advocacy Initiative: www.ej-ymca.org
The EJ-YMCA works with Palestinian farmers to help them to resist land confiscation, supporting them in accessing and cultivating their land, even under the difficult conditions of the Israeli occupation. We are long-term admirers and supporters of the ‘Keep Hope Alive’ Olive Tree Campaign, and we hope to work more closely with the YMCA in the future to develop tree planting programs for soil conservation and livestock fodder in the Eastern Slopes area of the West Bank.
Paidia: www.pidev.org
Paidia is an American-run youth development organisation, working to help foster leadership skills and personal empowerment with Palestinian children and youth. We are working with Paidia to develop the environmental awareness side of their program, acting as consultants on Palestinian environmental issues and actions that individuals can take in their lives to address them.
Tent of Nations: www.tentofnations.org
The Tent of Nations is an initiative to foster ecological sustainability and peace. It is run by a Palestinian man, Daoud, who is resisting settlement expansion on his land by living there with his family and developing modes of sustainable living, supported by international and Israeli activists. Dauod also hosts mixed groups of Palestinians and Israelis at his site, hoping to foster dialogue and understanding. We are admirers of Daoud’s work and send people to visit him when we can. We hope to work more closely together in the future sharing ideas and organising events.
Marda Permaculture Farm: www.thefarm.org
Marda Permaculture Farm is an initiative to encourage Palestinians to live from their land, resist Israeli colonisation and take responsibility for their environment. It is run by a Palestinian man, Murad, who studied permaculture in the United States and is now working to develop permaculture methodology that is suitable to the Palestinian environment, and to share his ideas in his community, Marda, which is located right by the Israeli settlement of Ariel, one of the largest settlements in the West Bank. We are sharing information, ideas and seeds with Murad. In the past we have worked together to organise a permaculture course (April 2008), and hope to organise more joint events in the future.
Bustan: www.bustan.org
Bustan is an organisation working in Israel to support sustainable living and the right of self-determination for the Bedouin people of the Siyag. In many ways, their ethos is very similar to our own, seeking to empower individuals and communities to address their own problems and prevent access to resources and infrastructure being used as weapons against them to enforce a political agenda. So we are ideally suited to share ideas and information. In the past we have organised join events: information tours and tree planting, and we hope to continue to support each other in the future.
Internationally
The Permaculture Association UK: www.permaculture.org.uk
The Permaculture Associaton (UK) are our fiscal sponsors. We are a member of the Projects Network, and so are a de-facto branch of this organisation. We can receive tax-deductible donations via the Permaculture Association, as well as sharing information about permaculture, volunteering opportunities, job openings and events.
Bangor and Anglesey Peace and Justice Group: www.bangorpeace.co.uk
The Bangor and Anglesay Peace and Justice Group are long-term supporters of Bustan Qaraaqa, and have been very generous in fundraising for us and awareness raising about the situation in Palestine.
The Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable Trust: www.fergusontrust.co.uk
The Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable Trust have been our most generous donors to date, supporting us through our first year with a grant of £12500.
The British Shalom-Salaam Trust: www.bsst.org.uk
The British Shalom-Salaam Trust have generously supported us with an annual donation of £5000, keeping the project on the rails for the past 2 years.
LUSH Cosmetics:
LUSH have very generously donated £3000 to Bustan Qaraaqa via their 'Charity Pot' scheme, allowing the farm to stay open during the summer of 2010.
Byspokes: byspokes.org
Byspokes was founded by ex-Bustan Qaraaqa volunteers Phil and Lorena who will be returning to the farm in the summer of 2010 to implement aquaculture projects with Palestinian farmers. In an innovative move, they will raise money for this venture by undertaking a sponsored bike-ride from Britain to Palestine.
Inspiral: www.inspiralled.net
inSpiral is a unique concept, combining personal and planetary health with creative media to achieve positive conscious change in a fun way for all!