Blog | The Jerusalem Intercultural Center

MiniActive Youth – Now Empowering Teens as Well

We never ceased to be amazed by the MiniActive project – the scope and volume of their activity (some 1,000 activists, 7,800 subscribers on their Facebook page), what they’ve been able to accomplish, all are the subject of our admiration.

Until a few days ago, MiniActive was only for women above 18 years old (up to 70 and beyond…). Last week we started our first groups of teenagers, “MiniActive Youth“. The program includes training on how to be pro-active in changing one’s immediate environment. They will assist their mothers (who are MiniActive volunteers) in identifying projects for improvement, and also lead other teens in neighborhood-based beautification projects. Because they are minors, their mothers will make the calls to the municipal hotline or other service providers, but they will be the ones doing all the footwork.

The first group of teenagers is in Issawiyah (and a few more are formed now), and this group decided a week ago to take care of one of the old, run-down staircases in the neighborhood. They cleaned it, and then painted it, taking inspiration from the “Rainbow Stairs” that made headlines in Turkey last year, as well as our own local version.

Issawiya Stairs: before and after

Issawiya stairs: beginning work

Painting in progress

May this be the first of many successful projects of this group!

Naomi Roff2015-01-09T13:23:02+00:00December 31st, 2014|Blog, Effective Activism, Identity Groups and Conflicts, MiniActive, Palestinians/Arabs|

MiniActive Women – Opening Critical Lines of Communication

On December 28, 2014, our MiniActive women activists found a notice on a few walls in Shuafat and Beit Hanina, stating that the next day there will be no water in this large area due to maintenance work. The activists understood that these postings would not reach very many people. There is no formal way to spread the word in East Jerusalem, and it was obvious to them that many would find themselves unprepared for a full day without water.

So we used our Miniactive Facebook page. Around 6,000 of the 7,800 on the page are Palestinian Jerusalemite women 18-34 years old (this is 15% of this age group in East Jerusalem!!). We boosted the post and in a few hours, it was “virally” spread to more than 8,000 residents! This meant that almost all the relevant families knew on time!

Notice for water line maintenance – and the statistics of the Facebook post

This is not the first time that we use the MiniActive network for spreading such a message. A few months ago, when there was a suspicion of sewage getting into the drinking water, we used this communication channel to spread the word about using only boiled water. Then, too, it worked very well.

Naomi Roff2015-01-10T14:29:13+00:00December 30th, 2014|Blog, Effective Activism, Identity Groups and Conflicts, MiniActive, Palestinians/Arabs|

“The Resident at the Center” – Empowering City Center Residents through Deliberative Democracy

For more than two years we’ve been using deliberative democracy methods to foster a sense of community and belonging among Jerusalem’s diverse populations, thanks to the generous support of the UJA-Federation of New York. We’ve been working with a number of Jerusalem neighborhoods, from Gilo and Baka’a to Romema, Kiryat Hayovel and Rehavia, as well as in regional (Jerusalem Railway Park) and citywide initiatives (training of community workers).

Open Space in City Center

The latest neighborhood to embark on this process of empowerment is the City Center. As part of a community-building process that began in March of this year, on December 1, 2014, some 200 residents squeezed into the gymnasium at the Experimental High School in downtown Jerusalem for a town meeting based on Open Space Technology. The group was incredibly diverse – Ultra-Orthodox, Secular, Conservative, Reform, Orthodox, immigrants from all around the Jewish world, and even a few asylum seekers from Eritrea! Three elected City Council members, one of them a Deputy Mayor, joined the group and later joined the task teams. All came to discuss issues in the neighborhood that they were passionate about finding solutions for. For the first time, residents were excited to finally be able to give voice to their everyday concerns, and meet other people who were potential partners in finding solutions. Examples included noise, sanitation, parking, quiet on Saturdays, improving safety, the elderly, growing plants in the city center, ecology, and more. These 200 people split up into different task teams, and we will continue to mentor them to ensure that the issues are advanced.

According to the residents, this is the first time ever that residents have been led in any community-building process in the downtown Jerusalem. Until now, many felt that they were “transparent” in relation to the business-owners in the city center, and that their needs were secondary to the businesses’. They’d tried to organize themselves around different issues (planning Nevi’im Street, the pedestrian malls, and more), but there was never an organized, long-term process that allowed residents to have their own say in the future of their neighborhood. We see this as just the beginning, and are going to help the groups that were formed to continue to work and impact downtown. We truly believe that this is a new beginning for the residents of the City Center.

Naomi Roff2015-01-06T19:10:47+00:00December 15th, 2014|Asylum Seekers, Blog, City Center, Cross-Cultural Communication Trainings, Deliberative Democracy, Identity Groups and Conflicts, Jewish Religious Denominations, New Immigrants, Ultra-Orthodox Jews|

Changing the Music – Expanding the Fight against Racism and Xenophobia

“Today the streets are filled with a ‘music’ of hatred and intolerance. Jews, Arabs, religious, secular, right, left, anyone who is not ‘us,'” notes our own Tal Kligman. “We have to change the ‘music’ that’s playing out there.” This was the impetus for the Open Space Workshop for Activists and Organizations that we facilitated at the Jerusalem International YMCA on November 24, 2014. “We expected 20 – 30 people to come,” continued Tal. “We did relatively little advertising – Facebook, a few mailing lists. But we’ve obviously hit a nerve – more than 100 people came to the meeting, and more than 150 people have asked to join the GoogleGroup we’ve established since the meeting. The event received many likes on Facebook, and a number of people have told us, ‘Thank you! We’re so happy to have a framework in which to do something about the situation.'”

Indeed, the situation has been difficult. On the backdrop of the kidnapping and killing of the three Jewish teenagers, the kidnapping and killing of an Arab teen, and the military operation in Gaza that began in the summer months, the Jerusalem street has been anything but quiet. Verbal and physical attacks from all sides, to all sides, have raised fear and tension throughout the city.

We’ve been working since our inception to open channels of communication between different population groups in Jerusalem. But over these past few months we’ve been working more intensely to stem the tide. As soon as the Arab boy was found we augmented our efforts to bring calm to the city. We also stepped up our work to bring positive messages to the public sphere. We were – and continue to be – on the ground, in public squares, engaging people – left, right, vocal demonstrators – in dialogue as a means to decrease violence in these areas. Both national and local newspapers have written about us here and here.

Initiating in Open Space

Still, for us, this was not enough. Incidents continued to occur, and fear continued to abound. Within the Arab-Palestinian sector of Jerusalem, most of our relevant work on this issue is through our on-going activist networks of MiniActive, Emergency Readiness Networks, etc. In our work in the Jewish sector, we found that there are a lot of people and initiatives, who might have different political views but all believe that violence, incitement and fear are not the way forward. So we decided to bring them all together to brainstorm, network, strengthen existing initiatives and create new ones, all in an effort to advance a more tolerant Jerusalem. Thus, the Open Space Workshop for Activists and Organizations was born.

Over the past few years, with the assistance of the UJA- Federation of New York, we’ve been working to engage with individuals to improve inter-group relations and promote deliberative democracy within communities as well as to solve common problems and advance common initiatives. It was an immediate outgrowth and a natural extension for us to use the approaches developed in this ongoing program to tackle issues affecting the public sphere of the entire city. Indeed, we used a methodology in this event that we developed over the past two years, based on Open Space Technology, that is well-adapted to energetic activists.

Choosing Initiatives

The atmosphere at the Workshop was both accepting of everyone and all ideas, and charged with an exciting eagerness to get down to work. The Open Space methodology enabled people to connect, discuss and create working teams for their ideas and initiatives. Participants broke into groups according to the initiatives they felt passionate about, and brainstormed about the next steps to advance and develop their initiatives.This passion was palpable in the air throughout the evening.

Ideas ranged from expanding existing initiatives to new ones. One example is “Speaking in the Square,” which has been focusing, since the summer months, on creating a new approach for approaching teens and adults in the streets (e.g. Zion Square, which is known as a center of non-tolerance in Jerusalem), and having effective dialogue with them about tolerance and xenophobia. (In the above links, we wrote about this exciting group of volunteers and their novel approach.) For the Hebrew readers, a new article about this group was published in Maariv recently (the print edition can be found here). As a result of the Workshop, partnerships were formed between this volunteer-based group and a number of organizations who are willing to teach their dialogue methodologies to these volunteers, as well as learn from them.

Another existing initiative looks for ways for the tolerant voice to reclaim the public sphere. Yet another, newer, initiative sought to influence key decision-makers. All these initiatives had an opportunity during the event to find new passionate members and partners, gain some new ideas and directions, and find means of cooperation among themselves.

Working Group

New activities have already started, like sticker and T-shirt campaigns with anti-racist sayings, working with businesses that employ Arabs to make sure that they are not threatened in attempts to make them to fire their Arab workers, engaging in dialogue in mixed Jerusalem neighborhoods as Abu-Tor, mutual teaching of Arabic and Hebrew by Jews and Arabs etc.

Since the Workshop the JICC has opened up an Internet-based forum to enable activists from all the initiatives to continue to network and share ideas and experiences. We promised to mentor the initiatives and to have more energetic meetings for the initiatives in two months time.

We can’t close without a huge thanks to our strategic partners in this work, the Jerusalem Foundation, and the UJA- Federation of New York, who contributed in many ways to the success of our work in this new direction of fighting xenophobia in Jerusalem. We believe that many of the activities and approaches we use in Jerusalem can be of use in other places in Israel (and probably beyond).

Naomi Roff2014-12-05T14:07:30+00:00December 4th, 2014|Blog, Effective Activism, Promoting Tolerance in Jerusalem|

New Courses in Handicrafts for MiniActive Volunteers

We’ve spoken proudly about our MiniActive network, which today encompasses 900 women in East Jerusalem who work day in, day out to improve everyday lives for them and their families. The network also includes over 7,400 likes on its Facebook page.

MiniActive handicrafts

Since the beginning of the program in 2012 we’ve not only wanted to develop the network’s grassroots leadership and professional skills, a main goal has also been to foster community through a wide range of enrichment activities. Over the past few years this has included photography courses, environment and health courses, exercise classes, tours and trips, and more.

This year we’ve added yet another aspect of community-building – handicraft classes. Thus far there are some 30 women participating in a class in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City. Additional classes – also with 30 women in each – are slated to open in Issawiya (northern Jerusalem), Umm Tuba – Sur Baher (southern tip of Jerusalem), and Kufr Aqeb (northern tip of Jerusalem).

Handicrafts Workshop

Naomi Roff2014-12-13T15:12:31+00:00December 1st, 2014|Blog, Effective Activism, Identity Groups and Conflicts, MiniActive, Palestinians/Arabs|

Toward a Cooperative Community Café on the Jerusalem Railway Park

How do you want to see your green open spaces? That was the question we raised when we first began working with residents from neighborhoods that line the Jerusalem Railway Park about eight months ago, at the beginning of March, thanks to the support of the UJA-Federation of New York. Using Open Space Technology, a number of initiatives were raised, which we continue to follow up on today.

One of the initiatives that has gained momentum has been a Cooperative Community Café . A Community Café would be planned and operated by residents, for residents, and residents will make all the decisions – regarding what kind of food / drink will be served and at what prices, when it will operate, and what kind of activities will take place there. The goal of the Community Café is to create an informal meeting point for residents in a pleasant and casual atmosphere. All proceeds from the sale of food and drink will be dedicated to the operation and development of the Café, and not for profits.

On September 28 we held a meeting for the leading team that seeks to establish the Community Café in the Jerusalem Railway Park. The goal was to review a number of different models from around Jerusalem and other cities in Israel, and determine what is best of the Railway Park. Below is the comparison of the different characteristics of the various models.

Railway Park Community Café

We distributed a number of tasks among team members before the next meeting, including finding an appropriate name. Any suggestions?

Naomi Roff2016-03-19T11:41:48+00:00November 23rd, 2014|Blog, Deliberative Democracy, Identity Groups and Conflicts, Larger Baka Community Council, Railway Park, Rehavia|

New Medical Interpreters Course for Mental Health Professionals

Cultural competency in mental health hospitals is moving forward and spreading, thanks to our Cultural Competency Desk. Last month, on 23 October 2014, we finished the first part of a medical interpreting course for some 30 professionals in the mental health fields from seven institutions from all over the country. While we’ve been involved with courses for specific institutions (at Abarbanel and the Jerusalem Center for Mental Health), this is the first time professionals are coming from all over the country for such a course. The idea for the course was brought up at a meeting of the Forum for Cultural Competency Coordinators in Mental Health that was held at the Mazor (Mazra) Hospital north of Acco, which was facilitated by the JICC. What ensued was a unique partnership between public mental health institutions and the JICC, which enabled the course to come to fruition. Many special thanks go to the cultural competency coordinator at Mazra, Mr. Yaron Nachmias, and Dr. Anne-Marie Ullmann, of the Beer Yaakov Mental Health Center.

National Mental Health Interpreters Training

In all there were 27 participants, who spoke Arabic, Russian and Amharic. In the course they learned the basics of medical interpretation in the mental health fields, which is one of the most challenging areas, both for the interpreter and for all those (patients, family as well as caregivers) who are involved in the diagnosis and treatment process. Course participants learned about the challenges of oral interpretation, the practiced correct work methods, and dealing with professional and personal dilemmas. They enriched their knowledge in language-specific issues and and terminology in separate groups for each individual language.

Simulation of an Interpreted Session in Mental Health

Now, after the end of the course, the greatest challenge is to help the cultural competency coordinators to assimilate cultural competency principles into everyday practice at their institutions. This will mean learning to utilize the services of the trained interpreters in the everyday operations of the hospitals.

Principles of Cultural Competency

Naomi Roff2018-09-01T07:31:20+00:00November 23rd, 2014|Asylum Seekers, Blog, Cultural Competence, Cultural Competence in Health Services, Ethiopian Jews, Identity Groups and Conflicts, New Immigrants, Palestinians/Arabs, Ultra-Orthodox Jews|

Hadassah College – First Academic Institution to Become Culturally Competent

Jerusalem’s everyday reality has become increasingly complex over the past few months, but that the same time, some wonderful things are happening in the field of cultural competency. About a month ago, we began a long-term process to make Jerusalem’s Hadassah Academic College culturally competent. It will be the first academic institution in Israel to undergo this process, and it is happening in Jerusalem.

Hadassah College simulation

We began with a number of in-depth discussions with different department heads and administration, since we had to adapt our curriculum, which has been developed for the health care system, to the needs of the College. These discussions culminated in an all-day seminar for 30 department heads and administration on September 30. The workshop included principles of cultural competency, as well as a number of simulations, which enabled participants to experience specific culturally sensitive situations, and have guided discussions on methods of dealing with different intercultural challenges. Much of the discussion centered around issues in relation to the college’s Arab student body, which comprises 15% of the total student population. One of the main issues discussed were the obstacles of communication and language gaps between students and lecturers. They focused on a number of sensitive points, from the admissions interview, to regarding the different approaches toward education, and more. The next step will be for the participants to decide on a broader plan of action – who else will participate in the training workshops, and what other steps will the College take in becoming culturally competent.

How did Hadassah come to this? They are very minded about diversity. They have a very diverse student body, and, since they are located close to the seam line between East and West Jerusalem, on Nevi’im Street which designates the border between the secular neighborhoods and the very Haredi neighborhoods of Geulah and Meah Shearim, diversity and multi-culturalism is on their mind. The summer war and ongoing general tensions in Jerusalem made the need even greater.

Naomi Roff2014-11-22T12:30:22+00:00November 20th, 2014|Blog, Cultural Competence, Cultural Competence in Academic Institutions, Identity Groups and Conflicts|

10,000 Likes! Thank you!!!

Just now, The Jerusalem Intercultural Center’s Facebook page has passed 10,000 likes!

10000 likes!!

We’d like to say “thank you” to all our fans and supporters, and hope that together we will make Jerusalem a more hospitable city to all the people who live in it! It’s a real challenge for such a city, but there is only one Jerusalem – so we must make it happen!

Yours,

The JICC staff and volunteers

jicc2014-10-14T06:26:30+00:00October 13th, 2014|Blog|

Empowering the African Refugee Community in Jerusalem

Over the past year, we’ve been developing programming and training, together with a wide range of partners, in different disciplines to help and empower the African refugee community in Jerusalem, and to educate local service providers in how to give the community culturally sensitive care. (For more information, click here, here and here.) Here are a few examples of our work:

In late September we organized a first aid course at the Well Baby Clinic, with translation into Tigrinya, a language spoken by many African refugees. There were 9 participants, and all took the course very seriously. The translators all came from the refugee community in Jerusalem, and all were graduates of a medical interpretation course.

Well Baby Clinic first aid course

At the end of August (27/8) we held a story hour for the children and their parents. It was open to all children in the city center, both refugee and Israeli. The story teller told of Mulu and Tzagai, who had to leave their home and deal with a great number of dangers until they reached safety. After the story there were activities that helped the heroes of the story reach their destination.

Mulu and Tzagai story hour

On July 30, the well-baby clinic that serves the city center held a workshop for African refugee parents on early child development and dental health. Here, too, the workshop included translation by a trained medical interpreter. Parents showed a great deal of interest, and requested additional workshops. We and the well-baby clinic staff put a lot of thought into the workshop – and even brought a black baby to the demonstration – which the parents greatly appreciated.

Well Baby Clinic demonstration

Naomi Roff2014-11-22T13:19:02+00:00October 7th, 2014|Asylum Seekers, Blog, Cultural Competence in Health Services, Featured, Identity Groups and Conflicts|

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