Last August, I joined the Social Developmental Forum (SDF) as a teacher. I have been displaced from Gaza City, and I currently live in Deir Al-Balah. Since leaving Gaza in November, I have been overwhelmed by a sense of alienation; despite this estrangement of having to live in a place where I don’t belong, I […]
A group of young activists launched “Together For Palestine” community interventions all over the Gaza Strip. 14 community initiatives were funded by the Social Developmental Forum (SDF), 11 in the middle and southern areas, and 3 in the northern regions. This unique set of community interventions, launched early in December 2024 were designed and finalized […]
Internally Displaced People have been facing escalated crises, beyond the confines of their makeshift tents or “displacement centers”. Sanitation is a pressing issue in displacement that exacerbates the plights of IDPs; recurring overflowing sewage to streets, camps, and schools heavily affects areas such as Deir Al-Balah and Khan Younis, sheltering hundreds of thousands of displaced […]
Thirteen-year-old Ghazal Al-Sultan lives in a tent-like all Internally Displaced People in the Gaza Strip. Her life mirrors the monotonous and exhausting routine of displacement until she finally joined a Safe Learning Space, established by the Social Developmental Forum in the “Together For Palestine 3” camp in Deir Al-Balah. Ghazal was a seventh-grade student before […]
Standing a few meters away from the children’s courtyard at Abdul Rahman bin ‘Awf School in Gaza City, Karima stares at the youngsters as they play alongside her fellow volunteers. A single word flutters in her heart: hope—the very hope and belief that filled the hearts of her young peers at the “Together For Hope”. […]
Recently, “Together Towards Hope” youth network members, alongside the SDF’s team distributed over 1,000 school bags and stationery to students in Safe Learning Spaces across the middle area of the Gaza Strip. This intervention aims to support children’s engagement in the learning process. The distribution targeted SLSs in the “Return Camp” at the Palestinian Red […]
From being surrounded by family and friends and actively engaged in community service to enduring the pain of displacement and loss. Aya’s story is this of all Palestinians who have been struggling over a year of genocide in Gaza. Yet, her voice, persistence, and pursuit amid the hardships, are remarkable! Recently, 22-year-old Aya finished her […]
Since the onset of the war, northern Gaza has endured uniquely challenging harsh conditions, surpassing the struggles faced by other governorates. The severe water shortage has become a fundamental struggle for those who couldn’t or didn’t forcibly leave to the South. Khaled Hamdan, a member of the Social Developmental Forum’s Youth Network, used to be […]
Her husband was killed by the IOF, leaving her alone with her children. She had to evacuate several times; from a school to a destroyed home, surviving through the support and aid from other families. This is the headline of the story of 38-year-old Hadeel Al-Bardawil, who was displaced from Jabalya in northern Gaza to […]
Within its efforts to support women, girls, and marginalized groups amid the genocide, the Social Developmental Forum (SDF) team has distributed over 150 dignity kits to displaced Palestinian women in the middle area of the Gaza Strip. This initiative was implemented in partnership with Education Above All (EAA) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). […]
