Alrowwad (Pioneers for Life) for Culture and arTs (ACTs) was established in Aida refugee camp-Bethlehem in 1998 and registered as a not-for-profit organization in August of 2003, under law Number 1 of Charitable Societies and Non-governmental Associations, 2000, by the Ministry of Interior of the Palestinian National Authority under the License Number BL-360-CU and license number 239/B/100/2009 in the Ministry of Culture. Alrowwad, initiator of “Beautiful Resistance,” is an independent, dynamic, community-based not-for-profit organization which strives to empower children and women by targeting behavior, knowledge, concepts and practices through creative and non-violent means.
(Everybody is a change maker. Nobody has the right to say, “I can’t do anything,” because otherwise every day that comes will continue to be worse than the day that goes. This is not a heritage that anyone can be proud to leave to our children and the generations to come). Dr. Abdelfattah Abusrour, Founder of Alrowwad.

Alrowwad, a Pulse of Life in Dignity

Home of hope, dream, imagination and creativity

Vision:

A Palestinian Society free of violence and respectful ofhuman rights and values, in which women, youth and children are empowered on an educational and artistic level in a spirit of social entrepreneurship and innovation through self-expression and a shared respect of human values and rights.
Be one of the premiere institutions for the training in performing and visual arts in Palestine.

 Mission:

ACTs is an independent, (and) not-for-profit, non-governmental organization, distinguished by its philosophy of “Beautiful Resistance,” working in the spirit of social entrepreneurship, to deepen the notion of belonging, volunteering, creativity and self-expression for children, youth and women, regardless of origin or religion. We partner with kindergartens, schools and the local community to create a harmonious and unified society using and employing “non-violent” expression through education as well as with performing and visual arts which preserve Palestinian oral history. Moreover, ACTs provides vocational training for job creation and building the peace within individuals to be able to build it among Palestinians and the world.

ACTs was established by a group of volunteers in 1998 in Aida refugee camp-Bethlehem with the belief that everybody has the potential to be a change-maker with the philosophy “With or without money, we do it.” ACTs has developed its pioneering programs with local and international partners according to the needs and agendas of the community while also undergoing capacity-building of the organization and its employees through specialized training and development of infrastructure using modern technology for human communication. In diffusing its programs and activities by building bridges of partnerships and exchanges locally and internationally, based on respect of human rights and values and conservation of Palestinian traditional culture and environment.

Beautiful Resistance against the ugliness of occupation and violence:

ACTs expands its activities and artistic tours to a range of beneficiaries beginning with the Aida refugee camp, to Bethlehem, and then to include marginalized and underserved villages and refugee camps and areas in different governorates throughout Palestine. ACTs’s artistic performances and films have toured throughout Palestine and internationally in Europe and the U.S. ACTs also work hard to develop partnerships in the Arab world. ACTs was(has been)  a pioneer in organizing the first outdoor film festival, the first Palestinian folktale festival, the first “sports for social change” program for women in a refugee camp, the first “images for life” program (photo and video professional training) in a Palestinian refugee camp, and the first student scholarship fund. On top of this, ACTs provides free services and activities, and some professional training are at a reasonable cost.

Mandate – Target groups:

ACTs targets the Palestinian community while focusing on women, youth and children in the local community of Aida Camp and the Bethlehem district. Additionally, ACTs targets the international community at large to fracture stereotypes and project a more honest depiction of the Palestinian people and culture. The Alrowwad organization strives to have the full capacity to mobilize human, technical and financial resources to achieve dynamic and effective change in the long term.

Developmental Objectives:

Empower local community capacities, with a focus on children, youth and women through creative means to achieve and enhance constructive and peaceful ways of self-confidence and self-expression, openness and a sense of belonging through exposure to technology and literacy coupled with the conservation of indigenous knowledge and human values using specialized training and awareness campaigns.
Challenge media stereotypes about Palestinians using performing and visual arts, Media, international artistic tours, and local and international “Friends of Alrowwad” support groups.
Build the institutional and human capacity of Alrowwad.

Home of Hope, Dream,

Imagination and Creativity

ACTs has five departments working towards educational, artistic, and social innovation, with a spirit of social entrepreneurship and character-building for full human potential. ACTs sees every individual as a change-maker and as an active participant in the human spirit of belonging. ACTs works with local and international partners focusing on children and their parents in coordination with kindergartens, schools and the community to build the peace within and support them to grow and develop based on community priorities, independent of external and foreign agendas.