A new programme connecting young Palestinians in the diaspora with Palestine through training, learning, and direct engagement with local organisations and communities.
Taawon, the Palestinian Museum and Horizons Academy have launched Surā, a new internship programme for young Palestinians in the diaspora. The programme responds to a central question: how can inherited connection to Palestine become direct participation, lived experience, and a contribution to Palestine’s present and future?
Driven by this question, Taawon (Welfare Association), in partnership with AlNayzak’s Horizons Academy and the Palestinian Museum, has launched Surā, a programme that connects young Palestinians in the diaspora with Palestine. Through training, learning, and direct engagement with Palestinian organisations and communities, it offers participants an opportunity to build a deeper and more lasting relationship with Palestine.
The programme rests on a shared vision of young Palestinians, wherever they are, as an integral part of Palestine’s human capital. Recognising the knowledge and experience they have gained across academic and professional contexts around the world, Surā brings this vital resource into dialogue with the local expertise of Palestinian organisations, opening up opportunities for mutual learning and cultivating new ideas, partnerships, and approaches that benefit participants, host organisations, and Palestinian society at large.
Surā gives participants first-hand experience with Palestinian organisations, alongside a programme of meetings, visits, and educational and cultural activities. Offering diaspora youth a way into contemporary Palestine beyond inherited narratives alone, it also enables Palestinian organisations to draw on expertise, perspectives, and creative capacities shaped in diverse academic and professional contexts around the world.
Dr Tareq Emtairah, Director General of Taawon, noted: “For over four decades, Taawon has invested in the Palestinian individual as our people’s most valuable asset. Today, we see Palestinian youth in the diaspora as an extension of this vision; they carry knowledge and experiences gained from around the world, alongside a deep-rooted sense of belonging to Palestine. The Surā programme bridges these two dimensions, transforming belonging into experience, expertise into partnership, and the relationship with Palestine into a tangible contribution to building its future.”
Amer Shomali, Director of the Palestinian Museum, said: “The experience of the Palestinian Museum over the past years has taught us that many challenges can, with determination and will, be turned into opportunities. Just as we transformed limited physical access to the museum into a presence that transcends geography, and just as we turned the dispersion and loss of a large part of our heritage and collections into an opportunity to build partnerships and exhibitions shaped by Palestinians and institutions from different parts of the world, we look at the Palestinian diaspora through the same lens. Young people who have grown up, studied, and worked in different academic, professional, and cultural contexts carry experiences that many in Palestine have not had the opportunity to undergo.”
Shomali added: “For us, these experiences do not represent an absence from Palestine so much as an extension of its collective experience and knowledge. When this meets the local knowledge accumulated by our institutions, new questions emerge, horizons of thought expand, and approaches develop that neither context could produce alone. In our view, this is one of the most important goals that the Surā programme seeks to achieve, both for the participants and for our institutions alike.”
Horizons Academy, part of AlNayzak Organization for Supportive Education and Scientific Innovation, also emphasised that Surā aligns with its mission to invest in youth and develop innovative educational experiences beyond the classroom. The programme fosters critical thinking, creativity, leadership, and real-world engagement, enabling young Palestinians to turn knowledge into community impact.
Dr Aref Al-Husseini, President of AlNayzak, said: “Every generation has a responsibility to learn from the past, engage with the present, and help build a better future. Founded on this belief, Surā gives young professionals around the world the opportunity to strengthen their connection to home by engaging with inspiring institutions, accomplished professionals, and vibrant communities. More than a professional development programme, Surā nurtures leadership, fosters belonging, and empowers participants to create lasting positive impact.”
Al-Husseini added: “I firmly believe that when young people are empowered with knowledge, given the trust to take responsibility, and provided with real opportunities for leadership, they become a force.”
The first edition of Surā will launch this autumn for Palestinian students, recent graduates, and early-career professionals across the diaspora. Participants will take part in a programme that combines practical training, knowledge exchange, and direct engagement with Palestinian institutional and cultural life.
For more information and application details, please visit :Sura Internship Programme | Sura.ps