Sard: Stories of Adversity, Resilience and Determination - 2025

is a creative initiative designed to empower youth in Al-Jalazoun Refugee Camp through stop-motion animation. Developed by masna al-rusoom al-mutaharrika (Almasna) in partnership with Space Foundation, the project offers 14–16-year-old boys and girls the opportunity to tell their stories, reflect on their experiences, and connect with the world using the universal language of animation.

Through a 32-hour training program in a fully equipped animation studio, participants will learn the foundations of storytelling, animation, and English narration. Together, they will script, design, and animate a collaborative short film that reflects the resilience and daily realities of life in Al-Jalazoun. The project culminates in a community screening and online release, alongside a “making-of” video.

Animation allows us to reimagine reality—frame by frame. Through this project, the youth of Al-Jalazoun reclaim their narratives and share stories of courage, creativity, and hope. Read more about the work of Almasna here.

This project isn’t just about animation. It’s about voice, identity, and showing the world what we live, what we dream, and how we survive. - Basel Nasr

 is a creative education project led by the Tamer Institute for Community Education. Focused on the power of language and storytelling, the initiative aims at providing 200 Palestinian children and young adults in Gaza and the West Bank the tools needed to express their lived experiences using the English language. With 60 literacy workshops and a six-episode podcast series, the project combines educational enrichment with digital storytelling to strengthen self-expression, resilience, and cross-cultural dialogue. It offers a unique platform for young Palestinians to share personal narratives, advocate for their communities, and connect with global audiences—amplifying their voices during a time when being heard is more urgent than ever. Read more about Tamer’s work.

“In times of crisis, storytelling becomes not only a tool for healing, but a form of resistance. Through this initiative, we hope young Palestinians can have a chance to reclaim their voices, craft their narratives in English, and speak directly to the world. Their stories deserve to be heard—unfiltered, honest, and powerful.” 

Dima Saqfalhait, Coordinator of the Literary and Knowledge Production Program at Tamer Institute

Resilient Voices, led by Dr Ahmed Kamal Junina, aims to support 50 Palestinian youth aged 18-30, including those displaced by the war on Gaza, through English language training and digital storytelling. The project brings together a skilled international team, including Dr Martin McMorrow (Australia), Gerhard Erasmus (Taiwan), and Dr María Auxiliadora Durán (Spain), each contributing expertise in linguistics, education, and mental health. Through workshops in creative writing, podcasting, and blogging, paired with mental health support, participants will craft and share personal stories of perseverance. A public digital archive will preserve these narratives, fostering cross-cultural dialogue and amplifying Palestinian voices on a global stage. The initiative enhances language skills, digital literacy, and community cohesion, while also creating resources to inspire and inform similar educational and advocacy efforts worldwide.

Read more about Ahmed Junina

Through Resilient Voices, we empower Gaza’s youth to transform their experiences of hardship into powerful stories of resilience, building bridges of understanding and hope that connect their voices to the world.

Dr Ahmed Kamal Junina, Project Lead

This programme, led by a core team of Amir Garmroudi and Aisja Hamed, develops and facilitates a programme of storytelling masterclasses in the form of co-learning sessions in English for budding Palestinian storytellers. The sessions and the surrounding activities will be curated not only to help participants tell effective stories about their life and experiences in Palestine but also to make the jump towards becoming professional storytellers. The programme will both support storytellers to refine their storytelling skills and, support them in understanding how to get those stories out into the world, engaging with a creative community that offers support and feedback in the development of participants' creative ideas. The programme will culminate in the creation of a digital publication showcasing participants’ work.  Read more about Amir’s work and check out Hakayana website.

“It is a daunting task for a Palestinian to become a storyteller and carry the responsibilities that come with it. In our case, to write is to fight. Against erasure and for the liberation of our people. We learned this from our fallen friends, like Refaat Alareer. As a writer, scholar, and mentor of young writers from Gaza, he was an inspiring figure to many. We take his final words with heavy hearts, but earnestly: we will tell your story, Refaat, because it is also ours.”

Aisja Hamed

is part of the LINESforPalestine project, which has been supporting students and academics in Gaza since early 2024. LINES2F fosters collaboration between undergraduate students at the Islamic University of Gaza (IUG, Palestine) and the University of Porto (Portugal) through sci-fi storytelling and filmmaking. 50 students from Gaza and Porto will work in small, mixed groups to make short science-fiction films guided by online workshops and group mentoring from creative writing and film-making experts. They will develop and express their creativity on an international stage, make new connections, practise English in an authentic context and learn about creative writing and filmmaking. Through the parallel research strand, the University of Glasgow will provide new insights and evidence on how intercultural work on this type of shared project can facilitate reciprocal understanding and agency in the active imagining and telling of presents and futures for individuals and communities. The films will be premiered as part of the established film series held by the Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network (GRAMNet), which ensures the dissemination of research nationally and internationally, engaging both academic and non-academic audiences.

"Through sci-fi storytelling and collaborative filmmaking, supported by meaningful virtual exchanges with their peers in Portugal, the LINEs2theFuture project strengthens the language and intercultural communication skills of Palestinian students in Gaza. It also helps them navigate trauma, amplify their voices, instill hope, and rebuild trust in a global academic community amid war, displacement, and ongoing academic uncertainty."

Dr Nazmi al Masri (Professor of Language Education, Islamic University of Gaza)

 "Story on a Plate" is a creative workshop series that empowers Palestinian children and young people aged (9- 17) to express their identities and experiences through storytelling and art. Hosted by Tashkeel, an eco-friendly art space in Nablus/ West Bank, the programme combines English language learning with visual arts, using literature as a catalyst for creativity. Participants engage with classic children's books, then create ceramic plates and other artworks that reflect their personal narratives. The initiative fosters language skills, cultural expression, and community engagement, culminating in a public exhibition and digital storytelling showcase. Check out Tashkeel Instagram .

“Through storytelling and art, we reclaim our narratives and share our resilience with the world.” 

Wasan Qaraman, Creative Director, Tashkeel