Paul Calvert talks to Daoud Nassar, from Tent of Nations, a farm located South West of Bethlehem, about non-violent and constructive resistance.

Tree sponsor

We do a tree planting campaign between January and March to invite people to sponsor and plant trees, because when we plant a tree we believe in the future. We make the land productive, but if we want to talk about peace we learn that peace should grow from the ground up like an olive tree.

In July we have a two week summer camp of children from the Bethlehem area.

We have a female empowerment project in the village that helps women, who do not have the chance for education, to learn something. It's about empowerment not education.

We have harvest camps. We are now in the middle of the grape harvest. In June you usually have apricot harvest, July the almond, the grape harvest in August, and the fig harvest in September and in October the olive Harvest.

Those are the programmes that we have and they are visited by local and international volunteers.

Paul: Tell us about the children's work and the women's work that you are doing.

Daoud: Our children are growing up in a difficult political situation. They are traumatised, there is nothing positive to talk about, and all they see in front of them is a dark future.

We try with creative workshops like paintings, mosaics, music and theatre to empower the children.

We want to achieve three simple goals. The first goal is to let the children discover their talents and to let them focus on their positives. It's very important not to focus on the empty part of the glass of water, why not focus on the full part? The moment they focus on the positives, I believe that they will stand up and depend upon themselves and believe in themselves, that they're able to shape their future.

Welcome stone

So for every summer camp we have a title. One summer camp title was 'With a heart and a hand we change the land', overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities. Another title was 'I have a dream'. The idea is not to learn how to dream, but to persist achieving your dream.

So the idea is, as I said, to empower the children as well as the women.

Women and the Palestinian society are also limited and we want to improve the role of women.

My wife is working with 15 to 20 women who do not have chances for education. We want to empower them to do activities like computer teaching, English classes, agriculture training, first aid courses and recycling projects. To build a bridge between each other and to empower each other to stand up. Learn that the best way to go for a better future is to start by myself.

Paul: You say that you have volunteers and you have olive trees, tell me more about that.