About

Kalandia Youth Media is a not-for-profit program that inspires and motivates refugee youth through the use of creative media and local leadership training. Their work is then showcased locally and abroad, letting the international community see through their eyes.

How

KYM believes in open collaboration with local communities. Youth need media equipment and education sessions, and KYM makes this available at the Child Centre for Culture and Development in Kalandia refugee camp. Local community members are trained in photography, videography, and journalism techniques and become leaders of the program. In turn, they train local youth in expression through creative media.

KYM provides media supplies, including digital photo cameras, video cameras, and tripods to facilitate a sustainable program; the equipment stays with the centre to continue the program with local community leaders. During the summer, there are weekly learning sessions followed by assignments. During the school year, the sessions are available when the kids have free time.  KYM also facilitates guest speakers and experts to work with the kids. The finished work is presented on this website, as well as at art galleries in the West Bank, Israel, and Toronto.

A Necessity

The Palestinian refugees who live here are those who “lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict.” Kalandia is extremely overcrowded and lacks space for youth to interact and play. There is only one youth centre. Almost one in five of the residents is unemployed, unable to find jobs in the area or barred from crossing the checkpoint. Besides high unemployment, youth here suffer from a “lack of opportunity, and physical and psychological challenges inflicted by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and as a result of occupation and frequent Israeli military incursions.” Psychologists have consistently linked violence in the social sphere with “aggression, depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, and academic difficulties.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) is the sole supporter of programs in the 19 registered refugee camps in the West Bank, including Kalandia. It handles the daily challenges faced by Palestinian refugees, including unemployment, overcrowding, and a lack of infrastructure. But this not-for-profit has its hands full. In 2009, it met only 86 per cent of its operational goal, which is leading to an erosion in services. That means less supplies and cuts on programs for Kalandia’s kids.

This uncertainty, and the negative effects– both mental and physical– of the occupation have impacted children the most. Teens witness violence, face hopelessness, and grow up in a displaced gray zone, abandoned by those with the power to change their situation.