“Idea Factory” is a student based project, initiated by students from Birzeit University and executed under the supervision of “The Windsor Birzeit Dignity Initiative’’ that aims to discuss the absence of youth’s participation in shaping their future, in other words their absence in an effective participation in the public sphere.
Students participating in this project held brain storming sessions to discuss the growing phenomena of alienation from the political scene. Whereas apathy amongst youth has become very visible towards social and economic issues which affects their daily lives, reality and their future (for example: the absence of job opportunities, corruption in the hiring system, an unjust distribution of wealth, the fall back of the quality education of and the increase in its cost, and many others…). This phenomena of alienation is visible in their lack of participation in political parties (even amongst student parties), and the decrease in political participation in all of its forms, an overwhelming feeling of desperation, and by what these students conclude from the brain storming sessions they formulate research cases, then they research, discuss and write papers on it. Also for this purpose, many meetings with different people were held, whether from a political background, or others depending on the need and the topic addressed. The students also refer to teachers in the university on the subject matter they are dealing with.
Idea Factory aims to assist youth in their aspirations towards effective participation and shaping of the public space. This is done through the creation of a space for dialogue and debates on the public space; it’s shaping and the formulation of ideas on their reality and future. The environment which fostered the dialogue is based on intellectual adversity, cultural adversity and the use of multiple knowledge tools.
We aim to create a sense of awareness of the reality that we live in, in order to surpass false awareness and to develop critical thinking amongst youths, in the hopes for creating young leaders who are able to step into the public space and demand the realization of their hopes and future aspirations.
