In light of the social, economic, and environmental challenges facing Palestinian society, universities play a vital role in empowering students to engage with community issues. This engagement extends beyond theoretical learning to include practical work with a clear and lasting impact. Within this framework, the center supervises the Community Service Course as both an educational and community-based platform. The course integrates academic learning with community service and is guided by the principles of sustainable development and its seventeen goals, while remaining closely aligned with the Palestinian context and its specific needs.

Course Objective

The course aims to promote a strong culture of volunteering among students. It seeks to transform volunteering from a short-term academic requirement into a meaningful educational experience. This experience strengthens students’ sense of belonging and social responsibility and enables them to contribute directly to the achievement of sustainable development goals through well-planned and purposeful projects.

Implementation Mechanism

At the start of the course, students attend introductory lectures that highlight the value of volunteer work and its role in advancing development. Students are then placed in civil society organizations and university departments. Each student completes fifty hours of volunteer service during the semester across a range of fields.

These activities include educational support, such as providing academic assistance to school students, supporting learners with difficulties, preparing educational tools, and improving the school environment. Environmental initiatives are also carried out, including cleaning public spaces, planting trees, recycling solid waste, and raising awareness about agriculture and clean energy. In addition, students engage in social care activities. These include supporting low-income families, rehabilitating housing, caring for the elderly, organizing psychological support activities for orphans, and helping meet their basic needs.

Achievements in Numbers

Over ten years, forty-nine thousand blood units were donated to support patients with kidney disease, thalassemia, and leukemia.

A total of twenty-seven thousand three hundred fifty volunteers contributed eight hundred twenty thousand five hundred volunteer hours across various community fields. More than ten thousand students participated in environmental activities, including cleaning campaigns, tree planting, and the preparation of agricultural seedlings.

The course has grown beyond a graduation requirement to become a meaningful human and community experience. It strengthens national belonging and Palestinian identity while

supporting students’ personal growth. The course helps students develop key skills, including teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving, and opens new opportunities for their professional and social futures.

Many students have expressed the deep and lasting impact of this experience on their lives. They report a renewed perspective on society and a strong motivation to continue volunteering even after completing the course.

The center emphasizes the importance of strengthening partnerships among universities, civil society organizations, and community institutions. These partnerships are essential to expanding the reach and effectiveness of volunteer work in Palestine and aligning these efforts with the global vision of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.