1for3 is a 501c(3) charity registered in Massachusetts. We are 1 organization that supports 3 Palestinian rights to water, health, and education by developing 4 interrelated programs. 1for3 meets communities at the nexus of environmental outreach, community health support, urban agriculture, and early childhood education. With our partners, we train young adults in skills that serve their neighbors and build local infrastructure. 1for3’s programs are based on community needs and abilities. Each year we walk to support Palestinian refugee communities as they seek to better their lives.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, this year our community will be walking virtually. Then we will come together on a Zoom event on Saturday, May 22, to celebrate with our partners from Palestine. We will share more details on that as we move forward.

Advocating for better water quality for Palestinian refugees was the impetus for 1for3’s work. Our first program, in 2012, established a water testing lab in the UN-run Aida refugee camp in partnership with a local community organization, the Lajee Center, and Tufts University’s Water, Systems, Science & Society program (WSSS). Since then, we have established portable water quality monitoring programs, constructed 45 rooftop gardens and greenhouses, built two community cisterns, replaced 30 rooftop water tanks to safeguard household water supplies, led four delegations to build water testing labs, and trained technicians to test and monitor water that has led to upgraded infrastructure. But that is only the beginning.

With our partner, the Lajee Center, we are supporting outreach about water and the environment.  Summer camps for 75 students highlighted water sources and uses, and a farmers’ market for area growers promoted the local use of water for agriculture. Because of our work over many years, young people are graduating as water technicians.


Our new Community Hydroponic Garden, a 55-square-meter rooftop installation with solar power in the UN-run Aida refugee camp, serves 120 families (over 800 people) with fresh food that they produce, while using 70-90% less water than a conventional garden would. The garden complements our earlier work in helping water-scarce residents grow food with rooftop gardens.

What Will Your Donation to the Walk for Water 5K Support?


Water & Environment

As long as water is being denied to Palestinian refugees by the Israeli military occupation, water will be a centerpiece of our work. Funds will provide water-related services to Palestinian refugee communities and training for Palestinian young people to develop marketable skills that support water-related projects. Below are examples of some specific water-related activities for which we are raising funds this year.


$25K updates the technical ability of the existing Water Quality Lab to include a wide range of biological, chemical, and physical testing. Our water testing program has already touched every household in Aida and Azza refugee camps and nearby villages, and we can do more to serve public health in the region.
 


$2K expands water-based linkages with public health programs like Health for Palestine (H4P) and community agriculture by supporting farmers’ markets, clean water public campaigns, and awareness-raising programs on efficient water use.



Health for Palestine (H4P)


$70K initiates a new H4P public health program in the largest UN-run refugee camp in the West Bank, Balata, where 30,000 people live in a tiny space with a population density of 108,000 per square kilometer. These services would be performed by six trained community health workers to initially serve 140 patients suffering from diabetes, hypertension, and mental health issues. 



$95K provides one year of H4P community health services for 125 patients suffering from diabetes, hypertension, and mental health issues in two UN-run refugee camps, Aida and Azza, in the West Bank. Services will be delivered by 12 trained community health workers who themselves support family members numbering 63 people. Since March 2018, these community health workers have made over 4,400 patient visits.



$6K provides one year of expanded training for H4P community health workers to recognize and support the treatment of mental health issues among patients.



Urban Agriculture


$50K builds a new water-efficient community hydroponic garden with solar power in another UN-run refugee camp that will serve over 100 gardeners and their 700 family members with quick-growing leafy vegetables that can be harvested in three to eight weeks while using 70-90% less water than soil-grown crops.  



$5K trains the 120 new users of the Community Hydroponic Garden in the UN-run Aida refugee camp to become effective urban farmers for over their 800 family members using the hydroponic method and solar power system.



$5K expands the delivery of micro-hydroponic gardens and the training to use them to five homes in the UN-run Aida and Azza refugee camps. These gardens use significantly less water than soil-grown alternatives and provide essential vitamins and minerals through freshly grown produce.



Early Childhood Education


$85K provides one year of preschool education for 50 students and employment for two teachers, two staff members, an administrator, and a custodian.

We are fundraising for an integrative approach to support Palestinian refugees’ rights to water, health, and education! You can be part of this valuable work by fundraising or donating. We thank you, in advance, for your support.  

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