Nahla Qoura

Director, Cultural Dept. Ramallah Municipality & Director, Ramallah Public Library Mrs. Nahla Qourah Date of Birth 15/11/1948 Marital Status Widow; Mother of Three Nationality Palestinian Work Address Ramallah Municipality P. O. Box (3), Ramallah, West Bank, Palestine Contact Information Tel: ++972-(0)2-2956904 Home: ++972-(0)2-2985692 Mobile: ++972-(0)59-671-002 Fax: ++972-(0)2-2956904 Higher Education May, 1972 Jacksonville University, Jacksonville, FLORIDA, U.S.A Bachelors in Arts (History and Education) Work Experience 1996-Present Director of Cultural and Public Relations Department, Ramallah Municipality, Ramallah, Palestine - Responsible for the management of the Ramallah Center for Childhood and Heritage (former Ottoman Court), which includes organizing summer camps, story-reading activities and entertainment activities for children and parents - Responsible for the management of children playgrounds of Ramallah Municipalities - Supervised the publication of a book, "Ramallah, the Dream, Ramallah, the Place," a book containing an anthology of writings about Ramallah - Responsible for the publications: "Ramallah in the Press, a monthly publications documenting news and stories about Ramallah in the daily press; Dadaat Al-Maktaba, a monthly newspaper supplement about cultural activities in Ramallah - Republished "The History of the City of Ramallah," by Yousef Qaddura, covering the history of Ramallah - Directed and managed the Ramallah Cultural Palace establishment, construction, staffing, and inauguration - Responsible for managing all public cultural activities of the city including film festivals, summer art and music festivals, and reception of foreign dignitaries and Palestinian National Authority officials - Directed and managed the twining of Ramallah City with other European towns (Trondheim, Norway and Epinay-sur-seine, France) 1981-Present Head Librarian of the Ramallah Municipality Public Library, Ramallah Municipality, Ramallah, Palestine - Managed the expansion of the library and the addition of thousands of new volumes - Managed the introduction of Internet-connected computers for library visitors - Managed fund-raising for the library Social and Political Activities and Memberships • President, Women Affairs Technical Committee; largest coalition of women non-governmental organizations in Palestine • Executive Board Member of the Association of Women’s Committees for Social Work; Palestinian women social work organization • Executive Board Member of Al-Nahda Women Society in Ramallah, Palestine; local Palestinian charity organization • Member of the Executive Committee of the Arab Orthodox Society in Palestine and Jordan; largest Arab Christian church organization • Member of the Preparatory Committee of the General Union of Palestinian Women; umbrella organization for Palestinian women social organizations Conferences and Speaking Tours October 11-14, 2004 Attended the ESCWA-sponsored Arab-International Forum on the Socio-Economic Rehabilitation and Development in the Occupied Palestinian Territories May, 2000 Attended the United Nations-sponsored Beijing + 5 Conference on Women Status in New York City, NY, USA; conference assessed progress since the 1995 Beijing International women conference 1996 Organized and attended local conferences and seminars concerning women issues and local authorities 1995 Int. Women Conference in Beijing, China Training course in Geneva “Human Rights and Peace Teaching” 1994 Women Conference in Jordan Preparatory meeting for United Nations International Women Conference in Beijing, China “Women Issues and Local Authorities” invited by African national Congress to observe the election 1992 Conference in Tunis (Teaching Human Rights) 1991 Conference in Miami U.S.A (NGO’s and its roles) 1990 Workshop in London (Palestinian Children) 1989 Conducted a speaking Tour in the Scandinavian Countries Training Courses Attended • December, 2004: Attended "Children as Readers" training course in Birmingham, United Kingdom. The course presented new methods for encouraging children to read and how to re-orient libraries towards encouraging young readers. • Seminar in “Diplomacy and Protocol” • Training course in “Local Authorities and their Strategies” • Human Rights and Peace Teaching • Administration and Management Workshop and Seminar Organized and Attended • Organized a training for trainers courses for women in West Bank and Gaza • Organized seminars and workshops in “Election and Democracy” and participated by representatives of women institutions and committees • Workshops on “Revise Women Laws” participated by women leaders and lawyers • Organized and participant in writing “Palestinian Women Charter” • Participated in a discussion on Civil Laws steered by the Deputy Minister of Interior held at Women Affairs Technical Committee • Organized workshops administered by (WATC) on “The Role of Municipalities and Local Councils” • Organized illiteracy classes for women in villages through Association of Women Committee for Social Work • Organized and participated in workshop held at Ramallah Municipality participated by different women organization with political parties “The Role of Women in Political Parties and Where They Stand” • Attended a training course organized by (WATC) organized by (WATC) and the British Labour Party entitled “Women and Election” • Interviewed by different International and local radios and televisions • Organized a voluntary work for all organization to clean up the town • 1989-2005: participate in all activities in Ramallah District social, political, city council and during the invasion of the city • 2005-2008: increase the library contents, books purchase, holding events and activities for readers (adults and children), offering different programs including story reading, drawing, handicrafts, field trips and environmental programs. • 2006-2007: Holding summer camps, establishing the Children Municipal Council, holding courses for children about motivation including leadership, communication and voluntary work. Publications 1989  Published a book titled “Children of Intifada”  Wrote many articles in local newspapers about women issues and political issues  Wrote an article about “The Role of Women in Local Authorities and Councils”  Issue press releases both in English and Arabic about Palestinian women prisoners  Issue a newsletter in English and Arabic for the Associations of Women Committees for Social Work