Internships

The International Peace and Cooperation Center (IPCC) appreciates the assistance of volunteers and interns who contribute to our projects in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. IPCC’s Palestinian and international interns include students and recent graduates of political sciences, architecture, urban planning, urban studies, geography and others.

IPCC’s interns are involved in a variety of projects, working alongside some of the organization’s most senior experts. They perform data collection and research for IPCC’s publications and reports, take part in the planning and zoning programs for East Jerusalem and West Bank area “C” and also engage in our civil society projects.

We receive a high number of requests for internships but can only accept a limited number. We ask that you kindly send us a brief bio or your CV along with a cover letter detailing your area of interest to: info@ipcc-jerusalem.org.

Thank you for your interest in IPCC.

Interns’ Experiences

Ina Ketterer – Student of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Stuttgart, Germany

“There have only been very few times in my life as intense as the three month I spent in Jerusalem at IPCC. As a student of architecture and urban planning, I was involved in many different projects. I contributed to several publications; I worked on researching At Tur site in East Jerusalem and outlining a program to improve the area; and finally I played part in developing a master plan for a new Palestinian neighborhood in Jerusalem, Al-Addaseh. I did not only learn a lot about methods of planning in the Middle East. Due to my always-friendly colleagues, I gained deep insights into culture, way of living, religion and particularly what it means to live in an occupied territory. I had to deal with the conflict and realized that it is hard to stay uninvolved. This suspense was sometimes hard to bear. Nevertheless I am really pleased and thankful for this broadening experience.”

Isabel Wolf - Student of Islamic Sciences, Iranian Studies and Modern History, University of Bamberg, Germany

“Performing an internship at IPCC gave me the chance to experience the land of Palestine/Israel and in particular the city of Jerusalem in a very special way. During my 10 weeks at IPCC I was in charge of working on a visual database of the Old City of Jerusalem, locating and mapping all important historical buildings, religious organizations and other social, cultural and educational institutions. I was taking pictures from the inside and the outside of the buildings and collecting the main data via interviews or by using libraries. This work has been very interesting and enabled me to have direct contact with people living and working in the Old City, allowing me to understand many details about their everyday life. I very much enjoyed working with IPCC because I was able to work independently, developing my own work schedule. On the other hand, the friendly and helpful staff were always willing to help and support me in any kind of way. I am very grateful for this opportunity, having given me the opportunity to develop my own skills as well as getting to know and understand the life in this country from a different point of view.”

Ellis Dodwell – Student of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Cambridge, UK

“I worked as an intern at IPCC for six weeks. It was a fantastic experience. We worked on an interesting brief to design a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem. I learnt a huge amount about urban planning and the architecture of Jerusalem. It also taught me much about Palestinian and Israeli society, and I even learnt a small amount of Arabic! The work we produced inspired me to continue studying the topic and has formed the base of my dissertation. I hope to return soon and cannot thank the IPCC enough for this opportunity.”

Rawan Masharqa - Student of Architectural Engineering, Birzeit University, Palestine

“I was involved in developing a comprehensive 20-year-plan for 16 villages in North-West Jerusalem. The work was implemented by a team of students, and started with a survey of the concerned villages. The survey stage consisted of interviews with local councils in the villages and with local people living there. We collected information and observed and analyzed the area. The next step was studying the needs of people in the villages, the problems they suffer from, and the potentials of these villages. The result from these steps was a SWOT Analysis for the whole area. We then made a schedule for the necessary projects in the area we studied. The experience was so interesting and I enjoyed working in a team. For me, it was enjoyable to have a chance to acquire detailed knowledge of the situation in some critical Palestinian areas near Jerusalem. The experience made me more responsible and careful in planning and developing Palestinian areas.”

Hamza Abdalhalim - Student of Architectural Engineering, Birzeit University, Palestine

“I participated as an intern at the IPCC working on a planning project which consisted of making a 20-year-plan for 16 villages in North West Jerusalem. I visited some of these villages with partners to understand the rural context and character of the rural environment. We met specialists in local councils, spoke with local people in the villages, and walked around the areas to take notes and make observations. After collecting extensive data, we made a report describing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of each village.  We also suggested some projects according to the potential of each site. We continuously shared our information with specialists at IPCC to support suitable planning for the villages. My participation in field work for IPCC enabled me to move from theory to application of principles and processes of planning. I am happy for the chance to participate in such rewarding work which supports local people and helps them get access to better education, recreation facilities, and health care which will enhance their life.”