The Association of Palestinian Local Authorities (APLA) carried out a follow-up field visit to the “Stories of Sustainable Development in Palestine” initiative at Bassam Al-Shakaa Basic Boys’ School in Nablus, implemented in partnership with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) and the Ministry of Education, and in cooperation with Nablus Municipality. This intervention is part of a broader approach that positions the school as a meeting point between the role of LGUs in managing public space and the role of educational institutions in building early awareness of environmental and development issues.

During the visit, students participated in a series of interactive activities introducing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in ways that connect directly to their daily lives. Educational games and short theatrical sketches were used to spark questions around the use of resources, cleanliness, and individual behaviour in the school and the neighborhood. APLA team also toured an art exhibition prepared by the students using recycled plastic and cardboard, as a way of translating the concept of sustainability into simple, tangible practices that children can engage with using their own hands.

In cooperation with Nablus Municipality, APLA assessed several indoor and outdoor areas within the school to explore options for supporting and upgrading parts of the premises so they can host educational and awareness-raising activities linked to the initiative. This focus on the school environment is seen as part of a wider vision that treats the school as an extension of the public space managed by the municipality, and as a place that can reflect good use of resources and well-organized public spaces from the earliest stages of education.

APLA also handed over a selection from the “ESCWA Stories” series to the school, as the main educational tool used in the initiative and targeted at lower basic grades. These storybooks address issues drawn from real situations in the Arab region and present them to students in a narrative format that links what they read in class to what they experience in their homes and neighborhoods, making it easier for teachers to turn the stories into discussions, activities, and simple student-led initiatives.

The intervention at Bassam Al-Shakaa Basic Boys’ School is part of a broader pathway through which APLA seeks to link SDG localization to the school, the neighborhood, and the city, and to build practical partnerships between local authorities, schools, and regional partners. In doing so, the “Stories of Sustainable Development in Palestine” initiative becomes an incremental entry point for embedding a culture of sustainability and shared responsibility at the local level.