“Hello, My name is Daragh MacDonagh. I am half-Irish and half-English and have lived between Dublin, Ireland and Dorset, England for the vast majority of life. I am currently studying for a Masters in degree in Philosophy and Politics at the University of Edinburgh and, for this year, I am at the National University of Singapore on an exchange scholarship. My previous work experience includes internships with the EU and UK Government HQ. In the future, after having spent a longer period at The Excellence Center next summer, I hope to join either the UK Foreign Office or the United Nations.
I first heard about The Excellence Center through two routes. Firstly, through the recommendations of my great aunt who often visits Palestine as she is a historian of the region and works with other organizations such as Turquoise Mountain and, secondly, through my university’s Palestinian Society.
The opportunities offered by The Excellence Center sounded perfect because they combined both the opportunities to learn Arabic and to volunteer in English classes. I soon got in contact with Rafat who offered fantastic guidance from the start of the process all the way up until my arrival here. My interest in Palestine has stemmed from studying the Arab-Israeli conflict both in school and university, and I am planning to do my final-year dissertation on the conflict. Unfortunately, I will only be in Palestine for a week this time around but, next summer, I will be returning to Palestine to concentrate on developing my Arabic to a fluent level.
I hope during my time at The Excellence Center I can gain an ‘insider’s perspective’ on the complexities of the conflict and what makes it so intractable. Indeed, Hebron is often seen as a microcosm of the wider conflict due to both its Arab and Jewish populations living in such close proximity. I write this on just my second day in Hebron and I have been treated with unbelievable warmth and hospitality, not just by those at The Excellence Center, but by shopkeepers, taxi drivers, and all others I have met. I have often been told ‘my country is your country’ and I feel it to be both genuine and sincere and look forward to returning and staying for a much longer period of time in the future.”
