An educational document was prepared in Arabic and submitted to the participants who attended the community awareness sessions that were organized in the targeted communities. The document has two main sections:

• Section oneprovides a description of the basic concepts related to sustainable development and Agenda 21 including social economy; faire trade; participative balance; good governance; sustainable land management; sustainable agriculture; sustainable water resources management; sustainable solid waste and wastewater management; sustainable consumption patterns and lifestyle habits; Local Agenda 21; and the Millennium Development Goals.
• Section twoprovides an overview of the major national strategies and action plans including the Regional Plan for the West Bank Governorates; the Medium Term Development Plan 2005-2007; the National Water Policy; the Water Sector Strategic Planning Study; the Palestinian Environmental Strategy; and the National Agriculture Policy.

The community awareness campaigns were organized in the targeted communities in cooperation with the local councils that took the responsibility of inviting the community-based organizations to attend the three awareness sessions.

The first session revealed public perceptions on the existing environmental and socioeconomic conditions as well as their opinions regarding the capacities of their local councils in managing the various aspects in their communities. These were synthesized in one report that will be distributed to the involved local and national authorities.    

In the second session, the educational material was presented to the participants in order to raise their level of awareness and education about sustainable development concepts and Agenda 21 objectives. The PowerPoint presentation is divided into two main parts: the first is related to the basic sustainable development concepts and selected Agenda 21 chapters, while the second provides an overview of the major national policies and strategies.

The third session resulted in the formation of a citizens' committee composed of 5-7 members from each targeted community with a diverse set of backgrounds and interests. The committee will cooperate with the project team and steering committee in securing public involvement in the project and contributing to the community visioning process.