Latest News
Online Presentation Day
28 July 2026
Students from the partner universities will present and discuss the findings of their master’s thesis research. The meeting will facilitate academic exchange, comparative discussion, and feedback from lecturers and fellow students across the participating countries.
Meeting of the Project Coordinators
16 June 2026
The project coordinators discussed the planning of the 2026 mobility programme and the next steps towards a joint research publication.
Completion of the 2025 Annual Report
February 2026
The 2025 annual report was completed, documenting the project’s activities, achievements, challenges, and progress during its first year of implementation.
Meeting of the Project Partners
19 January 2026
The project partners met to review the status of the students’ master’s thesis research, discuss their progress, and coordinate the next steps.
Mobility Programme in Jordan
22–28 November 2025
The first mobility programme brought together students and lecturers from the partner universities in Jordan. Visits to NGOs and other institutions, academic exchange with local stakeholders, and joint workshops connected the digitally prepared content with practical experience and international dialogue. The programme strengthened group cohesion and advanced the students’ research projects.
Online Sessions on Scientific Research
28 October and 18 November 2025
During two online sessions led by doctoral researcher Aimee Ghanem, the participants were introduced to key principles of scientific research. The sessions prepared them to conduct their master’s thesis research within the thematic and methodological framework of the VOPE project.
Online Sessions on Palestine and Palestinian Refugees
11 and 13 November 2025
In two online sessions with Prof. Dr. RR, the participants explored the historical background and current situation of Palestine and Palestinian refugees. The sessions established a shared understanding of the project topic and provided an academic foundation for the students’ research.
Meet and Greet with NGOs
9 July 2025
Representatives of NGOs were introduced to the VOPE project and its objectives. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss potential areas of collaboration and the involvement of civil society organisations in the project.
Mobility Planning Meeting
9 July 2025
The project coordinators from THWS and Yarmouk University met to begin planning the 2025 mobility programme in Jordan, including its objectives, activities, and organisational framework.
Onboarding Meeting
4 July 2025
The participants met for the first time and were introduced to the VOPE project, its objectives, timeline, and research topic. They also received initial information about their master’s thesis research and the planned mobility programme in Jordan.
Meeting of Jordanian and German Team Representatives
2025-05-26
A visit of the Project Manager Prof. Dr. Ralf Roßkopf (THWS) to Jordan gave an opportunity to meet and discuss the next steps in the project with representatives of the Jordanian project team, namely Asst. Prof. Ruba M. AlAkash and Assoc. Prof. Ibrahim M. Darwish (both Yarmouk University) and in a separate meeting with Ms. Zina Darwish and Ms. Mariam Abu Samra (both Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development).
Video Shooting for Online Course "Palestine and Palestinian Refugees"
2025-05-22
Today saw the first video shooting for the Online Course “Palestine & Palestinian Refugees”. The course will not only serve the preparation of the participating research teams but once completed is planned to be made available to the interested public and educational institutions as open educational resource.
Ten units will cover topics like the historical origins and developments of the conflict as well as of the peace process; the current escalation, namely the Simchat Torah Massacre, Gaza War and violence in the West Bank; the legal status and actual situation of Palestinians and Palestinian refugees; the conflict lines and specifically the question of return and/or compensation; and, last but not least, proposed conflict solutions.
Meeting of Iraqi, Lebanese and German Team Members
2025-05-14
THWS International Week 2025 was an opportunity for Iraqi, Lebanese and German members of the research team to meet and coordinate. Ideas were developed how to embed the topic into broader universal human rights activities. Meetings were held between the Project Manager Prof. Dr. Ralf Roßkopf and the Project Coordinator Ms. Anca Aicha (both THWS), President Asst. Prof. Dr. Paiman Ahmad (University of Raparin, Autonomous Kurdish Region of Iraq), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Abdullah Omar Yassen (Erbil Polytechnic University, Autonomous Kurdish Region of Iraq), Vice President Nael Alawali, HoD Amal Safwan Hawari and Aimee Ghanem (Modern University for Business and Administration).
Research Team completed
2025-05-13
After a rigorous selection process, excellent Master students from every participating country were chosen to join and complete the research team. All structures have been set. Our focus will now be on the actual research.
Research and Documentation on “Social Work & Palestinian Refugees” Initiated
2025-05-09
In a meeting at THWS, PhD candidate Aimee Ghanem and Project Manager Prof. Dr. Ralf Roßkopf outlined and launched the envisioned research and documentation on “Social Work & Palestinian Refugees. Interestingly, Social Work in Lebanon started 1948, the year of the Nakba. However, only scarce written sources exist.
The project aims to collect, analyze and translate them as far as needed. This will be complemented by interviews of professionals and institutions as eyewitnesses. The findings will be published on this website. Aimee Ghanem is founder of the research hub SWorld (https://sworld-edu.com/) and involved in similar documentation activities since years.
Online Course “Scientific Research” in Development
2025-05-05
A visit of PhD candidate Aimee Ghanem (lecturer at Modern University for Business and Science, Lebanon) to THWS allowed further coordination with the Project Manager Prof. Dr. Ralf Roßkopf and the Project Coordinator Anca Aicha and to work on the development on the online course “Scientific Research”. The course is meant to prepare the students for their research tasks within the project. The asynchronous course will be complemented by synchronous online units and a face-to-face training. A visit to THWS’ University Media Center introduced to possible digitization hardware and software.
Project Coordinator Hired
2025-02-15
VOPE welcomes its newly hired Project Coordinator Anca Aicha. She is a graduate of Social Work on the Bachelor and Master level from THWS as well as of Management and Marketing from Lucian Blaga University Sibiu, Romania. She has been for years and will continue to be in the future a scientific assistant and part-time lecturer at THWS in the field of welcoming and integrating refugees and international students into the student body and campus towns. She will take the opportunity to focus her envisioned PhD research to questions related to Palestinian refugees.
Kick-Off Meeting
2025-01-13
The Kick-off meeting brought together the team leaders for the project from all participating countries to coordinate the upcoming activities. It was conducted under the impression of the ongoing Gaza War, the destruction of the infrastructure in the Strip, increasing violence in the West Bank and fear of complete displacement from Palestine – which just underpinned the timeliness of the project.
