The Rural Kitchen is one of the projects of the Change Makers Center for Sustainable Development. It aims to empower youth in rural communities by equipping them with the necessary skills to produce food efficiently and professionally. The project focuses on teaching cooking techniques (both savory and sweet dishes) using locally available rural ingredients, thereby promoting local food culture and contributing to improved food security.
Through workshops and training courses, the Rural Kitchen provides young men and women with opportunities to acquire culinary and food service skills, which help improve their quality of life and enhance their ability to manage small and micro food-related enterprises.
Additionally, the kitchen aims to increase the income of rural families by training them in food and dessert marketing and in preparing food products that can be sold in local or external markets. By offering these skills, the Rural Kitchen contributes to sustainable development in rural areas by strengthening the link between local agriculture and the food industry, helping to build a more inclusive and sustainable rural community.
This is a community radio initiative that aims to foster public dialogue through social media and community media platforms. It addresses the social, economic, political, cultural, and environmental challenges faced by youth, women, and marginalized groups and areas within the governorate. The initiative promotes awareness of human rights, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and encourages community participation in achieving them. It also works to strengthen concepts of dialogue, youth engagement in public affairs, decision-making processes, governance, and good governance practices, while opening communication channels between citizens and decision-makers.
“Sawt Ajloun” is a community podcast that reflects the concerns and aspirations of the people of Ajloun Governorate—especially youth, women, and marginalized groups—through interactive dialogue episodes focusing on social, economic, political, cultural, and environmental issues.
The podcast aims to create a safe space for dialogue that promotes human rights, good governance, and community participation. It also seeks to open communication channels between citizens and decision-makers.
By hosting experts, activists, and real-life stories from the local community, “Sawt Ajloun” strives to build critical awareness, foster a culture of accountability, and support efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in rural and marginalized communities.
This is a dedicated space for producing films and digital content that highlights gender-related issues in rural areas. The initiative aims to empower rural youth to express themselves and address topics related to social justice, gender equality, and women’s participation in economic and political life in rural communities.
The space offers opportunities for learning and training in filmmaking and digital media techniques, helping to raise awareness of community issues and promote positive change through media.
This space is dedicated to supporting and developing entrepreneurs and innovators working on sustainable environmental solutions in rural areas. The incubator provides a nurturing environment that fosters innovation and creativity in fields such as renewable energy, waste management, sustainable agriculture, and environmental conservation technologies.
Through technical support, consulting services, and entrepreneurship training, the Green Business Incubator empowers rural youth to launch their own projects and achieve their environmental goals.
In addition, the incubator offers access to a network of environmental experts, funding institutions, and international organizations, helping to create opportunities for financing and scaling up emerging projects.
The incubator aims to equip rural communities with the tools and skills needed to achieve sustainable development through initiatives that improve environmental conditions and create new job opportunities—ultimately enhancing quality of life in rural areas and promoting a balance between economic growth and environmental protection.
In light of the economic and social challenges facing youth in local communities, and in alignment with the vision of the Change Makers Center for Sustainable Development to empower individuals and build their capacities, the Entrepreneurship Space was launched as one of the center’s pioneering initiatives. It aims to support and empower youth, women, and entrepreneurs at various stages of their projects.
This space serves as an incubating platform for ideas and emerging ventures, offering a stimulating environment for learning, innovation, collaboration, and knowledge exchange among ambitious young people. Participants gain access to educational resources, specialized training, technical and managerial consultations, and local and regional support networks that help transform ideas into sustainable projects with social and economic impact.
The significance of the Entrepreneurship Space lies in its role in promoting a culture of entrepreneurship and self-employment, nurturing creative potential—especially in marginalized areas—in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to quality education, decent work, and reducing inequalities.
This is a safe and dedicated educational space designed to empower women and young girls in rural areas by teaching them mobile phone and computer maintenance skills. It provides hands-on experience that prepares them to enter the job market or launch their own businesses.
The initiative aims to break gender stereotypes in technical fields and offer vocational education that meets the demands of the modern era. It contributes to enhancing women’s economic independence and increasing their participation in the digital and tech sectors.
Through practical training workshops and expert supervision, this space offers women the opportunity to build real technical skills, foster creativity and innovation, and grow in a supportive and secure environment—enabling them to support their communities and realize their full potential.
The Green Recycling Garden is a safe and open space for learning and acquiring hands-on skills in recycling and environmental sustainability, specifically designed for residents of rural areas. This initiative aims to raise environmental awareness among rural youth and women, promote a culture of natural resource conservation, and reduce waste through practical learning and community engagement.
The garden offers specialized training workshops on how to recycle household and plastic materials, transform waste into usable products, and provides courses in sustainable agriculture, eco-garden design, and organic fertilizer production. It also gives participants the opportunity to develop innovative, eco-friendly projects that serve their communities and offer local solutions to environmental challenges.
Through the Green Recycling Garden, the Change Makers Center for Sustainable Development seeks to cultivate a conscious and proactive generation capable of engaging positively with environmental issues and contributing effectively to building a cleaner, fairer, and more sustainable future in rural Jordan
Launched in 2024, this safe political space was born out of a deep belief that rural youth are not on the margins of decision-making—they are active partners in shaping public policy at both the national and local levels. These young individuals possess a profound awareness of their communities’ issues and deserve a free and secure environment where their voices are heard and their presence in influential spaces is strengthened.
This space brings together a group of young leaders and activists from the rural areas of Ajloun Governorate, united by a genuine passion for change and public engagement. It serves as a platform that promotes rural political participation and provides tools for knowledge, training, and dialogue—elevating youth voices from passive recipients to active agents of change, and affirming their role as true leaders for a more just and effective future.
Through the Safe Rural Youth Political Space, the Change Makers Center for Sustainable Development is committed to supporting and providing all necessary resources to empower rural youth, enabling their active participation in shaping public policies and building a more inclusive and equitable future.
Many are the stories of women striving to save their communities from the burdens of discrimination, exclusion, deprivation, inequality, economic hardship, unemployment, and poverty. From this reality emerged the urgent need to establish the “Rural Women’s Forum – Equal Movement in the Countryside”, driven by our belief that civil society—especially women—must act swiftly to institutionalize feminist work in rural areas and advocate for women’s rights. This includes confronting violence, discrimination, and systemic exclusion practiced against women in rural communities.
Founded in 2020, the Equal Movement has taken on the mission of amplifying the voices of those who have none, fostering solidarity among rural communities, and mobilizing for change toward justice and equality. The movement seeks to place rural women’s priorities on the agendas of policymakers at both local and national levels, in alignment with international standards of human rights and dignity.
As we navigate a complex reality filled with change, crises, resistance, and conflict across the Arab region, we remain hopeful in our ability to endure, adapt, and mobilize national and international solidarity to sustain our collective feminist efforts and achievements in rural areas. Over the next three years, we aim to deepen, expand, and strengthen the feminist movement in the countryside—despite the intersecting challenges facing civil society and women amid dominance, violence, fragility, conflict, and instability, which have made women more vulnerable to violations, marginalization, and injustice.
From 2020 to 2024, we have led fearless interventions, published research, policy briefs, and analyses on the intersections of gender, justice, and equality in rural areas. We have embraced bold feminist agendas in coalition spaces—especially in local feminist politics—and we look forward to elevating this momentum to new heights, driven by rural feminist struggle for gender justice. Our goal is to ensure the sustainability of this movement and achieve genuine recognition of women as equal partners in development, political decision-making, party work, and local governance—based on principles of justice and equality.
We are committed to sustaining solidarity and collaboration with partners and donors to fund our interventions aimed at reducing violence, discrimination, and exclusion against women in rural and marginalized areas. These communities urgently need responsive support to protect the future of rural women and end all forms of violence, discrimination, and exclusion.
