July is the time of the annual Palestine International Festival - notably the largest and most prestigious event of its kind on the cultural scene, showcasing both local and international artists. This year is special in that the festival is an integral part of the Al-Quds, Capital of Arab Culture programme of activities that celebrates the concept, "Jerusalem unites us and should not divide us." 

As the 61st anniversary of the Nakba, or "the Catastrophe," approaches, the IMEU presents a look at some of the untold stories behind one of the most important - and tragic - dates in Palestinian history. Several Palestinian refugees share their stories of loss, separation, and exile that illuminate the pain behind the day that changed the lives of so many Palestinians. 

While the leaders of the various Palestinian factions are in Cairo discussing a unity government - one Gazan has taken it upon himself to heal the rifts. Yasser Meheissen, known as the Sheikh of National Unity, has collected 270,000 signatures urging factions to unite under one voice - and spends his days promoting unity from the ground-up, by engaging ordinary Palestinians on the streets of Gaza. 

As the Christmas season approaches, the IMEU presents a collection of photos from Bethlehem, the southern West Bank town that Christians revere as the birthplace of Jesus Christ. A scenic town with an ancient pedestrianized Old City at its core, Bethlehem attracts tourists to its holy sites - among them the Church of the Nativity and the Shepherd's Fields - and the cluster of handicraft shops around Manger Square. 

Canaan Fair Trade uses the fair trade concept to empower marginalized Palestinian rural communities caught in conflict so they can sustain their livelihoods and culture, and in the process has vastly improved the lives of thousands of Palestinian farmers and their extended families across the West Bank. By giving incentives to produce a high quality product, Canaan and its partners have worked to reestablish traditional sustainable farming in Palestine. 

Canaan Fair Trade - a Palestinian producer and supplier of olive oil and other delicacies produced by over 1,700 small farmers in the West Bank - recently hosted a festival marking the end of the harvest season, as well as the grand opening of its recently constructed factory and processing facility nestled on four acres of land in the heart of olive country, near the village of Burqin. 

The Nativity Square in Bethlehem erupted in celebrations after the one-millionth tourist of the year 2008 arrived in the city. Bethlehem's tourism industry has suffered drastically since 2000, when an outbreak of violence saw the number of visitors arriving in the city plummet. Construction of Israel's separation wall - which divides the town from Jerusalem - has also had dire effects on the city's tourism sector.  

My right knee is wrapped. My left ankle is iced. I lost the nail on my right big toe, and have about 20 blisters and a similar number of bruises on both of my feet. This doesn't even begin to convey half of the story of the punishment that my body has been subjected to in recent months. Why, you ask? Because I will join Susan Abulhawa, a Palestinian American activist, writer and founder of Playgrounds for Palestine in running the Philadelphia Marathon on November 23.