15 Dec Embodying the Spirit of FIRST Global Collaboration – FIRST Global Team Palestine

FIRST Global Team Palestine spent a season proactively making friends all across the world.

In the words of FIRST Global Founder Dean Kamen, “We don’t build robots. We build kids.”

FIRST Global Team Palestine 2023 meeting with students from some other FIRST Global teams.

Though all teams travel to the FIRST Global Challenge carrying the spirit of international collaboration and friendship, some go above and beyond in showcasing their commitment to these values. One such example is FIRST Global Team Palestine, who spent a season proactively fostering friendships and collaborating with other nations to promote STEM education.

A month and a half before the journey to Singapore, FIRST Global Team Palestine announced a new FIRST Global record, “In a journey that has united innovation, determination, and collaboration, our team has successfully participated in 55 meetings with robotics enthusiasts from various countries worldwide.”

Not only did FIRST Global Team Palestine engage in dozens of hours of active discussion with their fellow FIRST Global teams, but in keeping with the FIRST Global spirit, they were sure to meet with at least one team from each continent. In the end, they met with over 70 countries before arriving in Singapore.

Asked why they hosted so many meetings, student Ghassan said, “The only reason was to kind of get to know the other teams before you go into this challenge, in addition to just wanting to know more about their culture as well as them knowing about our culture. Because in Palestine we love different cultures, we accept all cultures, so when we get to know the other cultures it’s an amazing experience not only for us, but also for them.”

But their efforts didn’t end there. In the weeks leading up to the event, the team took the time to create and print out customized welcome cards for participating teams, to be distributed at the event. In a touching detail, the team had each welcome card translated into the primary language of the team they were giving it to.

One card in English read, “We, the Palestinian Team, extend our warmest greetings and best wishes as we embark on the journey to FGC 2023. Let our shared passion for robotics and innovation unite us in the pursuit of excellence. Together, we can inspire positive change and create a brighter future for us all.”

Commenting on the initiative, the team said, “We were pleased to deliver the letters of greeting, love, and best wishes to all the teams in their native languages. Putting our flags together, sharing gifts and smiles is all what FGC meant to do in this extraordinary Challenge.”

When FIRST Global Team Palestine arrived in Singapore, the positive spirit they had put forth throughout the season was immediately repaid. Ghassan explained, “When we first came in… [teams] came around all of us and started singing with us. Right there I felt more comfortable, because going into a challenge especially as a first-timer, it’s very, let’s say: terrifying. So when you see that everyone else is helping you and they want to see you excel, you kind of relax a bit and it makes you feel better.”

Prior to this, the team had undergone a number of challenges in the lead up to the event. Unable to receive their kit until landing in Singapore just days before the competition began, FIRST Global Team Palestine had come up with a clever solution. The team built a sample robot using parts from last year’s kit, but designed it so that they could swap out any older parts with new, 2023 parts once they made it to the event.

Ghassan shared that this actually helped their team learn more, “It made the team think about better design, because once we [started] that, we realized how many other problems could occur if we put a different piece in…so our creative ability and our imagination kind of just flourished.”

On the final day of the competition, FIRST Global Team Palestine was awarded the silver medal for the Clara Barton Award for Helping Hands. This award is unique in that the winners are decided by other FIRST Global teams, who each receive one ballot for consideration. This means that only those who have truly made an impact on other teams can win. In the end, the vote totals spoke for themself: FIRST Global Team Palestine had had a truly global impact.