maria madany

Throughout my many years of activism and social involvement, I discovered a fundamental link between my principles and social work values, which motivated me to enroll in Tel Aviv University's master's degree. To expand my knowledge and expertise, I choose to focus on gender-oriented therapy, feminist social work practice, and trauma studies. The intersectionality theory is an integral part of feminist social work practice, which holds that all aspects of an individual's oppression are interrelated, hence creating a unique experience of oppression and discrimination. Due to my personal experiences as a Palestinian woman in a religious-nationalist state and a patriarchal society, along with my professional and academic background, I choose to focus my efforts on women and LGBTQ populations affected by Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.. My name is Maria, and I'm a Palestinian social worker from occupied Palestine

Throughout my five-plus years of experience working with GBV survivors, I provided psychosocial support, protection interventions, case management, counseling, project plannings as well as implementation monitoring and evaluation. In addition, I was responsible for planning and developing treatment and rehabilitation plans for individuals depending on their mental and physical state and considering their legal and socioeconomic status. During my experience as a counselor at Saleet and Ofek, and later on at Inbalim (details in CV), I offered immediate, referral, and follow-up interventions in emergency cases, including sexual assault, emotional crises, and drug overdose. Furthermore, I advocated for the clients' utilization of legal rights and collaborated with social services and the healthcare system. In cooperation with the municipal authorities and local feminist and gender equality organizations, I also developed and implemented preventive protection strategies and plans, and planned and organized prevention-oriented outreach activities focused on reproductive health and protection from GBV. I was also able to develop my knowledge and awareness of GBV support mechanisms through participating in various gender and trauma-informed therapy seminars and workshops.

Social Worker With focus on Trauma and Gender-Oriented therapy