note: the email for this month’s meeting came through after 5pm Friday night and this entry has been updated with this month’s message from Jessie Qumsiyeh
Virtual Monthly Meet-up with Mazin & Jessie Qumsiyeh re: the Palestine Institue for Biodiversity & Sustainability (PIBS) & the Palestine Museum of Natural History (PMNH)
Dear Friends of PIBS/PMNH,
Warmest greetings from the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability (PIBS) and the Palestine Museum of Natural History (PMNH)!
Since launching our Donation-Matching Campaign on July 7, 2025, one hundred thirty-three friends have generously responded—many with heartfelt tributes in honor of loved ones, in appreciation of Mazin’s newsletters, and in support of our mission. We are deeply moved and sincerely grateful for your support.
We are pleased to invite you to our 61st monthly virtual meetup, taking place this Saturday, August 2, 2025. Full details, including the time and Zoom link, are provided below.
If this is your first time receiving this invitation, you may be interested to know that we’ve held these monthly virtual meetups on the first Saturday of each month since July 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Each session includes an update on our activities at PIBS for the previous month, as well as a discussion of the challenges we’re facing. All sessions are recorded, and you can find past slides and recordings in our online archive—especially helpful if your time zone prevents you from joining live.
Since October 7, 2023, Prof. Mazin Qumsiyeh has dedicated the second hour of each meetup to providing updates on the ongoing situation in Gaza. Some of these briefings have also been recorded and are available in the same archive.
We sincerely apologize for the short notice of this month’s meetup and would be honored if you could join us for updates on the expansion of our museum space and more.
Date: Saturday, August 2, 2025
Time:
8:00 PM Palestine Summer Time
7:00 PM Central European Time
6:00 PM Greenwich Mean Time
1:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time
10:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time
Duration: 2 hours (join either hour or both!)
Hour 1: Review of PIBS activities for July 2025
Hour 2: Briefing by Prof. Mazin on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6106562489
Thank you for the great turnout last month and for your thoughtful questions and comments.
Here are the resources from our last meetup (July 5, 2025):
We also welcome your thoughts on our 2024 Annual Report, released digitally in February 2025. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Read the report here.
Thank you, as always, for your solidarity and continued engagement. We look forward to seeing you on Zoom this Saturday, August 2!
Stay human and keep hope alive,
Jessie, Mazin, Amal (on annual leave), Johanna, Mohammed A. (on research leave), Mohammad N.,Reem (on vacation), Saleh, Sara, Victor, and Zena (welcome back from training leave)
P.S. If you receive duplicate emails or wish to stop receiving this monthly message, please reply to this email and let us know. Thank you!
Upcoming Virtual Meetup Dates for 2025:
6 September (#62)
4 October (#63)
1 November (#64)
6 December (#65)
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Information on Gaza:
Help Gaza financially: