The independent association in Beit Hanina was established to allow more room for maneuvering, especially in cases where demands needed to be made from the City, or actions be taken independent of the pressures of the Israeli establishment.  A series of “block meetings” were held in order to choose the final leadership of the NGO.  Representatives on the new NGO include members of the board of the Administrative Unit, an influential imam, and local businesspeople.

In order to decide on a specific strategy, the association is undertaking informal citizen surveys to determine the dimensions of these problems, and to see what tools would be most effective in solving them.  The association has begun identifying a number of issues around which members would like to operate.  These include: