"I was just in a trough, drowning in uncertainty," says Walaa Volidis, a Palestinian software engineer. "But deep inside, I made a decision: it will not be the end, no matter how hard it gets. I'll keep fighting for my dreams."
Wearing a headset and glued to her laptop, Walaa discusses AI on a video call with her mentor in California's Silicon Valley. The 24-year-old wants to keep her skills up to date.
But that is the least of her daily challenges as she lives in a tent in central Gaza supporting her displaced parents and four younger siblings.
"When the war started, I lost everything: my job, my university, even some of my family members. My sisters were injured," Walaa tells me from a co-working space in Deir al-Balah. She says her mental health was "totally destroyed", but she prioritised finding work.
Walaa is one of thousands of young Gazans now pursuing roles in the digital economy. "It's a kind of momentum," she says. "I have my main goal every single day to go to work, to finish my tasks. If you stop or cry about your situation, you will not do anything."
FULL ARTICLE AT: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1m1xm8ykk2o
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