Rayane Jawhary grew up in Hermel, a border town north of the Bekaa, in a country often on the brink of war. She has been a volunteer in cultural associations, and has actively participated in projects with children and young people. In 2012, she started university studies in hospitality in Beirut and worked in this field, before realizing that it was not what interested her. She therefore decided to return to Hermel and started teaching in a school. The revolution of 2019 in Lebanon and the hope that it had succeeded convinced her that she needed to be an actor of change. After obtaining a master’s degree in educational sciences, she co-founded with friends a secular school in Hermel, Les Esprits Libres, based on the principles and values of New Education.