On June 20th World Refugee Day is celebrated all around the World. This year World Refugee Day focuses on the power of inclusion. Given the chance, refugees will continue to contribute to a stronger, safer and more vibrant world. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency’s World Refugee Day campaign this year is calling for the greater inclusion of refugees in health systems, schools and sport. Only by working together can we recover from the pandemic.
The ASB Non-Formal Education team, with the support of IOM, discussed the right to dignity, shelter, education, to live, work, study, create in a peaceful environment, to be treated equally and respected during the week preceding World Refugee Day 2021 with a plethora of activities and with the participation of children small and big, short and tall, happier and less, smiling and serious, who all as a dream team contributed to share their thoughts about their hopes for the future and start building it right now.
In one of the many activities organised by Non-Formal Education, for World Refugee Day 2021 the children cut paper sheets in the shape of clouds and every child drew her/his dream in the cloud. They then placed wings of paper on the wall and each one of the students stood in front of the wings and shared their dreams with the rest of the classmates.
“So, you want to become a doctor? No, I want a family as well”, says Mesrin from Afghanistan. Nada and Maria want to become teachers, and Mohammed to play football.
Who says dreams do not carry you on their wings? Well, these children will grow wings because they have dreams.
This fun activity was rounded up through the creation of a beautiful collage poster with wings and the clouds of children’s dreams.
Given that peace, is a fundamental element in helping us stand together, united, a 3D “Peace Sculpture” was created as part of an activity with smaller children. Their thoughts about World Refugee Day were all made from recyclable materials into the “Peace Sculpture”. The children made flowers for beauty and inclusion, small paper boats representing the journey, the sun offering light and joy. The paper sculpture already included Picasso’s symbolic dove and the outcry of Guernica, a guitar for music, letters, bags, all part of the journey of life.
And finally, in addition to the children groups, the women’s group (with both women and adolescent girls) gathered to write and illustrate poems. Following a thorough discussion concerning World Refugee Day and its meaning, the women created a poster with their thoughts, hand painted and enriched with photos and under the leadership of a young woman they created a T-shirt for World Refugee Day 2021.
