by Brigid Rowlings, LHI Communications Director
Like these shoes we distributed to beneficiaries at the LHI Community Center in Serres, Greece, one size does not fit all when it comes to humanitarian work.
Refugee work does not lend itself to a one-size-fits-all solution. With 110 million refugees and internally displaced people around the world, aid organizations, both smaller groups like LHI and larger organizations like the UNHCR, must consider a wide range of factors when responding to the needs of refugees. For example: What is the political climate in the country hosting refugees? Are refugees allowed to attend school or work in the host country? Do refugees have access to traditional housing, or are they relegated to refugee camps? What governing body is responsible for managing refugee issues? What is the best way to work with these organizations?
Over the next few weeks, we will provide some insight into how LHI responds to different refugee situations.
A TALE OF TWO REFUGEE COMMUNITY CENTERS
We founded the LHI Community Center in Greece in August, 2016. Our primary goal was to provide refugees a sense of community, a shared sense of belonging and understanding. Situated adjacent to two refugee camps in Serres, Greece, it is a place that brings people and cultures together through shared ownership of the space and its activities.
At the LHI Community Center in Serres, Greece, community members and volunteers often share food and traditions from their home countries with each other as a way to connect and build community across cultures.
Earlier this year, we officially opened a similar program for Ukrainian refugees living in Moldova. The goals of both community centers are the same (providing healing psychosocial and material support to refugees), but their contexts are very different.
Children enjoy an art project at the LHI Community Center in Balti, Moldova.
SPOT THE DIFFERENCES
Let’s start with Greece. Geographically, Greece is the gateway to Europe when coming from the East. It is a long and dangerous journey for refugees, many of whom cannot return home. However, once in Greece, asylum cases can take years to process, and the government provides little financial support. Refugees cannot work, and refugee camps can be crowded. Anti-refugee prejudice is present, and international aid organizations are not entirely welcome.
Now, on to Moldova. Moldova shares a 700 mile border with Ukraine, so it is a natural destination for those fleeing Ukraine. Unlike in Greece, there are no refugee camps in Moldova; instead, Ukrainian refugees live within the local communities, occupying family homes, rented apartments, or designated shelters. The Moldovan government has generally been welcoming to refugees from Ukraine, allowing them to work and have a more secure legal status than in Greece. Ukrainian refugees still hope to return to their home country when it's safe enough to do so.
It’s worth noting that Moldova has struggled with poverty for decades, and in some cases, Ukrainian refugees get more financial and material help than native Moldovans. While this has resulted in occasional tensions, the majority of Moldovans remain welcoming and hospitable to Ukrainians.
SIMILAR GOALS, DIFFERENT CONTEXT
GREECE
The refugee camps in Serres, Greece, house people from various nationalities and who speak different languages such as Yazidis, Ukrainians, Syrians, and Afghanis. At the LHI Community Center, we strive to create a safe and welcoming environment where everyone can feel a sense of community, regardless of their origin. We organize activities where participants can share their cultures, traditions, and food with each other. We also encourage sports, women’s activities, children’s activities, play, fun, and music as a means of bringing people together.
People often enjoy making music together at the Arts and Recreation space at the LHI Community Center in Greece.
Because the political climate in Greece can be hostile towards refugees and aid organizations, we run the LHI Community Center independently from the government-appointed administration and refugee camps. We regularly consult with the refugee community to ensure our programs meet their needs and interests, especially if they do not have access to services in the host country. For instance, as many community members are scheduled to resettle in Germany, German language classes are in high demand.
MOLDOVA
At the LHI Community Center in Balti, both Ukrainians and local Moldovans come together as part of our mission to foster community and help those most in need.
While beneficiaries in Moldova do not live in refugee camps, we try to identify those who may feel isolated and lonely in the local community. We use a lot of social media and word of mouth to let beneficiaries know about our center.
Because Ukrainians living in Moldova do hope to return home someday, and because many Ukrainians are able to work in Moldova, there is not as much of a demand for language or skills building classes as there is in Greece. There is however a huge demand for fitness and creative arts classes, both of which lend healing and comfort to those who wait in limbo to return to Ukraine.
These community members enjoy a fitness class at the LHI Community Center in Moldova.
And so there you have it. Despite the differences between the refugee contexts in Greece and Moldova, LHI was able to take a good idea—a refugee community center—and customize it to meet the needs of the place and the people it benefits.
Stay tuned for an upcoming blog post where we talk about how responding to one natural disaster that affected two different countries and required two very different responses.