In this episode, Jasmin Arciero and Oliver Nixon interview Alexa Netty, the trustee and chair of the steering committee of SolidariTee. SolidariTee is a charity that supports NGOs offering legal aid to forcibly displaced people, and so they begin with a discussion on the importance of legal aid as a key facet of refugee support. They also touch on debates surrounding the role of NGOs in refugee crises: where they fit within a complex system of assistance and whether and how it is possible to overcome structural constraints on their coordination and efficiency. Alexa also shares personal stories from her time volunteering in refugee camps to shed light on some of the lived experiences of refugees and the obstacles they are forced to overcome to receive asylum. To conclude, Jasmin and Oliver discuss the future of SolidariTee and other issues that SolidariTee is working to address.
Jun 17, 2022
33 min
For years, thousands of forcibly displaced people have been left in limbo in Calais, France, where they suffer from a lack of care and police crackdowns. Recently, as the Russian War is devastating Ukraine and forcing millions to flee, European countries (including France) are opening their borders and homes to Ukrainian refugees. What explains such different responses? In this episode, Johana Bretou-Klein sits down with Ruby and Holly, two volunteers of the Calais Food Collective, to discuss the issue. The Calais Food Collective in a grassroots organisation supporting displaced people in Calais primarily with cooking ingredients and equipment. We asked them about their experiences with government restrictions on the ground in Calais, and if they thought the efforts put towards Ukrainian refugees could be replicated.
Jun 17, 2022
21 min
Following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, tens of thousands of Afghans fled to foreign countries. The UK evacuated around 18,000 people, who are now placed in temporary housing. Organizations such as British Red Cross are now seeking to assist Afghans resettle into more permanent homes. In this episode, Sveto Muhammad Ishoq speaks to two guests: Halima, a British-Afghan evacuated last year from Kabul, and Nadine, the Afghan Relocations Project Officer at the British Red Cross. Sveto speaks about Halima's evacuation experience and her life in one of London’s hotels and learns about the British Red Cross' programs for newly arrived Afghans.
Jun 16, 2022
30 min
Little has captured our attention like the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24th of this year. Constituting Europe’s largest refugee crisis since World War II, the UN estimates that more than 14 million people have fled their homes, with nearly 7 million Ukrainians seeking asylum in neighbouring countries. One of these people is Olena, a 24-year-old Ukrainian national working in the film industry in the suburbs of Kyiv when Russian forces invaded. In this episode, Madison and Sydney sit down with Olena to gain a better insight into what that experience was like being in Ukraine this past February, and what led to Olena’s decision to leave her native country for Poland.
Jun 16, 2022
35 min
In this podcast, Yujia Zhang invites two women, Nadia and Fatima, to talk about their stories as both refugees and social workers in Lebanon. Nadia, a third generation Palestinian refugee, lives in the Beqaa Valley. Currently, she is the director of Manara centre of the Lighthouse Peace Initiative, a NGO offering English and art training to refugee students. Fatima, a successful businesswoman in Damascus, became a refugee in 2013 due to Syrian war and fled to Beirut. In 2019, she founded her own social enterprise making embroidery. Yujia sits down to discuss their different living experience as refugees, to hear them share inspiring stories from their work, and how their work has impacted the lives of other refugees.
Jun 15, 2022
33 min
This podcast explores the physical and emotional challenges that arise from refugees' journeys to safety. Sam, a former refugee from Iraq, describes his experience gaining asylum in the UK and how he has persevered through years of challenges. Sam discusses his reasons for fleeing, his time living in displacement, and his assimilation to his new community in the UK.
Jun 15, 2022
26 min
In this episode, Leah Trotman chats with Pablo Escribano, the Regional Thematic Specialist at the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for the Americas and the Caribbean on climate change and migration. The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reported that nearly 3 million people across the Caribbean and United States were displaced in 2017 due to Hurricanes Irma, Maria, and Harvey. With a rise in global warming, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) can expect an increase in sea levels, the severity and frequency of hurricanes, and other climate shocks that influence population movement. With a majority of the Caribbean’s population situated within 1.5 km of the coast, gaining a better understanding of what climate-induced migration looks like in the region is crucial.
Leah hails from the US Virgin Islands and is completing the Health and International Development programme at LSE. Leah is also the US Virgin Islands’ first Marshall Scholar and is also a Truman Scholar. At LSE, Leah focuses on the intersection of climate change and health in the Caribbean, a topic she began researching following her junior year in undergrad. Her most recent work looks at forced migration due to climate change and its impacts on youth mental health.
Jun 14, 2022
42 min
Today’s theme in the Refugee Realities podcast series focuses on a birds-eye perspective of the challenges facing the global humanitarian system. And who better to speak with than the person who was responsible for coordinating this system: Sir Mark Lowcock, the former ‘Relief Chief’ of the UN humanitarian agency. Nina and Shanyce discuss Mark’s experience during his 4-year posting, highlighting the power of the individual stories that stuck with Mark along the way.
Jun 13, 2022
30 min
In this bonus episode, Kaweh Beheshtizadeh speaks to Jenifer Elmslie about his extraordinary journey from asylum seeker to refugee lawyer. Kaweh arrived in the UK in 2004, seeking political asylum from Iran due to his pro-Kurdish political activism.
Jul 12, 2021
26 min
In this episode, LSE Master’s student Ezgi Ilhan interviews Valentina Spinedi, Director of Student Advising at Paper Airplanes. Paper Airplanes is a fully virtual non-profit organization providing educational services to conflict-affected individuals, focusing on displaced Syrians with refugee status.
Jun 18, 2021
19 min
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