Them and Us: Meet and Greet Together

Section is focused on social and community integration of migrants. The sub-module contains suggestions of creating a shared space for newcomers and host society.

Practitioners can organise and launch informal intergroup educational events and activities aimed at enabling migrants and local communities. It appeared in the COTW State of Art Report that it can be challenging to get a network of participants for new activities and initiatives. We thus suggest a complementary strategy, introducing migrants to existing local happenings.

Activity 3: Things to do around me

For this activity we suggest organising a brief get-together event to inform migrants and provide and share advice on local happenings with them as people in transition often lack knowledge about opportunities available. Providing opportunities for migrants to meet with members of the local community can encourage mutual understanding and initiate learning new things and strengthen capacities.

1. Event can start with an opening discussion about how the participants used to spend free time in their countries of origin. The facilitator gains knowledge about participants’ background and needs which helps to run the session in a more tailored way, helping them to find ways how their skills and interest can be put to use.
2. This will include sharing sources where to find and check out community and leisure activities that can be attended locally. This can include: suggesting sources of where to find about local events, free-time activities, free cultural events, festivals etc. Many migrants may have particular skills that may be of benefit to the local community if put to use in voluntary work for example. Getting involved can help develop social skills and self-esteem, to help migrants feel at home in unfamiliar settings but also to demonstrate to the “local” communities the benefits that new arrivals can bring.
3. To inform participants about local migrant community organisations – this can play a vital role by building links between migrants and the wider community. These organisations can provide refugees with support and advice shared by people from the same country of origin.
4. Suggest various areas of activities:
   • • sporting events
     • local municipal festivals, parades, fairs, flea-markets
     • local libraries and their services
     • hobby associations and clubs