On the 31^st of December 2019, the two-year AMIF project WEMIN: Migrant Women Empowerment and Integration came to its completion. Funded by the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF-2016-AG-INTE / grant agreement no.776211), it was implemented successfully by partners coming from eight EU Member States (Greece, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Germany and Sweden). It was coordinated by the DAISSy Research Group of Hellenic Open University (HOU), while the WEMIN activities in Greece were implemented in Athens in collaboration with project partner Olympic Training & Consulting Ltd.

The WEMIN project developed a pioneering model for the integration of migrant and refugee women (MRW) of all ages in the hosting communities of the partner countries. It combined, among others, training, empowerment and mentoring sessions, learning through art, production of guides (on best practices of migrants’ integration and on related policy-making), development of digital educational material (videos) and tools (electronic peer learning platform included), etc. More precisely, the following exploitable results were achieved by the WEMIN project:

Detailed description of 10 good practices in the field of social integration of migrant and refugee women (Guide)

The Guide of good practices on integration of migrants is regarded as a very useful tool for the organizations (NGOs included) dealing with such topics. The good practices identified at national level by all the partners of the consortium were analyzed and included in the list of concrete actions to be carried out in favor of the target group.

The Social Integration of Migrant and Refugee Women – A Guide for Policy Makers

A Short Policy Guide (SPG) was developed with all the significant information presented in the Good Practice Guide in a more cohesive and dense way. It includes scenarios and recommendations on MRW integration. The feedback received from external associated organizations has already been very positive, for they regarded it as a very useful tool for relevant policy-making.

Booklet of “MRW stories of change”

The booklet gathers the testimonies of MRW who have participated in WEMIN activities in the partner countries. Each story is different: some women share their experiences from the integration process in the host communities; others are focused on how the WEMIN project has helped them to improve their lives and there are even some stories where women talk about their past. This document aims to disseminate these women’s voices around Europe, and therefore to contribute to their empowerment.

Peer learning methodology and training materials used during the interventions

A detailed collection of existing training material (in the fields of free language learning software, vocabulary related to social and cultural life, history of the host country, core values of host country, social and cultural life in host country, the European dimension, principles of intercultural communication) has been completed; the material has been uploaded on the online peer learning platform. The WEMIN guidelines for training and the peer learning methodology are a useful basis for such future activities.

Digital training material (videos and e-learning material)

All the digital training material produced during the WEMIN project implementation, will be used in future training activities accordingly. Since, it is uploaded on the WEMIN platform it can be easily exploited by any other interested body in the world, from now and onwards. Using the illustration as communication language proved to be very challenging and interesting.

Methodology and content guide of empowerment and mentoring

The empowerment and mentoring sessions dealt with topics such as job seeking, education system, voting and the electoral system, further education opportunities etc. The methodology implemented by the WEMIN project has been already used in other new projects and initiatives of the partner organizations and the networked stakeholders e.g. within public schools by helping high level migrant students through volunteer tutoring services, during events and info-days as useful tools for teachers, cultural mediators and social workers in reception centers for asylum seekers and refugees, etc. The digital training and empowerment material along with their application guidelines can also be found in the WEMIN peer learning platform.

Workshop plan (methodology and artistic pieces)

The cultural workshops of the WEMIN project aimed to bring together migrant, refugee and local women; they triggered ideas to the women involved for artistic or craft creations. Furthermore, the creations from the cultural workshops turned out to be lovely art pieces. With this regard, they have been exploited as content for exhibitions and/or as content for decoration. The methodology applied for the implementation of the cultural workshops proved to be effective.

Workshop scrapbooks

Impressive scrapbooks have been produced by the partners that correspond to the experiences shared by the MRW and local women involved in the cultural workshops. It is regarded as a tool that matches perfectly with the “booklet of the MRW stories of change” and an excellent basis to showcase the potential of migrant communities and the fruitful results of peaceful co-existence and co-creation within society.

Online peer learning platform

It has played a central role in empowering the WEMIN community (MRW and the host communities) in general, while also it has been used as a focal point for networking, synergy and supporting peer learning. Digital material, communication and other platform tools have always been universally available through desktop or mobile devices, which was critically helpful, especially for the WEMIN target group. Because of the platform modern and friendly appearance, it has been used not only by migrant women and host communities but also by other smaller or larger groups with common interests, like mediators, volunteers etc.

All the WEMIN results and outcomes were presented during the big international closing conference that was organized on 8^th and 9^th December 2019 by the DAISSy research group of HOU in Athens (Greece). The conference triggered the interest of more than 150 participants, among them scholars, experts and practitioners, representatives of authorities, institutions, organizations and associations, active citizens, and more generally anyone involved in the study, research and practice in the fields of migration, migration policy, empowerment and social integration of refugees, as well as related topics. MRW being beneficiaries of the project actions, attended the conference and its workshops and presented the valuable experiences they have gained through their active involvement in the WEMIN project.

The WEMIN project enhanced the smooth MRW integration into the European cities where they live, enabling them to play a leading role and act as integration multipliers within their families and their circle of contacts. At the same time, the WEMIN actions offered opportunities to stimulate dialogue, intercultural relations and exchanges, while the online peer learning platform was been used to promote learning and networking.

It is noteworthy that the WEMIN project has developed results and tools that can be further exploited and contribute to a long-term impact beyond its implementation period. It is envisaged that the exploitation process will lead to the delivering of new services for MRW, the creation of new teaching and learning opportunities for them, so that to support their social, cultural, political and economic integration into their host country society. The project platform will be maintained by HOU-DAISSy beyond the completion of the  project (https://culturalmediators.eu/wemin-platform/register/). This allows all interested bodies to use it e.g.  staff of oganisations working for the benefit of  migrants and refugees integration (such  as social workers, cultural mediators, teachers/tutors, etc.).

You can be informed in detail about the WEMIN project and access its outputs by visiting www.wemin-project.eu or by following #WEMIN.

The workshops took place in suitable and well equipped premises in Athens city centre, was easily accessed by both native women and migrant / refugee women (MRW). In each workshop that lasted up to 24hours, took part women from Afghanistan, Iran, Ethiopia, Congo, Syria and Greece, who created lovely artistic and everyday objects like tablecloths, pillows, blankets, hair ribbons, lamps, bowls and jewelry.

Besides, most of the MRW who experienced the cultural workshops, had also participated in other WEMIN project activities, such as the Greek language courses and the empowerment and mentoring sessions. In the context of the cultural workshops’ implementation, they had the opportunity to practice the recently learned Greek vocabulary and test their language competences on the basis of common creativity, exchange and sharing of memories and experiences between women of different ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

The interaction between women was true and vivid. During the meetings they had the opportunity to share information and get familiarized with customs, practices and perceptions different from their own, but also similar in many ways and built on common grounds. Apart from its overall objective, that is the coming together and interaction of MRW and native women, the workshops succeeded in consisting for migrant and refugee women a short and joyful release and refuge from a difficult everyday reality.

The handmade objects created in the workshops were presented at a special exhibition held in parallel and in the same venue that the d international closing conference of the WEMIN project was held in Athens (8 & 9 December 2019). The “Olympic Training & Consulting Ltd” organized the exhibition in collaboration with the women who took part in the cultural workshops. Moreover, migrant and refugee women had the opportunity to attend the conference presentations and discussions while many of them took active part in one of the conference’s interesting workshops titled “Intercultural Breakfast as an Integration tool”. . After the international conference and the exhibition were finished, the handmade objects were shared to the women who had created them.

While the WEMIN project is coming to an end, the women who participated in all the project’s actions have already expressed their wish for the project to continue, underlying the importance of this kind of projects in their integration in the host society.

The project is funded by the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (776211-ΑΜIF-2016-AG-INTE) and includes a transnational partnership in 8 EU Member States (Greece, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Germany and Sweden). In Greece, it is implemented in Athens by the DAISSy Research Group of Hellenic Open University (Coordinator) and Olympic Training & Consulting Ltd (partner).

You can be informed about the WEMIN project by visiting www.wemin-project.eu or by following #WEMIN. For further info, please send an email to info@daissy.eap.gr and olykek@olympiakokek.gr.

The conference is supported by the European project “WEMIN: Migrant Women Empowerment and Integration”. It is addressed to scholars, experts and practitioners, representatives of authorities, institutions, organizations and associations, active citizens, and more generally anyone involved in the study, research and practice in the fields of migration, migration policy, empowerment and social integration of refugees, as well as related topics.

The main objective of the international conference, in addition to presenting the results of the WEMIN project in detail, is to explore the gendered dimensions of the migration phenomenon in the context of today’s Europe. Recognizing gender as an integral part of the experience, management, and understanding of migration and integration processes, the conference aims to highlight not only the multiple challenges but also the significant opportunities European societies face.

The conference will include lectures, presentations and workshops in topics such as:

• Towards gendered sensitive migration and integration policies
• Migrant and Refugee Women: challenges and good practices for integration
• Migrants’ integration at local level: partnerships, strategies and practices
• Adult migrants’ education: current challenges from a gender sensitive perspective
• Working Life, Social Life and Integration from a gender sensitive perspective
• Gendered norms and roles in migratory contexts
• Gender-based violence and migration
• Representations and constructions of migrant masculinities and femininities.
• Art and gendered experiences of migration and integration

Τhis international conference will be the final, closure event of the WEMIN project aiming at presenting its outcomes to additional stakeholders-organizations and policy-makers, by combining presentations and thematic workshops with the parallel engagement of members of its target groups.

The official conference language is English. There is no registration fee for attending the conference. Certificates of participation will be provided. Interested parties are kindly requested to fill in the registration form “here”.

The WEMIN project developed a pioneering model for the integration of migrant and refugee women of all ages in the hosting communities. It combined, among others, training, empowerment and mentoring sessions and learning through art. An electronic peer learning platform has been developed, as a place where professionals in the field of migration as well as migrant and refugee women can share knowledge, tools and experiences with each other; you can access the platform on the address https://culturalmediators.eu/wemin-platform/register/.

The project is funded by the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (776211-ΑΜIF-2016-AG-INTE) and includes a transnational partnership in 8 EU Member States (Greece, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Germany and Sweden). In Greece, it is implemented in Athens by the DAISSy Research Group of Hellenic Open University (Coordinator) and Olympic Training & Consulting Ltd (partner).

You can be informed about project WEMIN by visiting www.wemin-project.eu or by following #WEMIN. For further info about the conference, please visit its website www.wemin-project.eu/conference and/or send email to info@daissy.eap.gr. To find out more regarding the activities of the DAISSy group of HOU please visit https://daissy.eu/.

Learn more about Sharife’s story here.

For more Info, please check “here“.

Under the moto “Digital Skills for All”, the DAISSy research team of the Hellenic Open University collaborates with organizations from all over Greece to offer educational activities from 25 March to 7 April 2019. The actions aim to promote and to prove that the development of digital skills benefits the wider social community.

This effort is part of the All Digital Week European-wide educational campaign that has been taking place since 2010, during which schools, universities, libraries and non-profit organizations offer 100,000 European citizens every year on digital transformation activities and its results. Participation in all activities is free of charge (www.alldigitalweek.eu).

Within this framework HOU-DAISSy and Olympic Training Ltd  promoted WEMIN project since the development of digital skills of MRW is enhanced through training and empowerment sessions. Furthermore, the operation of the WEMIN peer learning e-platform serves as a powerful tool both for the MRW and for the host community to implement collaborative activities with the help of tutors, to participate in forum discussions, create blog posts, upload episodes and announcements related to integration. For more info please check the two announcements of WEMIN project on ALL DIGITAL WEEK website link1 , link2.

“Bahar” was born in Afghanistan but she had to leave the country when she was 6 months old. She lived most of her life in Iran and in exile. She is 24 years old and comes from a big family. She came in Greece in 2017, almost one and a half years ago. After a short stay in a Greek island’s hotspot, she came in Athens where she struggles to make her dreams come true.
“Bahar” is a very dynamic young woman, full of energy and positive thinking. She told me she was the one to convince her parents and family members to leave Iran: “One day I gathered all my family and I told my brothers and sisters: look at our father. If we stay here, we will grow up and be exactly like him. There is no possibility to change our fate. Is this what you want?” Sometimes she feels responsible for all the difficulties they have faced and still facing since they came in Greece, but she does not regret it and hopes for the best: “I like to set goals in my life. Every day I write down one goal. Exactly three years before we left Iran, on the same month, I had written it down in my diary, that on three years from now we will leave.”

“Bahar” has been trained as a seamstress in Iran, following her mother’s profession and will. Although she didn’t like it in the beginning, her job experience in a well-known designer made her change her attitude. Realizing her talent and skills, she decided to attend a school for fashion design. It was not an easy decision, since in order for her to find the money to pay the fees, she had to persuade her previous boss to give her a loan. Her boss loaned her the money but to assure that “Bahar” would pay her back, she kept her passport. Until today, she hasn’t taken it back.

Her last job in Iran was in a local clothes industry. She was designing and cutting patterns. Asking her what are her favorite colors, she replies: “I like green and red, but when I design I usually use grey, black, blue black. This kind of colors. I don’t know why”. She shows me some of her designs. Very beautiful, original and of a modern aesthetics. A black long dress with a colorful embroidery in the front, drew my attention. “Bahar” explained that it is a typical traditional embroidery of her country.

During the last period, “Bahar” has been working in a Greek dressmaker’s lab. Although “Bahar“ does not speak Greek and her employer does not speak English, they manage to cooperate. However, “Bahar” states that she is not treating her in a good manner and that she makes her work too much: “She all the time tells me do this, do that, and speaks me in a bad manner. I am a human too, I can’t stand it. I am just staying because I am in need of the money.” In parallel, “Bahar” is working tirelessly to make her dream come true, that is to put on a fashion show in Greece with her own designed clothes. She keeps designing and trying to find a place for the show and to gather money to buy the garments needed to make the clothes. She is very optimistic and while being in Greece she has met different people who are willing to help her. When I ask her why she wants to hold this fashion show and what is her ultimate goal, she replies: “My goal is to create a very good work portfolio so as to apply for a student visa in Canada. I want to continue my studies in fashion design. I never had the chance to study. In Iran I didn’t have the right because I was from Afghanistan. I want to go to the university. I like reading and learning and I always read.”

Being a very sociable person, who enjoys meeting new people, the hardest thing for “Bahar” in the beginning was not being able to communicate because of the language gap. She does not yet speak Greek but WEMIN’s courses have helped her start reading. However, after coming in Greece she has learned English quite well and she can in that way communicate with people from different nationalities.

You can be informed about WEMIN implementation, by visiting www.wemin-project.eu

For further information, please contact info@daissy.eap.gr and olykek@olympiakokek.gr

She has completed journalism studies in Algeria and she has done many different jobs such as seamstress and teacher of Arabic and French languages to children. She didn’t wish to speak about the last job she performed before leaving her country.

The trip from Algeria to Greece was especially difficult for Hamia, since she was pregnant and her health condition had worsened. When I asked her about the things she has brought with her from her country of origin, she replied: “The last night before I leave my country, my mother had given me golden jewels as a gift and also my sister’s family had all given me something as a present, but it all got stolen during the journey. It was like a jungle. We were walking up to 10 hours in the dark. It was very difficult. We lost all our things.”

The first period in Greece was also very tough for Hamia: “It was difficult here, very difficult. I could not eat, the food had a bad smell and the living conditions in the island within a tent were very difficult. I was feeling very bad. Every day I felt tired, I felt sick. During the pregnancy all vitamin levels were very low. Because of that, the delivery of the baby was very difficult.  It felt like I was giving birth for the first time. I believed I would die. Hopefully, the doctor could speak French, and the nurse, too, and this helped a lot.”

After seven months in a Greek island, Hamia and her family came to Athens.  She immediately got into hospital. “I can’t remember anything from this first period. I was only going to the hospital and then back home.”

Nowdays, Hamia’ s health is improved and her everyday life is rather getting into normal: “In the building where we are staying with my family there isn’t anybody who speaks Arabic. But in the flat opposite ours, there is a lady speaking French, living there with her family. And we greet each other, and they are all very nice to us…In the neighborhood I visit the supermarket and the children’s school. They go to Greek school and they have learnt the language. When I speak to them, they tell me, ‘you don’t speak Greek, go and learn and then come and speak with us.’ I need to learn the language for the children. To help them in school, to read with them the books they get taught in school. I can now slowly read the words, but I do not yet understand what I am reading, the meaning of them.”

Asking her about her dreams for the future, Hamia says: “The only thing I want is to work. To rely on myself. To be able to rely on ourselves… I miss working. Ok, as a teacher I can’t work. Because since children here speak Greek I have to first learn Greek. But, I can work for example in a small sewing industry, since I know this job very well …Greece is the country we intend to live. We had decided it from the very beginning. We left our country just to have freedom. Here we have found it. Our children go to school here and if we also find a job, we have no reason of wanting to change country.”

You can be informed about WEMIN implementation, by visiting www.wemin-project.eu

For further information, please contact info@daissy.eap.gr and olykek@olympiakokek.gr