It’s a sunny afternoon in the Hidden Gardens in Glasgow, and eight Tibetan monks are waiting to perform The Power of Compassion for the audience. By Olivia Sykes, Refugee Festival Scotland volunteer The 14th Dalai Lama wrote a book called The Power of Compassion, where he outlines the importance of…

Unity Sisters held their uplifting and hopeful performance in Kinning Park Complex on Saturday, 17 June.   By Shona McCallum, Refugee Festival Scotland volunteer blogger  ‘The Journey to Peace’ brought the community together for a joyful showpiece that told the story of Unity Sisters and showed how the organisation works.  …

A Proud Celebration of Migrant Cultures: UN Special Rapporteur on Cultural Rights and The Southside Symphony   By Izzy Taylor, Refugee Festival Scotland volunteer   I was excited to return to the Southside Community Centre on 17 June for the second night of the Festival of Migration, a multi-day event celebrating diverse…

This World Refugee Day, we stand in solidarity with the 110 million people around the world who have been forced from their homes by conflict and persecution. Figures released by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, show that record numbers of people were uprooted from their homes last year. The war…

A Proud Celebration of Migrant Cultures: Are we ‘New Scots’ – Kraina and Davno  By Izzy Taylor, Refugee Festival Scotland volunteer  I hoped I wasn’t sweating or too red in the face from the warm June sun as I walked up the steps to the Southside Centre on Friday evening,…

Welcome to our new podcast! The HOPE podcast was co-created by a group of radio presenters, podcast hosts, filmmakers and creatives with lived experience of seeking refuge. The aim of the “HOPE ” podcast is to amplify the voices and stories of people with lived experiences of the refugee/ asylum…

Refugee Festival Scotland volunteer Shona McCallum shares her thoughts on Doćhas, a soothing and hope-filled exhibition inspired by the strength and resilience of trafficking survivors.   Doćhas – An Exhibition of Paintings of Hope, launched on Friday 16 June. This gorgeous exhibition, brought together by Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland…

To mark World Refugee Day, we commissioned Somalian-born photographer, Najma Abukar, to create Everyday Hope, a collection of portraits celebrating New Scots. Everyday Hope is a series of photographic portraits, accompanied by conversations with eight people who have lived experience of forced displacement and who are now settled in Scotland.…

The weekend saw a wonderful array of events taking place across the country as part of Refugee Festival Scotland 2023. Communities got together to celebrate and showcase their skills, talents, cultures and their hopes for a better future.   Watch our video to get a flavour of the events that…