Virtual mentorship for refugees
UAB students take part in a social mentorship programme paring up voluntarily with asylium seekers. The mentorship, aiming the full inclusion and autonomy of these persons, has been carried out virtually during the lockdown.
22/05/2020
This voluntary program is part of the Welcoming refugees program which carries out different actions to support refugees and people seeking international protection in Spain related to the State Reception Program as applicants or beneficiaries of international protection (asylium or expatriate). They are related to the FAS because they are living, or they recently lived in the Vila unit, or because they are UAB students. Then, the intention is not only that the university becomes these people’s living place but the program aims to promote their complete inclusion and participation in the UAB community. The Welcoming refugees program is made possible by the support of Obra Social "la Caixa" and the Secretaria d'Igualtat, Migracions i Ciutadania de la Generalitat de Catalunya.
The voluntary social accompaniment program promotes the autonomy of people seeking international protection and offers support to get to know the environment through the methodology of social mentorship. This year. 10 members of the community (students, professors, and university staff) have been paired up with someone of the program –living in la Vila. The volunteers have received specific training from the FAS about international protection and social guidance. However, these pairs have complete autonomy to carry out the activities they want, according to their interests and needs. In this way they create a bond of trust: they practice languages, they carry out leisure activities, or volunteers help to recognize the environment.
Mentorships during the lockdown
In this new situation, most of the mentorships pairs have kept in touch through Whatsapp and social media. This accompaniment has served to share the day-to-day life and solving doubts about the measures and the lockdown ease phases.
The FAS Welcoming program made a follow-up and gave guidance to the volunteers about the new methodology of virtual mentorship.
Welcoming Action Group
The Welcoming Action Group is another voluntary activity of the Welcoming program and its goal is to raise the awareness of the university community about issues related to asylum, migration, and Human Rights. The people who decide to take part in the group, organize aware-raising and mobilization actions to promote the knowledge of deep causes of the flows and defending the refugees' and migrants' rights.
This is a group managed by the members themselves, defines its goals or courses of action, and the activities they want to carry out.
After the declaration of the state of emergency, the Welcoming Action Group has decided to keep carrying out its aware-raising task through social media. You will find its social media here:
Instagram: @accio_acollida_uab
Facebook: Programa Acogida - Personas en busca de Refugio