Spazi Comuni per l’Ucraina
In 5 municipalities in Italy we work to improve inclusion perspectives for Ukrainian refugees.
Starting date
15 July 2022Duration
5 monthsRealized by:
UNHCR ItaliaObjectives
Facilitating relationships between refugees from Ukraine and local communities through community matching programs that pair refugees with volunteers, religious groups, professional associations, private companies, etc.
Creating an integration-fostering environment by involving the local community and strengthening social cohesion, which in turn contributes to reducing racism and xenophobia.
Bringing refugees closer to the Italian culture and language so that they can enjoy a more complete and durable inclusion process.
Ukrainian refugees coming to Italy are mainly taken in by family members and friends, but they need to access services, work, enroll their children in school, in order to have actual integration perspectives.
The project aims at improving integration spaces for refugees in Italy through the “Spazi Comuni” (Shared spaces) program already supported with 8×1000 funds. The pairs of refugees and volunteers may have a flexible duration and include different activities depending on the specific needs and aspirations of each refugee involved: learning Italian or other skills, being supported in dealing with paperwork, preparing one’s CV or looking for a job, participating in volunteering, cultural or sports activities.
On February 24, 2022 the war in Ukraine upset the whole world and it caused the most important exodus in Europe since WW2. As of today, almost 8 million Ukrainians are internally displaced and 6.2 million have fled to neighboring countries or even further. Europe has reacted in a timely manner setting in motion its humanitarian mechanisms and governments have asked the UNHCR for help in managing the emergency, which is unprecedented in the European Union. In light of this humanitarian tragedy, the project aims at supporting UNHCR efforts to promote the integration of Ukrainian refugees in their hosting communities, by further implementing actions already launched in previous months.
Local entities participating in the project: Municipalities are fundamental project partners and they are selected to implement community-matching activities based on meticulous criteria. The project is managed by UNHCR in collaboration with the NGO partners selected by the Agency: Refugees Welcome Italy Onlus and Centro Immigrazione Asilo Cooperazione Internazionale (CIAC). Their qualified staff and cultural mediators will be in charge of matching refugees and volunteers. The project also draws upon the resources of the “PartecipAzione” network, including associations founded and led by refugees and supported and promoted by UNHCR, which also provides peer mentoring and supports the creation of social networks with host communities. The project is also coordinated with the other UNHCR interventions in Italy, such as Humanitarian Corridors, the Corridoi Universitari (University Corridors, UNI-CO-RE) project, the network of inclusive universities and the companies participating in the Welcome logo project.
