Bridge Refugees
Bridging the gap between students and refugees.
The project has two main aims. The first is to raise awareness of the current situation of refugees and asylum seekers in Hong Kong. Many people in Hong Kong have a misconception of refugees and asylum seekers and consider them “strangers” or “misfits” in the community. By allowing refugees and asylum seekers to share their stories and to interact with students, students can learn more about the refugee community and hopefully change their misconception. The second aim is to make the refugees and asylum seekers feel part of the community, by showing them our care and love, and welcoming them to Hong Kong. The UN sustainable goal addressed in our project is goal number 16: peace, justice, and strong institution.
We will measure our success by listening to the feedback of refugees and asylum seekers attending the events, as well as the students taking part. We will also measure our success by our reflections on the impact of the event and our sharing with fellow students and our teachers.
Fact.
No one chooses
to flee their own country,
leave their family and community
to become a refugee.
Fact.
Refugees in Hong Kong are permanently considered illegal immigrants, even if their asylum claims are accepted by the government. The substantiation rate in Hong Kong is about 0.8%.
Fact.
Each claimant only receives HK$40 worth of food vouchers each day from the government, and they do not have the right to work.
Our Project:
Our project has three parts: outreach, inform and share.
1) We will organise a potluck dinner with local refugees that we will have connected with through NGO connections. During the dinner, we will express our regard for them and try to understand their situation. As the old saying goes, a good dinner bonds strangers.
2) We plan to create a “survival guide” for newly arrived refugee families in Hong Kong, especially those with children. This resource pack will include information about refugee status in Hong Kong, affordable places to eat, stay and spend time in, local aid contacts, etc. Hopefully, this will provide a warm welcome and help them better adjust to life in Hong Kong.
3) We will present what we learn through this community service project to students in our school in order to spread awareness and to inspire others to help.
*Due to the coronavirus outbreak, our plans are temporarily suspended. However, we are looking for opportunities to serve the community by creating care packages for refugees.
Get involved:
Email us at cha1710@school.ics.edu.hk or wu_1801@school.ics.edu.hk! We are open to any suggestions or collaborations!