Migration and COVID-19: Our Project Coordinators Reflect On Their Experiences Organising Migration Jam 2020
Migration Jam 2020 was a success. What did we, as the Project Phoenix team, learn from the event and the many insightful stories that were shared on the virtual stage of Migration Jam? Holly McCamant and Tiziana Heck provide their perspectives of the event and their role in the development of the conference as Migration Jam first-timers.
Migration Jam is a sequence of international conferences which seek to change the narrative around migration through positive storytelling and by connecting people and ideas. Amal Jibril, the Founder of Migration Jam, connects professionals to highlight stories and experiences around migration, in front of an international audience. Learn more about Migration Jam’s approach in our last post ‘We Invited International Storytellers Into Your Living Room: Migration Jam 2020'.
Tiziana shares her experiences preparing for her role as the host of one of Migration Jam’s panel discussions:
For Migration Jam’s third panel discussion of the day, I was hosting the conversation around the contributions of the migrant community to their countries of origin in times of COVID-19. Joined with three speakers through the online video-streaming platform Zoom, I felt curious, nervous, and exhilarated all at once. In order to prepare myself for the panel discussion, I started by collecting ideas and advice from our Director for Partnerships and Development, Hrishabh Sandilya, and the Founder and Executive Director of Project Phoenix, Michael Goecken, both experienced moderators and hosts of online and in-person panel discussions. I then consulted a trusted friend of mine who regularly participates in online discussions for additional feedback. Later, I was roaming the internet and YouTube and a few Harvard Business Review articles served as additional materials to consult while I was getting into the headspace of a moderator for an international online event.
Out of genuine curiosity, I felt that it was important to reach out to the speakers of our panel discussion before the online event to learn more about their story and prepare questions which could guide the conversation accordingly. With an aeronautical engineer, a BBC and freelance journalist, and a social entrepreneur joining me, I was certain that we would have a great number of relevant stories to speak about in light of the pandemic. While I was preparing the discussion’s outline, I found myself asking, “What would the speakers like to highlight in their stories?” and “What might the audience like to learn from their work?”, as well as, “How could the audience members start to apply their strategies to enable change in their own communities?”. Thus, the preparation of the discussion round, as well as the event itself, provided me with a steep learning curve.
Throughout the event, I learned about the efforts of three storytellers who dedicate their time and energy to work relentlessly and usually next to their full-time job, on what is greatly important to them. That includes their community at home and in their country of origin, sharing knowledge and information, and connecting people and highlighting their efforts through journalistic work. I am deeply grateful to have had the opportunity to connect with Hanan Bihi, Leyla Karaha, and Ahmadou Diallo and to become a part of their hour-long storytelling session by serving the role of the host. I also am thankful to have become a part of Migration Jam’s efforts to highlight the power of positive storytelling around migration.
Besides my role within the panel discussion, I was also working with the founder of Migration Jam, Amal Jibril and Holly McCamant, our Project Coordinator for Development on-site in Cyprus, on the social media strategy of the event. We were actively posting on Facebook, Instagram and the Migration Jam website, in order to engage our network and beyond in the upcoming event. Holly will now discuss her involvement with Migration Jam.
Holly lets us in on her background in the field of social media and her role as a coordinator and contact person for Migration Jam 2020:
As previously mentioned, I was involved in the social media strategy for Migration Jam, though I was also involved in the communication with the workshop participants. I didn’t really know what to expect for an online conference, but as it turns out, my previous experience organizing and posting on social media proved to be quite useful. After being the primary email correspondent for twenty-two participants for a week-long summer school, the task of confirming the participation for the workshop participants was rather small. Aside from that, I’ve been working on social media for Project Phoenix, so posting on Instagram and Facebook was not something new for me.
Coordinating logistics in another city and coordinating during the time of a global pandemic provided similar challenges. We needed to pay particular attention to communication, as there is a lot that can be misunderstood through texts and emails. Having a set schedule of when to post things, deadlines, etc., is imperative when operating social media feeds with multiple administrators. It isn’t like an office environment, where you can go to the next desk over to explain something or discuss a new idea. Instead, things must be well articulated over text or email, or saved for the weekly Zoom meeting.
During the conference, there was the added challenge of the many other things I had going on — I’m on the ground in Cyprus, which means that I was present for the weekly produce-saving initiative Zero Food Waste Cyprus. Furthermore, Cyprus has (mostly) reopened thanks to their quick response to the COVID-19 outbreak, which meant that I was opening and sharing my color-coded google documents and emails at the same time I was out at New Divisions, a local Cypriot bar.
I’m always excited to be involved in planning strategies and events, as well as keeping things clear and organized. Still, I always find this sort of stuff the most fulfilling when I do so to contribute to something meaningful. I wasn’t necessarily part of the workshops, but I got to see how excited everyone was for them and hear about the impact that they had afterwards. I’m happy that I was able to help be a part of such an important discussion, even if it was behind the scenes.
Project Phoenix is a young European NGO and social enterprise working to empower migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers in an urban setting, using the best of a social innovation playbook. Premised on the pillars of sustainability, economic empowerment through entrepreneurship, socio-cultural integration through professional-skills training and mentorship, we leverage our global networks and fill gaps that legacy institutions and international organisations are often unable to. We are limber, agile and use a systems-thinking, non-prescriptive approach to present feasible solutions.
Project Phoenix is currently running a Pilot Project on the ground in Cyprus. Motivated individuals apply to join as fellows to receive assistance through skills training and entrepreneurial support. Fellows contribute to their local community through the establishment of their own social enterprise which allows them to pay it forward. This innovative approach encourages the sustainable empowerment of refugees and migrants and the development of a circular and sustainable economic and social movement on the island.
