REFUGEE WEEK
After lockdown , we held Refugee Week , an awareness campaign led by the Refugee Service Group and the Charity Committee . Students engaged with the topic of refugees through educational talks and interactive opportunities .
Guest speakers offered insightful , informative and emotional talks to help us delve further into pertinent issues surrounding refugees . Christy Lefteri , who wrote the bestselling novel The Beekeeper of Aleppo after two summers of volunteering at a Greek refugee centre , spoke to students about her experience in Greece and the writing process this inspired . David Skinner OBE , former Head of Save the Children ’ s Rohingya Response , presented a talk entitled ‘ The Refugee Experience and Myth Busting : Life in a Refugee Camp ’, providing a humbling dose of reality about the future of Rohingya refugees to his audience .
Among the fantastic speakers hosted during the week were also Eric le Guen , Senior Field Security Adviser and Global Analyst at UNHCR , and Amjad Saleem ( OS 1996 ), Protection and Inclusion Manager at Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies . Building upon this learning experience , many students also took part in a variety of workshops , among which were the storytelling evening led by the co-founder of Empathy Action , Ben Solanky , as well as ‘ Giving Voice to the Voiceless ’, by Ms Durnford .
Other activities such as the art competition and collaborative mural project held under the theme ‘ We Cannot Walk Alone ’ allowed Sevenoaks artists to display their many talents . Through walking , running , cycling and rowing thousands of miles in solidarity with refugees , students raised over £ 3200 for UNHCR ( United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees )
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