‘Refugees and Restoration’ roundtable
Land restoration in refugee camps and wider communities has enormous potential to enhance the living conditions of forcibly displaced people and the ecosystems of war-torn regions.
To coincide with the official launch of the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration and World Environment Day on 5 June 2021, we were delighted to take part in a ‘Refugees and Restoration’ roundtable hosted by Tina Teucher.
Our Operations and Communications Director, Jennie Spears, joined 10 other speakers from regenerative projects, refugee organisations and funders to discuss why and how environmental and social problems can be solved collaboratively. Specifically:
- What if we transformed refugee camps into regenerative camps, for the people’s health, wealth and peace, for the ecosystem’s regeneration?
- Why are regenerative practices a good idea for refugee camps?
- What is needed to establish restoration projects in refugee camps?
- How can projects multiply, speed up and scale?
In our experience at the Lemon Tree Trust, refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) want to engage in meaningful work just like any other human being – they do not need encouragement or motivation, but merely tools and education to get started.
That’s why our gardening projects, such as our annual home garden competitions, have not been set up with the primary objective of ecosystem restoration, but rather to help improve people’s mental health.
Gardening in this sense may be perceived as a powerful therapeutic tool, used to learn to cope with isolation, overcome traumatic experiences, and along the way, it produces beauty, belonging and food security.
Read the article summarising the roundtables
Refugees & Restoration: What if we transform refugee camps into regenerative camps?
Watch the recordings of the roundtable
Jennie speaks about the Lemon Tree Trust in session 1 at 33:30.
Session 1 Roundtable: Refugees and Restoration
Session 2 Roundtable: Refugees & Restoration
We are pleased to have run a small gardening project with the Êriș Centre in Qamishli, Syria. The centre helps supports 12 children aged five and above with a range of disabilities and additional needs. They are supported by a team of 17 trainers, assistants and supervisors. We arranged two simple gardening activities for the … Continued
By donating to Lemon Tree Trust on behalf of someone special this festive season, you’re supporting gardens and green spaces that bring comfort, connection and a renewed sense of home for people who have been forcibly displaced. After donating, you can download a personalised gift template to customise with your message, either to send digitally … Continued
Momentum continues at the Hêvî Community Garden in Gawilan refugee camp as the team nears completion of a new polytunnel. The 33m long and 9m wide structure, equipped with an in-built water irrigation system, was built using frames donated from another camp and heavy duty covers sourced on site. Once in use, it will support … Continued