Petra Stienen, arabist and author, former diplomat in the Middle East, joins the international jury of the WDCD Refugee Challenge on 29 June and will speak at WDCD Live Amsterdam on 30 June. We asked her about her expectations of the Refugee Challenge.
Stienen feels affinity with designers, she says: ‘As an Arabist I learned to look at things from a different entry point, since Arabic writing is from right to left. This did something to my outlook on the world, it literally gives you a different perspective on reality. The same goes for designers, they can turn reality upside down, throw it from right to left and combine insights and ideas into a new reality that all of a sudden offers a new perspective on how design can improve the daily lives of refugees.’
Why did you agree to join this challenge as a jury member?
‘For more than 30 years of my life I have been working and living with and in the Middle East, as a student of Arabic, as a diplomat working on human rights, asylum and migration, as a mother, as a writer and as a friend. It pains me to see the wars and conflicts going on there now and the huge numbers of refugees coming from this region as they don’t feel safe any longer or don’t see a future for themselves or their children.
‘But at the same time I see many examples of defiance, resilience and ingenuity of young men and women from Syria, from Iraq, from Palestine, from Lebanon in the way they find solutions to their new circumstances. So I am curious to read the entries for this refugee challenge.’
What are you looking for in a winning idea?
‘My focus will be on solutions and ideas looking at the plight of female refugees and asylum seekers. Their needs are different from men, in health care, education and family responsibilities.
‘For example, think of the issue of female hygienic products while you’re en route trying to find safety. Or the issue of privacy in reception centres. And how can women remain the owner of their own lives and not be in danger all the time or being seen as the bearer of the culture from the home country in a way that it limits them to integrate in the country of arrival.
‘Another angle I will look at is the role of culture and creativity. Arts and culture shouldn’t only be a way to deal with psycho-social issues, they are intrinsic elements of people’s lives, whether they are in a refugee camp or arriving in a new country.’
What do you consider to be the most challenging issue design should solve for refugees?
‘I think that would be how to maintain your dignity in very dire circumstances when you’ve lost everything. What will make the refugee feel like a ‘normal human being’ again? Is it food? Shelter? Education? Family? How can refugees feel that they can contribute to their own lives again, in smaller and bigger steps and no longer be dependent of ‘charity’ of UN organizations, governments or volunteers. Basically, how can design help refugees to become more than someone who has fled from his/her country and become a citizen, participant, owner of their own present and future.’
What will you talk about at WDCD Live?
‘I will talk about my involvement with an Arab organization that is called Action for Hope: a unique initiative from the Middle East, founded by Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian artists who believe that culture is central to any human being’s life. There are many initiatives that see culture as means for therapy in times of crisis. Action for Hope goes beyond that idea: they believe that everyone should access to a way to express themselves creatively.
‘That’s one of the main issues that came to the fore during the Arab uprisings, the longing of people to express themselves freely, in a creative and artistic way. So Action for Hope has established a cultural summer program (with a 2 to 3-week convoy with artists from the MENA region), a music school, storytelling for illiterate women. They believe that in some time, a few years maybe, this program can really be an example for larger organizations how to make culture an integral part of people’s lives even in the most difficult circumstances. In this way, culture becomes more than oxygen, it becomes a way to feel human again.’