Mapping Hope: New CrowdfundHer Tells Stories of Young Women Refugees

    NEW YORK, NY, June 20, 2018 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The hope that guides young refugee and migrant women, both in their home countries and as they travel toward futures in unknown locations, is at the heart of an innovative new crowdfunding campaign launching on World Refugee Day (June 20).

The 'Her Routes and Roots: Mapping Hope' campaign by Footage Foundation will raise awareness and funds to scale its award-winning narrative and technology program - Her{connect}Her - for young refugee and migrant women worldwide.

Through narrative and with technology, the Her{connect}Her program assists young women to recognize and amplify hope, and build connections between experiences, peoples, and places.

Fully funded by the generosity of private donations, the program was delivered in Sweden, France, Greece, and the U.K. throughout 2016 and 2017 touching the lives of dozens of young women and countless other who have viewed their stories online.

Dr. Kristen Ali Eglinton, Footage Foundation's Executive Director, explained that since the refugee crisis exploded, the non-profit, founded by five women social scientists, has spent considerable time researching and listening to the experiences of displaced girls and women across the world.

"Due to the unique needs of displaced girls and women, and their high risk of experiencing violence en route and isolation in new countries, there is great urgency for gender-specific programming -- the Her{connect}Her program is one such program," Dr. Eglinton explained.

Donations to the crowdfunder will enable Footage Foundation to provide a year-long program with local partners in refugee camps in Greece where young women will take part in Her{connect}Her and be trained as leaders of the program, offering employment and skills in leadership, technology, community-building, storytelling, and advocacy.

In addition, a series of discussion groups focusing on the stories of all participants will be held with young women refugees and migrants here in the United States. These discussions will use narratives to foster connection amongst young women who have experienced similar traumas.

Footage Foundation's Impact Manager, Kathryn Weenig said "Our research shows that aid is improved when focused on the experiences and voices of refugees and migrants, and narrative is central to the refugee and migrant experience, from applying for legal status to healing from traumas."

Learn more about our resilient program participants through our Her Routes and Roots series here.

The crowdfunder will run until July 9, 2018. Footage Foundation will also be in Washington Square Park on World Refugee Day June 20, 2018 asking the public to share messages of hope with refugee and migrant young women around the globe.

For interviews please contact Dr Kristen Ali Eglinton, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Footage Foundation. Email: [email protected]

About Footage Foundation: Founded by PhD colleagues from Cambridge University, Footage breaks down walls of isolation as we design and implement innovative evidence-based programs that use local technology and expressive multimedia tools to bring the underrepresented voices and experiences of young women into conversations on the world's most challenging issues. Footage has received numerous awards and press, including four U.S. Department of State diplomacy grants for ground-breaking work eliciting the stories and connecting the lives of the most vulnerable young women in the world. See our website: www.footageyouth.org, our gender-based violence program: www.girltalkgirl.org, and our program for young women refugees: www.herconnecther.org here.

# # #