The Conversation:
In 1939 during Turkey’s annexation of the Sanjak of Alexandretta, approximately 12,000 Greeks fled as refugees to Damascus and Aleppo joining existing Greek communities. Some decades later, history reversed and in 2015, 1 million refugees cross the Aegean and land on the Greek shores. This will be a short presentation of their journey, highlighting how a country like Greece in its worst economic crisis was able to welcome these displaced groups, transforming a challenging reality into a story of solidarity and hope. We will explore some examples of the most innovative ways that are currently happening to help them integrate and become an integral dynamic part of the Greek society.
Our Speaker: Jai Mexis
Jai Mexis is an award-winning architect and leading social entrepreneurs in Greece. He is the founder and director of Odyssea, a humanitarian NGO in Greece focused on up-cycling, digital fabrication and social design. With the NextFab Foundation, he estab-lished Astrolab, Athens’ first FabLab for social innovation that serves the country’s vul-nerable groups every year. Jai was awarded the City of Glasgow Eimear Kelt Medal for Architecture 2014, and is currently designing a large school for 800 orphan children in Enugu, Nigeria amongst other humanitarian & tech architectural projects.
The Event:
Advance Tickets Required: $10 member/$15 non-member. Cash Bar.
610-649-5220