“Dimensions of the Refugee and Humanitarian Crises – a Dialogue on the Rights of International Protection Beneficiaries”

Together with the UNESCO Chair of Intercultural Policy for an Active Citizenship and Solidarity at the University of Macedonia, the Kalliopi Koufa Foundation will host a seminar on the dimensions of the refugee and humanitarian crisis with a focused dialogue on the rights of international protection beneficiaries.

The refugee issue has, through and by international politics, been exacerbated into a full-fledged crisis for Europe and especially Greece as a first-entry country since April 2015. Having become one of history’s greatest humanitarian tragedies, the crisis continues to leave its trace on Greece through countless trial runs of plans, programs and studies aiming to welcome and integrate asylum-seekers as well as to defend their fundamental rights. Both local and national, international and peripheral, European and non-governmental organisations struggle daily to secure human rights and humanitarian values within democratic communities. As such, the successful integration of refugees and international protection beneficiaries more generally constitutes a central issue to the seminar which will focus on diversity-management within a setting of equality and respect for human rights.

Speakers include: 

– Associate Professor Iordannis Eleftheriadis, Deputy-Dean of the University of Macedonia

– Apostolos Tzitzikostas, governor of Central Macedonia

– Vincent Briard, Senior Protection Officer, UNHCR

– Christos Ananiadis, CARITAS Hellas

– Giorgos Giovanoudis, SMS coordinator at INTERSOS

– Sofia Garane, Director of the Thessaloniki Open Clinic of Doctors of the World

– Kalipso Goula, Vice Mayor for Social Solidarity, Municipality of Thessaloniki

– Paraskevi Naskou-Perraki, Professor of International Law, Secretary of the Governing Board of the Koufa Foundation

– Maria Stathropoulou, Greek Asylum Service of the Ministry of Migration Policy

In the company of representatives of the legal and medical professions, local and national government as well as further professors of the University of Macedonia and the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. 

The Seminar is co-funded by the EU ERASMUS+ Jean Monnet Project “Discourses on European Union and Human Rights”.