General
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Emerging stronger after Covid-19
Emerging stronger after Covid-19 Distance learning, quarantines and travel bans. Lockdowns, cancelled events, and hundreds of online meetings. Remembered as the year of the Covid-19 pandemic, 2020 was an exceptional year for everyone, including Finn Church Aid, writes executive director Jouni Hemberg. Conditions have been dire in our programme countries before; however, this was the […]
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Women are at the front line of peace work – but why are all peace negotiators men?
You cannot build lasting peace without women. Many have probably heard this claim before, but why does gender matter? Conflicts and crises affect entire societies, and we also know that women and men are affected differently. Even so, we rarely see women at the tables where decisions regarding our shared future are made. The Syrian […]
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Ten years of war have passed, and Syria’s humanitarian disaster deepens
War-torn Syria has descended into a financial crisis that worsens the country’s humanitarian situation. Children living through the war need moments in which they can just be children. “How can I ever repay my country? I have been told that it is too tough for someone my age to ask, but I am growing up […]
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Refugees at the core of Finn Church Aid’s work in 2019
2019 was a very positive year for the progress and operations of Finn Church Aid.
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Could “the new normal” after Covid-19 become more normal than the previous world?
Everyone agrees that the post-covid world will not be the same as the world before. We speak of it as a central, neutral-sounding concept that we call “the new normal”.
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Why the coronavirus pandemic should not put all other crises on hold
The coronavirus pandemic does not mean that other crises are less urgent but it has rapidly restricted work with development cooperation, humanitarian aid, peacebuilding and climate change. We now have to fight many battles at the same time.
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Shrinking space for civil society
Imagine yourself in a big room. Slowly you realise that the walls and ceiling seem to be moving closer. As you dash to the back wall to stop its movement, the front wall creeps forward, too. The government gives you a set of new rules that should keep the walls where they are. You implement […]
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Women professionals around the world have to fight daily battles besides ‘just’ performing in their jobs
Every year on August 19th we celebrate World Humanitarian Day. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness of the efforts of professionals supporting people in crises around the world. This year’s theme is dedicated to Women Humanitarians. By choosing this particular group we want to honour women’s tireless efforts to help people in […]
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The Toll of War: How are Syrians standing up on their feet again?
Before, as many Jordanians, we used to take up a two-hour drive to Syria on weekends to enjoy the green nature, stay by the coast, purchase good quality goods, and come back home. After nine years of war, it took us a five-hour drive to reach Damascus, but nothing was the same anymore. The border […]
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Saving futures – the role of education in emergencies
When thinking of children and youth in their usual environment, we think of them amidst their families and friends, in the playground, and first and foremost, in schools. We grow up with school being a natural part of our lives. We are nervous on our first day in school, excited to learn how to read, […]