Global Experiences

Second-year Mohawk Photography students Christine Spenuk and Jozef Duijvestine are in Chalkida, Greece as part of a team of 12 students who are volunteering at the nearby Ritsona Refugee Camp for 10 days. Formerly an air force base, the Ritsona Refugee Camp was funded by the United Arab Emirates and the Red Cross to address the influx of migrants that began entering Greece in 2015.

The students spent the first few days touring and visiting famous Greek landmarks.They are now working at the camp's distribution centre managed by a not-for-profit called Cross-Cultural Solutions (CCS). The centre provides camp residents with clean water, clothing, tea, and milk. Before the centre or "shop" opens the student volunteers go through and re-fold inventory, or put out new items for the residents to look through. The residents of the camp are given credits and use them to 'purchase' items at the shop. The residents are given an appointment once a month where they come to the shop to get any clothing items they need. Below are some photos of students travels and some pictures of the students working at the centre. Thank you to Christine and Jozef for providing the photos.