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Event Overview

Welcome to this two-day symposium aimed at exploring participatory approaches in research and art related to migration. Bringing together scholars, filmmakers, and artists, the symposium will create a space for discussions, screenings, exhibitions and exchange of ideas on how participatory methods shape the narratives of displacement.

The symposium is organized in collaboration with the Institute of Ethnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, and supported by The United Nations Information Centre Prague (UNIC), and UNHCR Czech Republic. We are grateful to our partners for their support in making this symposium possible.

Event Details

8–9 April 2025

Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences,

Na Florenci 1420, 110 00 Prague

Registration

Registrations for presentations and participation are now closed.​​

We look forward to seeing you in Prague!​

Adventni kalendar ANF_edited.jpg

Schedule

DAY 1 – 8th of April 2025

Presentations, screenings and discussions

  • 11.15 – 12:00 Door open, registration (lecture room, 5th floor of the Institute)

  • 12:10 – 12:30 Welcome & Introduction

    • Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková (University of Kent), Kaveh Abbasian (University of Kent), David Edwards (Williams College), Michal Broža (UNIC)Luděk Brož (IE CAS)

 

  • 12:30 – 13:30 Panel: NEW PERSPECTIVES

    • 12:30 – 12:45 Valentina Ippolito (Kingston University London): Mobile Filmmaking in Refugee Women's Narratives: 1001 Days a case study

    • 12:45 – 13:00 Leo (Quinran) Wang (University of Birmingham): What does the camera look like in your eyes? - deconstructing the “Humanitarian Gaze” by co-creation and self-reflexivity

    • 13:00 – 13:15 Ana Milic, Olena Tkalich, Yelyzaveta Zolotarova, Michael Parzer (University of Vienna): Bridging Art and Sociology: A Transdisciplinary and Participatory Approach to Refugees’ Experiences of Arrival

    • 13:15 – 13:30 Michael Parzer (University of Vienna): ‘We Are Artists! First Thing’ Film presentation (+ film We Are Artists! First Thing directed by Michael Parzer and Max Leimstättner)

 

  • 13:30 – 14:15 BREAK

 

  • 14:15 – 15:35 Panel: FINDING, SHARING, KEEPING STORIES

    • 14:15 – 14:30 Claire Jing Wang (University of Westminster): Fostering Political Solidarity through First-person Accounts of Refugee Experience in Participatory Documentaries

    • 14:30 – 14:45 Shahriar Khonsari (No institutional affiliation): Participatory Storytelling and Refugee Agency: Narratives of Afghan Displacement in Iran

    • 14:45 – 15:00 Marie Gillespie (Open University) & Margaret Cheesman (King's College London): Forging translocal spaces of solidarity via a participatory arts ethnography of refugee experiences during the Covid 19 pandemic

    • 15:00 – 15:15 Myriel Meissner (University of Applied Arts Vienna): Performing Ruins: Crossbenching in Mostar’s Post-War Reconstruction

    • 15:15 – 15:25 Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková (University of Kent): Dying Fox Turns its Head to Home – exploration of the meaning of home in London.

    • 15:25 – 15:35: David Edwards (Williams College), Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková (University of Kent), Yelyzaveta Zolotarova (University of Vienna/Central European University): presentation of Another Summer and invitation to the screening

  • 15:35 – 16:00 BREAK

  • 16:00 – 16:45 Panel: COMMUNITY BUILDING

    • 16:00 – 16:15 Morgan Mattingly (Queen's University Belfast): Co-Design and Participatory Action Research: Empowering ‘Flourishing’ in Refugee Education

    • 16:15 – 16:30 Lucy Hunt (University of Luxembourg): Drawing (Across) Borders: Reflections on the Use of Creative Visual Communication in Research with Young Refugees (+ 2 illustrations – Debate & For me, a border)

    • 16:30 – 16:45 Rachel Alsop (University of York): ‘My reflection in the mirror reminds me of all the darkness of the past. I can only see shame, tears and pain’. Photography as a method to explore the experiences of young Albanians in the UK asylum system.

Screening

  • 20:15 – SCREENING: Encounter (2024) directed by Kaveh Abbasian and Another Summer (2024) directed by David Edwards and Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková at cinema Světozor (Vodičkova 791, 110 00). The event is organised together with UNIC and UNHCR, opened by Michal Broža, Director of the UN Information Office in Prague (UNIC), and Ajmal Khybari, Head of UNHCR Czechia. If you plan to attend the screening, please use this form to register your free ticket.

DAY 2 – 9th of April 2025

Presentations, screenings and discussions

  • 10:30 – 11:40 Panel: TRACES AND MEMORIES

    • 10:30 – 10:45 Laragh Pittman (Art Nomads) & Hina Khan (Art Nomads): Karvansarai: Brief introduction to the background of making the short film made by artists collective Art Nomads (+ film Karvansarai & printed publication What's The Story?)

    • 10:45 – 11:00 Maruska Svasek (Queen's University Belfast): Your Picture Stares at Me

    • 11:00 – 11:25 Carolina Rinaldi (LAST APS) & Paolo Giordano (LAST APS): The power of Art to promote Human Rights: Inhabitable & Biometrics (+ 2 artworks – Inhabitable & Biometrics)

    • 11:25 – 11:40 Opher Thomson (Independent artist): Inverting the gaze of migration: returning life to its verbs to create bridges where words and nouns keep us separate (+ Film: Abito di confini)

  • 11:40 – 13:00 LUNCH & COFFEE BREAK

  • 13:00 – 14:25 Panel: RIGHTS, ETHICS & REFUGEES 

    • 13:00 – 13:15 Annelie Neumann (Georg-August University Göttingen): Doing Law – Borders – Gender. Queer Refugees Navigating the Asylum Maze

    • 13:15 – 13:30 Efi Savvides (Visual artist): The Empire is Perishing; the Bands are Playing (+ film Emmanuel)

    • 13:30 – 13:45 Azad Larki (Filmmaker): online talk about the film Nummer 11  (+ film Nummer 11)

    • 13:45 – 14:00 Elena Tulupova (NGO AMIGA, z.s.): From Expression to Healing: Participatory Art and Mental Health of Refugees and Migrants in Czechia (+ artworks created as part of the project)

    • 14.00 – 14.25 Blanka Šimůnková, Iryna Sychova, Laura Jokinen (UNHCR)Listening, Creating, Empowering: Practical Approaches to Refugee Participation

 

  • 14:25 – 15:00 BREAK

 

  • 15:00 – 16:00 Panel: GROWING UP IN DISPLACEMENT

    • 15:00 – 15:15 Sarah Achar Sacal (Multimedia artist): presentation of the creative process behind the film Blicke (+ film Blicke created by Sarah Achar Sacal, Stefania Kulaj and Julia Haveker)

    • 15:15 – 15:30 Sam Liebmann (University of Bristol): Seeking Freedom - Participant-led filming with young asylum seekers in the UK (+ film Voices from Ipswich)

    • 15:30 – 15:45 Ella Petousis (NADOE - Network of Afghan Diaspora Organisations in Europe): Empowering Unaccompanied Minors in Belgium: A Participatory Approach to Rights-Based Integration

    • 15:45 – 16:00 Ioana Baskerville & Júlio Sá Rêgo (Romanian Academy - Iasi Branch): Belonging within displacement. A curatorial approach to heritage education for displaced Ukrainian children

  • 16.00 – 16.30 CLOSING DISCUSSION

Symposium dinner

  • 18.30 – SYMPOSIUM DINNER: In the evening of the 9th of April, we will conclude with an optional symposium dinner at Kolkovna restaurant (V Celnici 1031/4, 110 00). If you haven't registered for the dinner but want to attend, please let us know as soon as possible (as the booking for a certain amount of people has already been made).

Please note that the screenings and panels take place in two separate rooms. All the panels will take place in one room, while there will be a separate room dedicated to the artworks and screenings, which will be playing on a loop. Please feel free to watch the audiovisual contributions at your own pace, whether in the dedicated room or via the links provided.

 Films
screened at the symposium

Azad Larki: Nummer 11

The story revolves around Maryam, who is sitting on tram number 11 on her way to the sea. We soon realize that something is not quite right; she receives a mysterious phone call about a job she says she doesn’t want. Gradually, we discover what sets Maryam and her life apart from others in society.

 

Dennis Harvey: The Building and Burning of a Refugee Camp

A group of asylum seekers in Dublin pitch their tents on Sandwith Street, around the corner from the immigration office. This protest camp is a reaction to the decision of the Irish government to deny accommodation to 1400 asylum applicants. Camp residents Sami, Hasiballah and Simon show us around the little village they call home: this is where they eat, this is where they paint banners, and here are flowers planted in a pot.

This peaceful scene is soon disrupted by the arrival of the Irish anti-immigration activist Philip Dwyer, who uses livestreams on social media to call for the tent dwellers to be chased away. A group of progressive activists come to the aid of the asylum seekers, but an outburst of violence looks inevitable.

Phone footage of the increasingly intense confrontations alternates with easy-going conversations between the camp dwellers and the sympathizers who are protesting the lack of support in this fiercely divided country. The violent incidents mount up, and finally things really explode.

 

David Edwards & Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková: Another Summer

Afghanistan and Ukraine – what do they have in common? And what remains of humanity when conflict outbursts? 

Another Summer tells stories of Afghan and Ukrainian refugees in Europe through their perspective. It is a film by refugees about refugees – the directors of Another Summer provided training and equipment to a group of Afghan and Ukrainian first-time filmmakers who had taken refuge in different European countries after the Taliban takeover in 2021 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The filmmakers were divided into teams and sent to seven cities in Europe and Turkey. Their task was to record the stories of people like themselves who had fled violence and repression, capture what it nowadays means to be a refugee and gather unseen footage from their past lives and the horrors they endured. From what they brought back, one senses the bonds of people who recognize in each other what they have lost and the humanity they refuse to give up. 

Does it matter where you come from when you have to leave your home, what was yours has been stolen or destroyed, and your past has been stripped away?

 

Efi Savvides: Emmanuel

Efi Savvides 'Emmanuel', from the series 'The Empire is Perishing; the Bands are Playing', 2016 one channel video, color, sound, 19’ 23” Cyprus is a country of refugees living within their own contested territory, the border an emptied space of land, and foreign refugees are not granted asylum either. For her project 'The Empire Is Perishing; the Bands Are Playing,' Efi Savvides has recorded the stories of several migrant families living in Richmond Village, which had once housed the British personnel and their families, in the Dhekelia British military base, legally a British Overseas Territory. Emmanuel Araya was born there in 2000 to an Ethiopian mother and Sudanese father who were taken in twenty years ago after being rescued at the sea of Acrotiri British military base and have lived in an in-between state ever since; victims of a legal battle in British courts about who should take them. He talks about growing up in Cyprus without a nationality in the form of legal documents; not able to go on a school trip around Europe. He conveys the boredom of displacement and uncertainty, the pain of constant moving and leaving friends behind, the inability to work, and the hope for a “new” life. His father is among the claimants that have won an appeal against the British government, so there is hope on the horizon. Thus imminent absence hangs over Richmond, as the families who have made it their home disperse and its physical structures are demolished, all disappearing into memory. Where we make our home is determined largely by force, fancy, or chance. We become a part of the place we inhabit for a time, just as the landscape surrounding us inevitably becomes an aspect of our identity, the stage for our life story. (Cathryn Drake, Freelance Writer, 2018)

Laragh Pittman & Hina Khan: Karvanserai

Short experimental film made by artists collective Art Nomads charting their creative journeys into the landscape of Ireland. Coming together, bringing cultural artefacts and fabricating their own selves into the land. 

Kaveh Abbasian & Angie Varakis-Martin: Encounter

How can collective creative experiences help build a sense of belonging and community among multilingual migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers? How can such a project be ethically conducted? These were some of the questions that sparked the beginning of this collaborative documentary project, made by an all-migrant/refugee crew. In 2024, the theatre company, PROJEKT EUROPA, collaborated with the School of Arts of the University of Kent to host PROJEKT ENCOUNTER, a 20-week programme of workshops for asylum seekers, refugees, and first-generation migrants living in Kent, UK. This film is a self-reflexive account of the last three weeks of the project, including the last two workshops followed by the final performance. In its self-reflexivity, the film also tries to raise and address questions regarding the ethics of making such a film.

 

Opher Thomson: Abito di confini

A jacket hangs from a tree to the west, jeans hang from a tree to the east. The garments that decorate Italy's wildly different mountain borders are probably the only thing they have in common. Few have witnessed both. Those that have can perhaps understand the country in ways the rest of us can't. This is one of the most visited nations in the world, with 65 million international tourists expected in 2024, now exceeding the resident population for the first time. Neighbouring France surpasses even Italy, with over 100 million arriving. The vast ski resort that straddles the border between the two exemplifies this movement, with over 10 million passages recorded in a winter. Its lifts carry those with credit across the border, legs dangling free, ski passes rather than passports, so they can glide back down over the snow that's sprayed each night. Not all are welcome. A few try to cross the same border with their own legs, but they trudge through the snow, sinking into it, at risk of being pushed back by the police who hunt them. They climb higher and higher to avoid contact, often at night, hoping to one day find a place to stay. Many have already crossed the desolate ruin of the abandoned Karst mountains, and have seen glimpses of Trieste, Venice, Verona, Garda, Milan and Turin, some of the world's most desirable destinations – but in the end Italy was not their destination. Italy was no place for them. This film traces a humble journey across famous but unfamiliar lands, asking what such a perspective reveals about these dramatically changing landscapes. The juxtaposition of the two mountain ranges, abruptly connected by this precarious journey, creates for us a kind of prism that poses urgent questions about our parallel lives and collective values. It's often called the 'migrant route', but is it only those migrating that find themselves in unrecognisable places, or are we all in transit along the consumer route?

 

Michael Parzer & Max Leimstattner: We are artists! First thing

The ethnographic film “We Are Artists! First Thing” tells the story of three artists — working in fine arts, music, and theatre — who immigrated from Syria to Austria in recent years. The film highlights not only their unique artistic styles and approaches but also the challenges and opportunities they face as they navigate working conditions in a new country. It explores their struggles and efforts to gain a foothold in Vienna’s local art scenes, offering an intimate look at the intersection of (forced) migration, creativity, and social inclusion.

Sam Liebmann: Voices from Ipswich

A participant-led documentary film where a group of teenagers and young men from Africa explore what it's like to arrive and settle as a refugee in the United Kingdom. With so much talk about migration in the media, this short documentary is told by those who've made the often life-risking journey from their homes in search of asylum.

Stefania Kulaj & Julia Haveker & Sarah Achar Sacal: Blicke

Blicke (Glances) is a short documentary that explores the experiences of five refugee and migrant children in Vienna, aged 6 to 12. It offers a glimpse into their lives through their own eyes, revealing their hopes, feelings and dreams for the future. Their innocent, yet insightful views invite us to understand their unique perspective on life and reality.

 Artworks
exhibited at the symposium

AMIGA: Czechia Through the Eyes of Migrants

The exhibition features paintings created during AMIGA’s (Agency for Migration and Adaptation) art therapy sessions, with contributors including refugees and migrants, as well as psychologists and support staff. Organized with support from Prague City Hall, the event in Hradčany in November 2024 provided a safe space for participants to explore identity, emotions, and belonging through artistic expression.

By actively involving migrants in the creative process, this initiative bridges gaps between refugee communities, local stakeholders, and researchers while demonstrating the therapeutic power of art in coping with trauma and stress. The projects of AMIGA not only serves as a unique study of migrant experiences but also fosters cultural dialogue, reinforcing the significance of art as a tool for emotional healing and social connection.

Lucy Hunt: Debate & For me, a border 

The first illustration, 'Debate', summarises in one fictional character many thoughts, texts and snippets of conversation encountered during fieldwork. By presenting them in this way, the aim is to highlight the concerns of forcibly displaced youth in an accessible way, to encourage a wider audience to try to understand their everyday realities. Similarly, the second comic, 'For me, a border', illustrates the words of a young poet from Afghanistan who was forcibly displaced and was living in a camp in Greece. She has written extensively about her experiences, including in the published volume 'We Will Fly Higher', published by Palewell Press.

 

Laragh Pittman & Cross-Cultural Conversations: 'What's The Story?'

Printed publication, collection of stories, recipes and news from the voluntary intercultural group from Inner City Dublin. 

LAST APS (Carolina Rinaldi, Paolo Giordano, Giordana Canarezza, Luca Vitiello): Inhabitable & Biometrics of Absence

"Inhabitable" is a multimedia installation designed to generate awareness about the absence of the right to request housing for asylum seekers whilst "Biometrics of Absence" is a multidisciplinary project combining visual art, participatory writing, and anthropological research. It explores identity through a migrant’s fingerprint as an artistic element while highlighting how biometric systems reduce individuals to mere codes, ignoring their uniqueness.

Organisers

The symposium is organized by Alžběta Kovandová-Bartoníčková, a documentary filmmaker and researcher exploring the topic of home and participatory filmmaking; Dr. Kaveh Abbasian, a filmmaker and scholar with an interest in refugee filmmaking, and David Edwards, an anthropologist and filmmaker focusing on Afghanistan and visual storytelling.

Our fourth co-organizer is anthropologist Dr. Luděk Brož, who represents the Institute of Ethnology, and is involved in the symposium's coordination.

You can get in touch with us via email at prague.symposium.call@gmail.com.

Practical information

If you want to know where to (not) go, watch Honest Guide's videos, there are many great tips.

 

​Address

Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences,

Na Florenci 1420, 110 00 Prague

Closest public transport stations: Masarykovo Nádraží / Bílá Labuť

Public Transport in Prague

  • Prague has a great public transport system (metro, trams, buses, funicular).

  • Tickets are valid across all types of transport.

  • Where to buy tickets:
    – Ticket machines (accept cards or coins) at metro stations and many tram stops
    – Newsagents (e.g., Relay) or convenience stores
    – The PID Lítačka app (iOS/Android) allows you to buy and validate tickets on your phone

  • Ticket options:
    30 CZK (30-minute ticket), 40 CZK (90-minute ticket), 120 CZK (24-hour ticket), 330 CZK (3-day ticket)

  • Don’t forget to validate your paper ticket at the yellow machine when you first enter a tram, bus, or metro.

Getting from the Airport to the City Centre

  • Public transport is cheap and reliable:

    • Take bus 119 from Terminal 1 or 2 to Nádraží Veleslavín (metro Line A), then continue by metro to the centre.

    • Or take bus 100 to Zličín (metro Line B). – The journey takes around 35–45 minutes.

  • You’ll need a standard 90-minute ticket (40 CZK), which you can buy at the airport ticket machine or via the PID Lítačka app.

  • Taxis and ride-hailing apps (Bolt, Uber) are available but more expensive.

  • In general, be careful about taxis (Uber or Bolt is definitely a cheaper and 'safer' option) and changing money – there are many scammers.

 

Czech Currency

  • The Czech Republic uses the Czech koruna (CZK).

  • 1 EUR ≈ 25 CZK (check the current rate before exchanging).

  • Avoid currency exchange booths in the city centre offering "0% commission" – they often give bad rates.
    Use ATMs or exchange offices like Exchange.cz (Kaprova Street) for fair rates.

  • Cards are widely accepted, but having some cash is useful for small shops, public toilets, etc.

 

A Few Tips

  • Many people in Prague speak at least basic English, especially in shops, restaurants, and transport.

  • Tap water is drinkable everywhere.

  • Most places include a service charge, but it’s polite to round up or tip 5–10% in restaurants and cafés.

  • Prague is a generally safe city. Still, beware of pickpockets in tourist-heavy areas and public transport.

  • In case of emergency, dial 112 (Europe-wide emergency number, English-speaking operators).

Useful Czech Phrases

  • Dobrý den = Hello / Good day

  • Děkuji = Thank you

  • Prosím = Please / You're welcome

  • Mluvíte anglicky? = Do you speak English?

Where to eat near the symposium venue

Vegan/Vegetarian-Friendly

  • Dhaaba Beas (Na Poříčí 25) – Indian-inspired vegetarian buffet, quick, tasty, and affordable. Pay by weight. Great for a fast and healthy lunch.

  • Loving Hut (Multiple locations – closest at Truhlářská 20) – Part of the international vegan chain. Affordable Asian-inspired buffet with plenty of plant-based options.

  • Vegg-Go (Florentinum, Na Florenci 15) – Located in the Florentinum food court just across the street. Good choice of bowls, wraps, and salads — mostly plant-based.

 

More traditional Czech Cuisine (with a vegetarian option on the menu too)

  • Masaryčka (Havlíčkova 1014/2) – A restaurant located in the historic Masaryk Railway Station. Offers classic Czech dishes with a contemporary twist.

  • Hybernská (Hybernská 7) – A more casual spot serving hearty Czech meals in a traditional beer hall setting. Good beer selection and generous portions.

​​

More Upscale Options

  • Červený Jelen (Hybernská 6) – A beautifully designed modern Czech restaurant with a stylish bar. 

  • Sia (V Celnici 1034/6) – A trendy Asian fusion restaurant with a stunning interior and an open kitchen concept. Slightly pricier but worth it for the experience.

Grocery shops around the venue

Albert – Florentinum – Na Florenci 15

  • A decent-sized supermarket with ready-made sandwiches, salads, fruit, and drinks.

Billa – Masarykovo nádraží

  • Inside the Masarykovo railway station building.

  • 2–3 minutes away. Great for fresh pastries, snacks, and lunch deals.

 

Žabka – Na Poříčí 24

  • A small convenience store chain with quick snacks, drinks, and essentials.

  • A couple minutes' walk from the institute.

DM Drogerie – Na Poříčí 24-26

  • While it's mainly a drugstore, DM often has organic snacks, protein bars, drinks, and even some vegan food options.

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