By Carlotta Borroni | Project coordinator and fundraiser
The first six months of 2025 have been buzzing with activities, discussions while critically looking at all the difficult events happening around the world. The Habibi.Works team and its community have stayed together, still creating something beautiful.
With the cold breeze of winter, we welcomed many new people into the center—both new arrivals at the camp and new team members. After a dynamic start, with dinners served to over 100 people almost every evening, we all took a break during the month of Ramadan. Activities slowed down, and we embraced the moment to take care of both the space and ourselves. After regaining our energy, spring arrived, bringing with it fresh new momentum.
Strategy Week
2025 began with a week-long Strategy Week, where the team came together to critically examine and discuss some of the project’s structures and activities. This is a key moment to set goals for the year, reassess priorities, and seek improvements.
This year, among other things, we’ve been focusing on the mental health of the Habibi.Works team. Working in this context can be deeply rewarding, but it’s also a challenging environment. That’s why it's important to create moments where the team can be together without the pressure of everyday tasks, and celebrate all the hard work.
Team trips
This year, the team enjoyed two trips together. In April, our project coordinator Anni, along with Jakob and Estrella, organized a super fun treasure hunt around the city of Ioannina. Where the team had to have challenges and fun games.
When the weather warmed up, the whole team went to the beach to swim, play volleyball, and enjoy a cup of tea by the sea.
Moments like these are precious—they create strong bonds and remind us to cherished the work that we do together and appreciate the people we do it with
Eid Party
As every year, the end of Ramadan was celebrated with a big dinner and dance party. From the morning the kitchen was busty cooking delicious meals for over 100 people.
Moments like this give people the opportunity to experience Habibi.Works as a space to come together, to celebrate, to have fun—and to dance. A lot!
The Storyteller Lab is back!
Since March 2025, Josse—our kitchen supervisor—has taken over the Storyteller Lab, organizing workshops in photography, videography, and model drawing.
You could see people walking around the center with their phones or a camera try to capture the different activates and the people living the space during the day.
The Storyteller Lab is housed in our Dome, which is equipped with cameras, instruments, and sound-mixing tools. It’s a space dedicated to exploring storytelling across various mediums through expert-led workshops and participatory learning. The Lab exists to empower individuals to share their stories and advocate for their rights.
We Have a gardener: Hammar
Habibi.Works is located in a rural area and has always cherished the natural surroundings and gardens around the property.
At the beginning of spring, Hammar quietly stepped into our garden and began cleaning up the space. Just a week later, we had six chickens, two decorative wells , and a solar-powered fountain! And some shy vegetables growing.
The team has since decided to reopen the garden and invest in making it a space for everyone—to work, meet, learn, and come together.
Katsikas Camp Update
Katsikas Camp can host around 1,200 people and, during winter, often reaches full capacity. The living conditions are not suited for the cold and heavy rains that this region experiences annually.
Moreover, the Ministry of Migration and Asylum recently issued a verbal directive to the authorities of refugee camps across Greece, instructing them to evict individuals who have received international protection status, as well as rejected asylum seekers. This has resulted in many people being removed from the only shelter they have, forcing them into homelessness and even more precarious and vulnerable situations.
You can read more about this in the statement published by MIT (Mobile Info Team
Habibi.Works stands the ground for a dignified life for all and continue to promote self resilience and self development.
Stay tuned for more update and follow Habibi.Works on social media.
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