Music and sport join forces to support refugees and displaced people affected by climate crisis
In partnership with Spotify, Coldplay and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), FC Barcelona and its Foundation are launching a new charity T-shirt to help fight the impact of climate change in refugee camps in Uganda
The proceeds from the sales will be donated to the joint project being run by UNHCR and the FC Barcelona Foundation in Uganda to combat climate change.
The climate crisis is disproportionately affecting refugees, people displaced by conflict and the communities that host them, who find themselves increasingly trapped in devastating conditions with nowhere to flee. As such, this collaboration between Spotify, Coldplay, FC Barcelona, the Barça Foundation and UNHCR will support various initiatives within the project, including planting trees in Ugandan refugee camps, as well as in host communities, to promote the reforestation of degraded ecosystems where extreme drought has caused desertification, and involving young refugees in action groups for the collection of plastic waste generated in their communities to transform it into tiles for use in eco-friendly, sustainable buildings.
THE AFRICAN COUNTRY FACES MAJOR CHALLENGES DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING AND THE ARRIVAL OF NEW REFUGEES
The dangers of climate crisis for refugees and displaced people in Uganda
Uganda is tacking a series of major challenges resulting from both climate change and population displacement. This East African country is particularly susceptible to global warming, experiencing irregular rainfall, frequent droughts, seasonal floods and wildfires, all factors which complicate agricultural planning and exacerbate food insecurity.
In this context, Uganda is home to over 1.7 million refugees from South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and Somalia. Once forced to flee, refugees and those displaced by conflict become even more vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis. The combined effects of climate change and forced displacement put a strain on resources, heighten tensions and complicate efforts to deliver adequate protection and support to both refugees and host communities.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) works to address the urgent needs of refugees, while also promoting the implementation of sustainable improvements aimed at optimizing essential services and reducing reliance on humanitarian aid, thereby strengthening communities against climatic challenges and preparing them for the future.
HARNESSING THE POWER OF SPORT TO TRANSFORM LIVES
A joint project with UNHCR to strengthen social cohesion among young refugees and members of host communities in Uganda
FC Barcelona, the FC Barcelona Foundation and UNHCR recognize the power of sport to transform lives and have been working collaboratively since 2022 to offer Sport-For-Protection activities to people, among them children and adolescents, forced to flee their homes in Colombia, Malaysia, Türkiye, El Salvador, and Uganda.
In Uganda, the project supports close to 4,800 refugees and members of host communities in the Nakivale and Oruchinga settlements near the borders of Rwanda and Tanzania. This joint project is part of an ongoing alliance between FC Barcelona, the Barça Foundation and UNHCR. The initiative primarily focuses on young people not attending school and provides them with information on protection, gender equity, as well as access to community inclusion activities through the organisation of sports events. The Foundation’s own SportNet socio-educational methodology also offers participants training on conflict resolution and violence prevention, as well as the opportunity to extend their personal networks.
