On June 20, 2025, the University of British Columbia marked World Refugee Day with its first-ever World Refugee Day Symposium, a powerful gathering that brought together over one hundred participants from academic and community sectors to reflect, connect, and learn.
Organized by the Faculty of Education’s Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy in collaboration with the Centre for Migration Studies, the symposium created a meaningful space to centre the lived experiences and intellectual contributions of Afghan women shaped by displacement, political instability, and gendered exclusion.
Attendees included educators, students, and community leaders from across UBC’s faculties, including Applied Science, Arts, Education, Law, Medicine, and Science, as well as representatives from local universities and settlement organizations. Together, they engaged in a day of critical reflection, solidarity, and knowledge-sharing.
With a focus on education as a tool of resistance and reimagination, speakers explored how the identities of Afghan women are constructed, resisted, and reshaped in contexts of forced migration. Presentations, delivered both in person and virtually, addressed a range of urgent and interconnected issues:
- The denial of education under systems of gender apartheid
- The use of technology to reach learners in conflict zones
- Legal status, resettlement, and challenges faced by Afghan refugees in Canada
- Conditions of camps and migration in transit
- The colonial legacies and global systems shaping refugee experiences
The event aimed to disrupt reductive narratives and elevate the voices of Afghan women, foregrounding their resilience, agency, and leadership in the face of systemic injustice.
Building on the momentum of this year’s event, planning is already underway for next year’s symposium. Organizers hope to broaden the scope, deepen community partnerships, and amplify the voices of more displaced and marginalized communities. The goal is to create an even more engaging, inclusive, and globally connected event that continues to challenge dominant narratives and foster transformative dialogue.
To learn more about this year’s event, visit the World Refugee Day Symposium event page
