The UB Holiday Gift Basket to support refugees
As always, when Christmas gets closer, the University of Barcelona organizes its Holiday Gift Basket to call for all members of the university community to show support for some social cause. This year, the funds will be totally assigned to the UB Support programme for refugees, coordinated by Solidaritat UB Foundation. There are two holiday gift baskets: panera Galet and panera Tió. Both have many items, which include, for instance, tickets to see cultural shows, a gastronomic experience, several courses, magazine subscriptions (like Sàpiens), adventure activities (helicopter ride and flotation experience), and a free flight to the Balearic Islands, among other things.
All members of the UB community can buy as many tickets (2€) as they wish, until December 16, at 12 noon. The draw will take place on December 16 and the winners will receive the prize on December 18.
As always, when Christmas gets closer, the University of Barcelona organizes its Holiday Gift Basket to call for all members of the university community to show support for some social cause. This year, the funds will be totally assigned to the UB Support programme for refugees, coordinated by Solidaritat UB Foundation. There are two holiday gift baskets: panera Galet and panera Tió. Both have many items, which include, for instance, tickets to see cultural shows, a gastronomic experience, several courses, magazine subscriptions (like Sàpiens), adventure activities (helicopter ride and flotation experience), and a free flight to the Balearic Islands, among other things.
All members of the UB community can buy as many tickets (2€) as they wish, until December 16, at 12 noon. The draw will take place on December 16 and the winners will receive the prize on December 18.
A consolidated support initiative
This year the basket reaches its fifth edition. In 2015, the first basket received more than 1,800 euros, which were assigned to a project for employment for young people at risk of social exclusion, by the Solidaritat UB Fundation. Its second edition doubled the fundraising and the 4,200 euros they got were given to La Marató de TV3, which was dedicated to stroke and spinal cord injuries, and traumatic brain injuries. In 2017, the initiative got almost 4,700 euros, given to the project Amics de lʼHospital Sant Joan de Déu. Last year, it received more than 5,000 euros, which were given to the fundraising of a project by Obra Social Sant Joan de Déu, to improve the diagnostic and rehabilitation of children with brain paralysis.
A program promoting refugeesʼ access to higher education
In September 2015, the UB created the Support program for refugees and people from conflict areas, bearing in mind that the massive moving of the refugees, especially those coming from Syria, was a global crisis.
The program, which received several honors -such as Magisterio 2017 Prize or Diversitat 2019 Prize-, is coordinated by the Solidaritat UB Foundation and it aims to promote the refugeesʼ access to higher education. The flagship of this program is the Transition course to university, for which there are fifteen grants a year, which include accommodation and costs. These grants are completed with actions on academic support, tutoring programs, legal advice, psychological assistance and employment support.
Committed to the Sustainable Development Goals
As part of the support program, the University organizes several activities on training, awareness and information about the refugee crisis (such as Mare Nostrum project, funded by the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation), and takes part in European and international projects, such as RESCUE (Refugees Education Support in MENA countries) and inHERE (Higher Education Supporting Refugees in Europe). The latter has included the UB program in its Good Practice Catalogue regarding the refugeesʼ reception.