UNESCO RIELA Spring School: The Arts of Integrating (Caring & Sharing)
Description
This year's programme was developed in collaboration with the Institute for Collective Place Leadership at Teesside University and was supported by the National Library of Scotland's Moving Image Archive and Multilingual Matters.
Theme: intergenerational caring and sharing in the context of (forced) migration
The Spring School is a 3-day in person knowledge exchange event, organised and hosted by UNESCO RIELA. We host this annual event in person in May, with an online edition during the Southern Hemisphere Spring in November. At our 9th annual Spring School in 2026, we will explore intergenerational caring and the sharing of knowledge, wisdom and practices in the context of (forced) migration and restorative integration through education, languages and the arts.
How can Elders, the living archives amongst us, pass on their language, history, culture and wisdom to younger and future generations when spatial, temporal and political barriers stand in the way? How is care organised when people are forced to flee? Who carries culture forward, and how is it kept alive when communities are broken up and dispersed? Can cultural heritage be maintained and transmitted within new communities, and what mechanisms or efforts are involved? How can destination countries support those experiencing the loss of cultural and linguistic heritage? How do refugees and people seeking asylum access knowledge about their own cultural heritage? UNESCO has declared a Decade of Indigenous Languages and the wisdom-speech, linguistic inheritance and forms of speech of elders, and of those beginning steps in the languages of home are critical to intergenerational forms of care for intangible cultural heritage. How are the generations undertaking care for culture and language in times of genocide, pain and protest?
We want to understand how intercultural caring and sharing is organised, how it can be supported by longstanding communities and what we can learn from these practices. We have curated a programme that offers practical examples, as well as performances and academic reflections.
This is a free event with limited spaces due to budgetary and spacial restraints. Please only register your place if you are sure you will be attending. Thank you!
The UNESCO Chair on Refugee Integration through Education, Languages, and Arts (UNESCO RIELA) hosted within the School of Education at the University of Glasgow undertakes a programme of work focused on multilingual knowledge exchange in the area of refugee and humanitarian protection, with a focus on fostering multilingual, multimodal and multilateral models of integration through creative and cultural expressions.
Lineup
Keynote speakers - click for the full list
* Prof Alison Phipps (University of Glasgow) * Larry Bottinick (UNHCR) * Coinneach Maclean (independent tour guide) * Antonella Sorace (Bilingualism Matters & University of Edinburgh) * Grace Franklin & Joyce Smith (International Welcome Club) * Leena Nammari (independent artist & University of Dundee)
Keynote listeners - click for the full list
* Holly Trundle * Sawsan Al-Areeqe * Paria Goodarzi
Exhibitions & stalls - click for the full list
* Women's Collectives in the Social and Solidarity Economy for the Sustainability of Life in México - by Andrea B. Reyes & María Guadalupe Reyes García (COFEMESSS) * 折り紙 Origami – collective act of folding for caring and sharing - by Misa Kanno-Watson (independent) * Bigger than I: solidarity and help in dark times - by Anna Lenchovska (Tolerspace) * Eskaintza (Offering) - Nerea Bello Sagarzazu & Ane López (independent artists) * “My babcia always used to say...” Sharing intergenerational idioms - by Sally Zacharias & Dobrochna Futro (both University of Glasgow) * Sharing is Caring: Co-constructing Inclusive, Creative, and Love Community Across ‘Difference’ in Glasgow’s Southside - by Ray Di Marco Campbell & colleagues (Glasgow Autonomous Space) * Care Engine - by Erdem Avşar (University of Glasgow) * What We Carry Together - by Paria Goodarzi (independent artist) * Showcase of archival films - by The National Library of Scotland’s Moving Image & Sound Archive * Momentary and Fleeting: A Life Documenting Conflict and All That It Displaces - Exhibition of the photojournalism of Robin Taudevin (14.03.1977 - 14.05.2006) curated by Julia Taudevin
Tuesday 26 May - click for the full list
* Songs as Living Archives - by Solo Way Ukrainian Choir * The Story of the Traveling Plate: Returning What We Receive - by Dilara Özel (independent researcher) and Erdem Avşar (University of Glasgow) * Caring Through Creation: Intergenerational Transmission Across Glasgow - by Radia Mohammed Al Madhagi (Together Reaching Higher CIC) * Amaro Kheliben (Our Dance) - by Sonia Michalewicz (Romano Lav) * My Story, Our Future: story connections as acts of care - by Bria Angelle Trosclair (University of Glasgow), Helena Fox, John Weeks, Louna, Mena, Salma & Edith (all ESOL Scotland) * Learning from Practice: Community Practitioners' Insights for Social Prescribing Training - by Victoria Touzel & Carlotta Filius (both Bielefeld University) * Caring without inheritance: an ethnographic reflection on unaccompanied migrant youth in Catalonia - by Domingo Clemente Cruz (Blanquerna - Universitat Ramon Llull) * The Power of Three Ms: From Gaza to Glasgow - A family Story of Sharing and Caring - by Manar Al-Houbi (University of Glasgow), Mohammed Alshaikh (independent researcher) & Mira * Educational Justice Across Borders: Care, Equity and Humanisation in Global contexts - by Marta Moskal, Gaston Bacquet & Sihui Wang (GLACIER network, all University of Glasgow) * Cloth of gratitude - by Rachel Morley (University of Glasgow) * Folding a River by Heart - Tawona Sitholé & Alison Phipps (both University of Glasgow)
Wednesday 27 May - click for the full list
* Hakka Women’s Stories, and Meeting Glasgow’s Elderly Anarchists - A storytelling duo performance followed by artist talks and discussion - by Peilin Shi, Josey-Ann Green & Boya Li (independent artists) * Jagged Roots- How elders and communities carry culture forward - by Aisha Abbas (independent researcher) * Caring Hands, Living Heritage: Ukrainian Intergenerational Art Practices in a Scottish Context - Mariia Miskova & Nataliia Spyrydonova (Mission of Innocents) * What We Carry: Memory and Intergenerational Exchange - by Christina Kyriakidou, Lina Fernanda Rangel, Luz Dary Rodríguez, Mohammad Hamami, Tahereh Samori, Diana Pimiento Castro, Isabella Solano, Taylor Del Castillo & Peilin Shi (The Central and West Integration (CWIN) Art Group) * The ‘work’ of passing on - by Deborah Olivier (Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg) & Hyab Yohannes (University of Glasgow) * Zines of Care: Crafting Intergenerational Literacies - by Sih Ying (Iris) Hsieh (University of Glasgow) * Carelaborations of Spring Schools past and present - by Sarah Stewart (Friends of Scottish Settlers) * Weaving a sens of belonging - by Agathe Galina Johanna Leroy (University of Glasgow) * No More Bad News – Strikes Back! - by Erdem Avşar & Bella Hoogeveen (both University of Glasgow) * Care, Language, and the Space Between Us - by Gizem Karaköse (Nicolaus Copernicus University) * “Əldən ələ” — From Hospitality to Trust - by Samira Hassanzade & Narmin Aliyeva (both University of Glasgow) * Mai arrendersi, never give up: when stories become pathways of resistance - by Esa Aldegheri (University of Glasgow)
Thursday 28 May - click for the full list
* How can social care services be reimagined to develop intergenerational approaches to support older adults? An Appreciative Inquiry Approach - by Ali Huntley (Research in Practice) * When Displaced Voices Speak: Listening, Language, and the Meaning of Care in Multilingual Societies - by Raneem Knaj (University of Glasgow) * Embodied Experience of Memories and Languages through Plants - by Pinar Aksu (University of Glasgow) & Jane Catlin (University of Strathclyde) * Sharing is Caring: Co-constructing Inclusive, Creative, and Love Community Across ‘Difference’ - by Ray di Marco Campbell (Glasgow Autonomous Space) * A not-so-simple origin story: Tracing a melody across borders, bureaucracy and (post)migrant bodies in Berlin - by Eli Vardzhiyska (Freie Universität & Humboldt Universität Berlin) * Listening to Language: Care, Silence and Untranslatability - by Azadeh Fatehrad (Teesside University) & Hyab Yohannes (University of Glasgow) * Grounding, Guidance and Giggles (creating an ancestral atlas of care) - by Mirna Šolić (University of Glasgow), Marzanna Antoniak & Ali Zaregol (independent artists) * The Lyrical Tradition: Cultural homeland, nostalgic writing, and poetical dwelling - by 汪筱薔 Hsiao-Chiang (Hope) Wang & Tawona Ganyamatopé Sitholé (both University of Glasgow)
FAQs
- Where will this event take place?
The event will take place in Glasgow's West End. The exact address will be in your confirmation email.
- Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Yes, the entire venue is wheelchair accessible. There is blue badge parking next to the building.
- Do I need to be an academic to come to this conference?
No. This conference brings together people from lots of different backgrounds, to try and stimulate conversation and knowledge exchange between the different members of our society. It is an international gathering with the aim to learn with and from one another, regardless of our professional and cultural backgrounds.
- Can I bring my child(ren)?
The event is for adults only. If you are a presenter and need help with childcare in order to be able to present, please contact Miss Bella Hoogeveen (the Project Manager) to discuss your needs: unesco-riela@glasgow.ac.uk.
- Do I need to come for the full 3 days?
No, you can book half day tickets for the morning or the afternoon.
- I am learning English, can I still participate?
Yes, we welcome different languages and lots of the sessions are interactive and easy to follow.
- Can I present at this event?
The call for contributions for May 2026 is closed, but we will have an online version of this event in November 2026 and another in-person one in May 2027.
The call for contributions for November will go live in July 2026 and the call for the next in-person edition will go live in December 2026.
The best way to stay informed of these dates is to sign up for our newsletter. There is the option to do so on the registration form. You can also sign up on the website: www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/unesco/ (scroll to the bottom of the page).
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