“Women were at the forefront of the [Syrian] revolution. They held families together through displacement. They’ve lived with disappearance, detention, and torture. And despite everything, they continue demanding political representation and a role in shaping Syria’s future. … They deserve the resources, recognition, and political power to help build what comes next.”
– Sana Mustafa
To further amplify solutions by and for refugee women, WRC recently launched the WRC Live podcast. In each episode, we speak with guests about the challenges displaced women and girls face, and the evidence-based solutions that will advance their agency, protection, and rights.
In our newest episode, I interviewed Sana Mustafa, refugee rights leader and founding member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative.
We discussed the question of who should decide how humanitarian funding is spent. For Mustafa, the answer is clear: the people who have actually lived through displacement.
Mustafa has spent more than a decade organizing refugee movements, challenging humanitarian institutions, and developing new ways to channel funding directly to refugee-led organizations. Now she is helping to design a community-led fund for Southwest Asia and North Africa, while continuing to advocate for the rights and safety of displaced Syrians.
In our conversation, Mustafa talked about shifting power, building movements, and why Syria is not yet safe for everyone to return.
I hope you’ll listen to this thoughtful conversation about leadership, power, and the need to resource refugee leaders.
Please share your feedback, and look for upcoming WRC Live podcasts on Spotify, Apple, or anywhere you listen. Upcoming guests include Afghan journalist and newsroom founder Zahra Nader, author and humanitarian Jina Krause-Vilmar, and more to come.