Refugee Week 2025, held from 15 to 21 June, embraces the theme “Finding Freedom”.
This theme honours the courage and resilience of people with lived refugee experience, and invites us to reflect on the importance of safety, dignity, and belonging in every community.
At the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, we are proud to support Churchill Fellows whose work advances understanding, inclusion, and positive change for people from refugee backgrounds. Through their Fellowships, they have explored innovative models, challenged systemic barriers, and championed community-led solutions.
This year, we are highlighting the work of Fellows who continue to make meaningful contributions in this space. Kon Karapanagiotidis OAM, founder of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, is a tireless advocate for the rights of people seeking asylum. Isobel Crealy, a 2014 Fellow, explored trauma-informed therapeutic support for children from refugee backgrounds, helping inform best practices in care.
We also acknowledge Carmel Guerra OAM, a leading voice in multicultural youth advocacy, whose work has shaped national policy conversations. Christina Ly, a 2023 Fellow, recently released a report exploring how to increase access to eye care for refugees. Carol Kaplanian, a 2020 Fellow, continues to advocate for mental health and wellbeing in refugee and migrant communities, with a focus on gender-based violence and healing.
As we mark Refugee Week, we invite all Australians to recognise the strength and potential of refugee communities, and to consider how we can each contribute to building a more inclusive, compassionate society. Through shared learning, storytelling, and action, we can continue to find freedom—together.
The WA Department of Communities Churchill Fellowship to understand the perspectives of migrant and refugee women who have experienced family violence
To visit leading refugee organisations to ascertain strategies for advocating and supporting asylum seekers in Australia
The Danks Churchill Fellowship to study the planning, development and implementation of programmes for refugee and migrant young people
The Dr Dorothea Sandars and Irene Lee Churchill Fellowship to explore accessible and sustainable models of eye care delivery for refugees
The Peter Mitchell Churchill Fellowship to investigate language and cultural inclusion programs illustrating best practice in the integration of adolescent refugee students
