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Request to co-sponsor an event: In addition to our yearly programming, the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies (CMENAS) is happy to consider requests to co-sponsor MENA related U-M lectures, events and activities that coincide with the Center's mission to promote a broad and deep understanding of the region.
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CMENAS 2024 Fall Colloquium Series. Melissa Network: Building Beehives of Solidarity

Nadina Christopoulou, Melissa Network co-founder & director
Monday, November 11, 2024
12:00-2:00 PM
Room 555 Weiser Hall Map
Register for the event: https://myumi.ch/1bJ9n

Nadina Christopoulou is the director and co-founder of the Melissa Network and previously served as vice president of the Greek Council for Refugees.

She studied anthropology and politics at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and earned her M.Phil and Ph.D. from Cambridge University. Her doctoral research focused on Roma storytelling and collective memory practices, based on extensive fieldwork with settled and semi-nomadic Roma communities in Greece. Her later research expanded to diaspora narratives, migration, childhood, and solidarity networks for migrant and refugee women. Based on this work, she co-founded the Melissa Network alongside migrant and refugee women leaders in Greece.

The Melissa Network, whose name means “bee” in Greek, was envisioned as an open beehive of sharing and coexistence, uniting women from over 50 countries. It provides a safe space for healing and learning, promoting integration through education, art, advocacy, mental health support, and community engagement. Melissa emphasizes agency, solidarity, and an ethic of care.

The organization actively networks with grassroots groups across the Mediterranean and the Middle East and has taken a leading role in supporting women human rights defenders from crisis zones, including Afghanistan and Ukraine.
Building: Weiser Hall
Website:
Event Type: Lecture / Discussion
Tags: Anthropology, center for middle eastern and north african studies, cmenas, Cmenas Colloquium Series, Diaspora, Migration, Politics
Source: Happening @ Michigan from Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies, International Institute