Monthly Report: Paréa Lesvos June 2025
- Joaquin O'Ryan
- 8 hours ago
- 4 min read
Check out our monthly project update for June 2025 at Paréa Lesvos
The word ‘paréa’ in Greek means “company, circle of friends”: everyone is welcome in Paréa!
Located within walking distance from the CCAC (Closed and Controlled Access Camp) on Lesvos, our community center Paréa Lesvos offers a safe space where people on the move, locals and internationals can meet and spend time in a peaceful and welcoming environment.
Paréa is run by Europe Cares responsible for the safety, major facility costs, maintenance and development of the center. It is also a home to another 10 civil society organisations: Artists Giving Back, Boat Refugee Foundation, Collective Aid, Leave No One Behind, Makerspace Lesvos, Refocus Media Labs, Refugee Relief Doro Blancke, TerraPsy, and Yoga and Sport with Refugees. In a time of high political uncertainty and constant withdrawal of support and international attention from Lesvos, our network of partner organisations joined forces to offer people on the move a wide range of services including food and NFI distributions, legal and psychosocial support, education and social care activities. But first and foremost, we offer a sense of community and belonging.
We are one community in solidarity. Will you join us?
View of Mavrovouni Camp from Paréa Lesvos
LESVOS UPDATES
Between June 2 and 29, Lesvos recorded 258 new arrivals and 23 departures, according to UNHCR. As a result, the number of people residing in the Lesvos CCAC rose to 1,106. This brings the total number of residents in the Lesvos CCAC to 1,106. During this period, 19 pushback incidents were reported in the Aegean Sea, involving 535 people, including children, women, and men—each one representing a missed opportunity to uphold the right to seek asylum in Europe.
This summer, Crete has seen a sharp rise in Mediterranean arrivals—according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), more than 6,500 migrants landed on Crete between January and mid-June 2025, comfortably surpassing last year's total of 5,100. At the same time, far‑right locals have protested against these arrivals, confronting migrants and staging demonstrations near port facilities. Adding to the very dangerous response from locals, the Greek government has sent three navy vessels to the Libyan coast to help prevent migrants from reaching its territory.
Most people on the move in Lesvos live in the Closed Controlled Access Center (CCAC). A new facility is almost finished in Vastria, a heavily forested area with poor accessibility and a high wildfire risk. This month, more than 600 people had to be evacuated from the Chios CCAC due to a nearby fire. The comparison is alarming: if a fire breaks out in Vastria, evacuation might not be possible in time, putting thousands of lives at serious risk.
A positive development is that in one month, 277 people accessed Lesvos’ Integration Office—seeking jobs, health documents, or family reunification help. Most were men from Syria and Sudan. 43 job interviews were arranged, and 19 led to actual employment. New partnerships with job centers and training providers are starting to open more opportunities for better inclusion.
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*UNHCR / **Aegean Boat Report
JUNE IN NUMBERS
Highlight of the month
On Friday the 20th June, to celebrate World Refugee Day, we came together with our visitors and partners to organise a party, and a day of celebration in Paréa!
We spent the week preparing the centre with our visitors, creating decorations in Women Space and Paréa Club, collecting songs from our visitors for a party playlist composed of songs from all over the world, and spreading the word!
On Friday the 20th, with the support of our partners, we welcomed 247 visitors to Paréa to celebrate World Refugee Day. The day’s activities included face painting, sports tournaments, clowns, ice creams, a delicious lunch from a local Syrian restaurant, and lots and lots of dancing! It was a beautiful day of celebration and the centre was alive with music, laughter and excitement.
Faces of Paréa
I thank Paréa for also creating a friendly atmosphere for us - so that we can all be happy together here. John - From Afghanistan
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Meet our partner: Artists Giving Back
Artists Giving Back provides healing through the vehicle of art to people on the move. It is their mission to return dignity, build community and instil hope through art programs and exhibitions.
In Paréa Lesvos, thanks to healing through art sessions with various artistic approaches and mediums, our visitors have the opportunity to express and visualise their thoughts, dreams and emotions.
In June, Artists Giving Back ran 3 weeks of sessions in Paréa, with 45 people visiting each day! A mix of men, women and children participated in the activities that brought a sense of calm and peace to Paréa.
Welcome to our space: The Garden
This month, our garden has gone through an incredible transformation, thanks to our new Garden Manager, Mohammed! We have new piping to keep our plants hydrated and some much-needed shade!
We have also renovated beds and are currently growing tomatoes, basil, aubergines, watermelon and zucchinis amongst many others.
The garden is a very popular lunch spot and generally a nice quiet space where people enjoy the mellow buzzing of insects and the soft whisper of the wing through the beautiful olive trees.
