Introducing the Athens CampUs: Safe and Healing Homes for Young Refugees Starting Their Life in Greece
MOTG is delighted to announce the start of a new project in Athens: safe and healing homes for young refugees turning 18 and starting their life in Greece.
For the past 4 years, Movement on the Ground, supported by the Dutch Government, has sponsored shelters for unaccompanied refugee children in Athens.
The shelters provided over 250 refugee children without parents with vital care and support, so they could begin their life in Greece, safe from the traumas and challenges of their past.
Along this journey, we have been overwhelmed by the level of professionalism and dedication of staff working with these children. However, we have also been distressed by the lack of support for young adults turning 18. This is a critical age for young people trying to start their lives far from home, without family around them— the moment when the path between success and failure can be permanently set.
Too often, we see the tragic impact of children who benefitted from excellent care in shelters, only to fall into homelessness upon turning 18. Many are forced to accept low-paid and exploitative work to pay for a room in overcrowded and substandard apartments. Some are left with nowhere to sleep but a park bench. In the worst cases, young people with so much potential turn to drugs, crime, or gang activities to secure enough money to eat or a place to sleep.
These are disastrous conditions for anyone trying to build a life in a new country—particularly those just emerging from childhood. This negative cycle makes continuing education, seeking out training, finding a good job, and becoming part of society virtually impossible.
As an NGO committed to supporting those in need wherever we see them, we were compelled to act. Utilizing years of experience from the Greek island camps, such as Moria on Lesvos, and from shelters in Athens and the Netherlands, we launched a residential program in Athens specifically targeted at 18-year-olds who find themselves homeless, without hope or direction.
To fill this gap, we embarked on this new project at the end of April 2024. We invested in restoring a historic Greek property in the heart of Athens. This Athens CampUs provides a safe and secure place for young people to stay, temporarily removing the housing insecurity that often leads to a negative spiral. But the CampUs is much more than just a bedroom. It offers enriching education and training programs, qualified staff to help residents access the services they need, and—most importantly—high expectations.
Every participant is expected to work around the house and actively participate in activities, classes, meetings, and job-seeking. Following the MOTG philosophy, residents are treated as agents with responsibility, not victims to simply be looked after. We organize activities such as sports and street cleaning together with the local community to help these young residents improve their local networks. And we encourage each participant to set ambitious personal goals, from education to career, savings, and personal finance—putting them on the path to independence.
Our Athens CampUs is a lifeline to 18-year-olds with nowhere to go after years of living in sheltered accommodation and a bridge to a fulfilling career, supportive community, and a brighter future in Greece.