🎄 Christmas and New Year. Looking Back at 2025 and Opening a New Chapter for Refugees

Refugee Council
14 minutes ago
2 min read

Dear friends,

Wishing you a joyful Christmas and a hopeful New Year! Thank you for being part of our journey and for your support throughout the year. May the year ahead bring peace, strength, and new opportunities.

Let’s take a moment to look back at 2025 and ahead to the year to come...

In 2025, Refugee Council of Lithuania supported around 980 refugees through entrepreneurship trainings, digital skills trainings, cybersecurity trainings, Lithuanian language courses, cultural and business networking events.

Storytelling Project 2024–2025

50+ participants joined monthly interactive storytelling workshops.
31 unique participants engaged in training sessions on EU values, communication, and refugee narratives.
1 public storytelling event showcased refugee voices through playback theatre.
5 refugee stories published across our social media platforms, amplifying real experiences and fostering solidarity.

Bridging the Financial Gap (BFG)

197 beneficiaries & stakeholders reached.
3 professional trainings on grant writing, fundraising & financial opportunities.
55-person networking event strengthening refugee business support.
Interviews & focus groups with refugees and partners on financial challenges.
Multiple partner meetings with NGOs, government agencies, IHV, Kaunas Tech Park & KTU.

Refugee Economic Empowerment Program (REEP)

33 participants trained in 2025.
Entrepreneurship trainings on business registration, finance & investment readiness.
Digital skills trainings on Google Workspace, Canva & AI tools.
Cybersecurity trainings on data protection, phishing prevention & device security.
Practical, hands-on sessions delivered by expert trainers.

Addressing Ukraine Situation Response in Lithuania by Building Entrepreneurial Competencies and Digital Skills for refugees

233 participants in Digital Skills Training..
689 participants in Business Networking activities.
207 participants in Lithuanian Language Courses.
159 participants in Cybersecurity Training.
359 participants in Entrepreneurship Training.
In this project, we significantly surpassed all initial targets, reaching a total of 1,647 refugees instead of the planned 800.

Supporting Ukrainian Refugees Together

New App in Development

We are working on VolEver, a mobile application created to connect volunteers with Ukrainian refugees who need support. Developed within the Volunteers Everywhere initiative and funded by the EU under ESF+ Social Innovation+, the app is now being finalized and will soon offer simple, practical tools for both volunteers and users.

Connecting People and Support

VolEver offers an easy way for Ukrainian refugees to receive direct support from volunteers.

At the same time, volunteers can contribute in ways that match their availability and skills, while our partner NGOs can join a collaborative network that shares experience and promotes solidarity across countries.

We sincerely thank our donors and partners whose support enables the Refugee Council of Lithuania to empower refugees and build stronger, more inclusive communities.