“Azraq refugee camp in Jordan is divided into seven “villages” (areas of about 7,000 to 8,000 people). After having visited Village 6, where UNHCR has installed 500 street


lights using


funds from our Brighter Lives for Refugees campaign, we arrive at Village 3 when the sun is just about to set, a village without any street lights—yet.


A young woman approaches us immediately, inviting us for coffee in her shelter. All the families we have been visiting have shown a great hospitality, and their cinnamon-flavoured coffee has been highly appreciated every time. Sharing stories and experiences over a cup of coffee (or glass, in this case) makes people talk, whether in the desert of Jordan or downtown Oslo.


She collects the solar lanterns from the roof top, where they have been recharging in the sun all day. She hangs them in the shelter while she prepares the coffee. Te lanterns light the shelter sparsely. Tere is light, but it’s certainly not bright.


Her husband has been missing ever since her little boy, now age two and a half, was born.”


From a blog post by Anette Platou, an IKEA employee in Norway and a participant in IKEA’s unique iWitness program, that invites small groups of IKEA co-workers from stores around the globe to visit some of the humanitarian projects supported by the company. Hosted by UNHCR, this past November Anette visited the Azraq refugee camp in Jordan, designed to accommodate up to 130,000 refugees. Anette was there to


witness the difference solar street lamps and lanterns are making in the lives of refugees, part of IKEA’s Brighter Lives for Refugees campaign, in partnership with UNHCR.


UNHCR / 13


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