With Sydney, Oslo and Berlin, Paris has been one of the first cities to take the ball launched by Mike Butcher in September 2015 and run with it 🚀 That’s how Techfugees started!
More than three years later, our local chapter in France launches its second edition of the #TF4Women fellowship programme in Paris. A perfect occasion to meet Joanna isn’t it? 🎙
Techfugees: Could you please introduce yourself and your team to the Techfugees community?
Joanna: I have been volunteering for Techfugees to build the French chapter here in Paris since 2016, when a bunch of us organized our first hackathon with and for refugees. Since then, we have organised several events, meetups, set up partnerships and built solid relationships with the community, from refugees to NGO’s, community players and key tech companies as well as institutions. Today, the team looks as follows: Lucie (hackathons, coms, logistics, sponsorships), Paul-Emmanuel (Founder of Quickbed, he took part in hackathon and event with his project and is now part of the team), Hector (Developer, he took part in our second hackathon and is now part of the team as well) and Marie-Aline (she joined us after meeting us through the #TF4Women fellowship programme as a partner last year!).
How did you hear about Techfugees?
Mike Butcher’s first post on Facebook in September 2015!
Which are the displaced people’s main needs in your country?
There are many… Accommodation, administration, health, education, language, recruitment, inclusion, media narratives, general awareness.
What are your projects for the next days, weeks and months?
We will officially launch the second edition of the #TF4Women fellowship programme mid-May. We are also cooking our next hackathon which will involve the gaming community and lots of incredible partners as well as a Summer community Meetup. I’m really excited about all these projects!
With which kind of organization (tech, NGOs, universities, officials,…) do you partner with?
We partner with tech and corporates companies like Cisco, BNP Paribas, RTE or Criteo for the #TF4Women fellowship programme; social entrepreneurs who ask for advice and that we connect with relevant partners; community and grassroots organizations; business schools and incubators.
How can the Techfugees community help you? What are you looking for now?
We are looking to onboard new members on to the team as we are reinforcing and building new projects. And we are always on the lookout for new ways to partner and answer the refugees’ needs as best we can. We are always available to advise or connect. Always open to listening and to new ideas. Next on, we may be working on a youth education project.
👉 Volunteer your skills and join Joanna’s team!
Anything to add?
Love love love to the greater Techfugees family around the world. Do reach out we’d enjoy meeting or chatting with you 💖
Apply to the #TF4Women fellowship programme – Paris 2019 before April 25th 🙋♀️
Follow Techfugees France on Facebook, Twitter and Medium
📇 Joanna Kirk, Paris – France
Joanna is a tech PR working with a number of local and international players in the community. She is also the co-director of StartHer supporting women in Tech and entrepreneurs and co-founded Startup Sesame.
Follow Joanna on Twitter and LinkedIn!