On World Refugee Day 2026, JRS invites people everywhere to stand in solidarity with refugees and defend their right to seek safety and protection. The United Nations has chosen the theme “Until Everyone is Safe,” a reminder that forced displacement comes with many vulnerabilities even after one has escaped the immediate dangers of their home country or community. Safety is built through access to education, legal support, livelihoods, community, and the opportunity to rebuild a life with dignity.

At JRS, protection means ensuring that every refugee is treated with dignity, their rights are respected, and they receive the support needed to rebuild their life in a new community.

Protection is not something one person or organization can provide alone. It grows through everyday actions, relationships, and communities that choose solidarity over fear.

The stories below highlight just a few of the many ways protection takes shape in JRS’s work around the world.

Protection through Community Support

While traveling to work in Borno State, Nigeria, Simeon, a JRS staff member witnessed two young boys arguing on the side of a busy road. The situation escalated when one of the children pulled a knife and pointed it at the other. Simeon intervened, speaking with the boy about the consequences of violence and encouraging him to choose a different path.

The encounter stayed with him. Years of conflict and displacement have left many children without consistent access to education, stability, or safe environments in which to grow. Through support from the European Union, JRS is helping create spaces where children can return to the classroom, learn, and regain a sense of normalcy.

Reflecting on the experience, Simeon imagined the boy holding a pencil instead of a knife. “Children deserve safe places where they can dream and write their own future,” he said.

Protection through Advocacy and Legal Services

Viktoriia was studying law in Ukraine when Russia’s full-scale invasion forced her family to flee their home. After a difficult journey through Poland, she eventually settled in Lithuania, where she continued her education and began rebuilding her life.

Experiencing displacement firsthand reshaped her career goals. She became interested in international humanitarian law, refugee rights, and the protection of forcibly displaced people. Since then, she has supported refugees through legal aid and advocacy, drawing on her own experiences to help others navigate unfamiliar systems and challenges.

“Hope today means building bridges instead of fences, choosing solidarity over fear, and seeing each other’s humanity before anything else,” she said.

Protection through Accompaniment

Originally from Jenin, Palestine, Majdi arrived in Romania at 17 to pursue medical studies. The beginning was not easy, but through language classes and later volunteering with JRS, he slowly began to navigate life in a new country and build a sense of belonging.

Today, Majdi serves as a cultural mediator with JRS, helping refugee families access health care, understand legal documents, and navigate unfamiliar systems. Having experienced those challenges himself, he brings both practical knowledge and empathy to his work. While his own family remains separated between Romania and Palestine, Majdi continues to support others rebuilding their lives after displacement.

“I feel best when I can share my experience with others,” he said.

Protection through Livelihoods

After fleeing political instability in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Dieu Merci Luundo sought refuge in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. There, he founded Vijana Twaweza, a refugee-led initiative focused on addressing hunger and improving food security through fish farming, agriculture, and poultry production.

Working in partnership with JRS, the project has grown from a small fishpond into a community effort that supports livelihoods, nutrition, and skills development for refugees and the host community alike. The initiative also creates opportunities for women, students, and young people to build more stable futures.

“Through the organization, we have learned a trade that supports the wider community,” Luundo said. “We are truly motivated to work hard and find ways to support more people.”

Protection through Opportunity

Born in Darfur, Sudan, Mahamat Daoud was forced to flee his home as a child and spent years navigating displacement across multiple countries. Along the way, he experienced life in a refugee camp, detention in Libya, and dangerous migration routes in search of safety.

Education became a turning point in his journey. Through a JRS scholarship in Chad, Mahamat earned a degree in history and began rebuilding his future. Today, he lives in Italy and, similarly to Majdi, works as a cultural mediator, supporting migrants and refugees facing many of the same challenges he once experienced.

“My dream is to end the suffering of migrants in Libya and Tunisia, because every person deserves to be safe and every life matters,” he said.