One Mazí apartment costs £20k / year. Get involved, help keep the roof overhead, the lights on, the water hot in winter, the smell of onions frying in the kitchen and our expert team support each resident to live well with everyone else.

What crisis?

The so-called European refugee crisis is not so much a crisis of migration as it is a crisis in reception policy. From the unlawful Rwanda policy, to push-backs in the Mediterranean, the goal of European reception policy is to deny asylum seekers access to basic rights and to the benefits of European society in order to deter others from trying to enter Europe.

The Greek problem

In Greece, the latest example of this is the government’s choice to abruptly close its housing assistance programs in favour of camp-based solutions to accommodating the roughly 85,000 displaced people in the country. These camp-based solutions are flawed for myriad reasons: the standard of conditions inside falls short of those required by international law, and they are in effect prisons, located far from city centres, preventing their residents from accessing essential services and work opportunities. It is near impossible for residents to move forwards with their lives, and in effect are forced to choose between imprisonment if they stay and destitution if they leave.

Mazí housing is different

Mazí Housing helps people transition from camp-rooted limbo or street homelessness, to a place where they can support their own accommodation, and make real choices as they engage positively with society. Mazí supports deprioritised demographics, and here in Greece, that means young men who are travelling alone. Often perceived as strong and independent, while also expected to provide, these young men who face barriers to society become vulnerable to exploitation. At Mazí, residents have safe accommodation from where they are supported to address health problems, develop skills, find work and build independence. Find out more about our work here.

Whose values?

The rush to push boats back out into open water, and to make people who cross borders without a stamp 'criminals', is often made in the name of protecting "our values". What values? Whose values?

At Mazí know exactly what we stand for: freedom, curiosity and care. It is not for us to judge who is worthy of our empathy. And we show that it is possible to meet the standards of support we expect everyone in society should access.

Help us stay in the race

Political and economic challenges strangle funding for organisations like Mazí Housing. The state has closed its programmes, and grassroots are closing one by one. Mazí is the only structured housing programme for young men seeking refuge in Greece. And we need your help. As the shelters close, charities leave Greece and the camps fill up – we are left plugging gaps in government support. To respond, we will open a new apartment in 2025. Join us in opening these doors.

Challenge the narrative

Whether as a runner, or a donor, your contribution is vital to our continued support for young, hopeful men who are displaced in Athens. Joining this community helps us challenge the narrative that deprives young men of choice and forces them down destructive paths. Help us to remove the obstacles that keep these young men from fulfilling their potential, and creating positive lives for themselves and their communities.

To join our band of runners please reach out to cosmo@mazihousing.org and click start fundraising, or to donate click give now.