VERANZEROU 15
10677 Athens
Greece
- Others
Zeuxis was established in 2018, aiming at offering substantial support with high-quality services to a vulnerable population, such as minors, refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers in Greece. The organisation has sixty-two (62) staff members and is currently implementing five (5) projects.
Budgetary resources are made available through the Swiss Confederation – Swiss Federal Department of Justice and Police FDJP SEM (State Secretariat for Migration), the Special Department of Coordination and Management of AMIF and ISF national programmes, DG HOME Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund – Emergency Assistance and other organisations such as Kindernothilfe.
Zeuxis has established ongoing partnerships with (inter)national stakeholders such as IOM, EU, ORS, the Swiss Confederation, and Kindernothilfe (KNH), Medical Intervention, Medicines du Monde, CoReMH Consortium which allows Zeuxis to implement best practices in its projects and achieve added value through well-established synergies.
The mission of Zeuxis is to make a real, tangible difference in the lives of people in need. By planning and implementing projects that truly help and support the most vulnerable, Zeuxis' vision is to be a reliable, resourceful and effective organisation. To remain loyal to its commitment to protecting human rights and bringing direct, tangible and constant change in the lives of those in need by achieving the best possible use of human and financial resources.
ZEUXIS is currently implementing the following projects related to minor migrants and refugees:
• SHELTER for Unaccompanied Minor Girls (refugees and migrants): We have created a shelter where UAM girls live, receiving a series of services, assistance with their asylum procedures, assistance and guidance in regard with administrative issues (such as issuing of ID, Social Security Number, Family Reunification under the Dublin regulation)
• DAY CENTER for providing psychosocial support to minors and their families: a multidisciplinary team of experts (child-psychologist, child-psychiatrist, social worker, an educator) provide services related to the mental health and creative activities for minors. We also offer non-formal education, counselling and civic education for children and families.
• MERIMNA PROGRAMME – Safeguarding Children at Greek border points (LEROS & KOS Safe Area) Τhe "MERIMNA" project which is implemented by Zeuxis in coordination with IOM with the support of Asylum, Migration, and Integration Fund of the European Union (DG HOME), aims at providing protection and assistance services to Unaccompanied Migrant Children (UMCs) hosted in the Safe Area (SA) of Leros and Kos Reception & Identification Centers (RICs). ZEUXIS' intervention since December 2019 and November 2020 respectively, aspires to the UMCs' integration from the border and unfolds around two major axes: psychosocial support and non-formal education, through an interdisciplinary approach.
• SMS PROGRAMME – Supporting the Greek Authorities in Managing the National Reception System for Asylum Seekers and Vulnerable Migrants ZEUXIS implements the cooperation programme IOM. It is funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund of the European Union (DG HOME). It aims to provide security and support services to 30 Unaccompanied Minors (UAMs) hosted in the Safe Zone of Malakasa Open Reception Camp. Throughout their stay in the "Safe Zone", the scientific team of ZEUXIS, consisting of a social worker, psychologist, educatοr, lawyer and interpreters, will provide unaccompanied minors with a personalised treatment of their needs for food, health, education, information, psychological support, socialisation and social inclusion, development of interests, entertainment, sports and creative activities, through an interdisciplinary approach.
There are 121,100 refugees and migrants in Greece; amongst them, there are 4,162 unaccompanied minors, 91,4% of whom are above 14 years old (National Center for Social Solidarity, report on the situation of Unaccompanied Children in Greece, 15-11-2020).
Having played a vital role in the management of mixed migratory flows (reception, registration, hosting and protection) as well as in the formation of the legal framework in Greece in these fields, Zeuxis' team has accumulated a vast, substantial and constructive experience in dealing with migration, asylum and human rights in Greece and abroad. More specifically, Zeuxis has developed a methodology based on an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to the needs of UMCs, which enables them to be fully equipped when they enter the next phase of their integration into the Greek society (or other EU countries' societies in the case of Dublin family reunification or relocation programs).
The European Commission has included Zeuxis' shelter for Unaccompanied Minor Girls in the projects that stand out as "good practice" projects, thus recognising the quality of our services and the effectiveness of our work:
https://ec.europa.eu/migrant-integration/intpract/oikos-shelter-and-sup…
Thus, by joining the Greek Network, Zeuxis will bring an added value to the protection of vulnerable social groups.
Zeuxis means to connect, to bring together, to bridge. By joining the ALF Network, Zeuxis aims to contribute to the empowerment of migrant and refugee population, helping them untap their potential and assume responsibility for their lives.
Besides, we aim to serve as a bridge between academic and social science research on the one hand and policy-making on the other. If policy-makers are to form evidence-based policies, knowledge stemming from academic and social analysis needs to be impact- / policy-oriented per se and be fed to public debate and policy-making processes. Therefore, ZEUXIS envisages injecting policy-oriented knowledge in the highly charged public debate on migration in Greece and Europe, which is often ill-informed and politicised; reliable data and analysis, taking into account the country’s unique geography and Greece’s decade-long economic crisis, will be used to provide policy-makers not only with essential insights but also with concrete, readily applicable solutions to a wide range of issues across the spectrum.
ZEUXIS aspires to deliver substantiated policy recommendations and outputs, such as the formulation of new immigration laws and policies that are fully compliant with EU and international asylum legislation but are also enforceable and impactful.
Laws and policies should bring about tangible and measurable results, not being a dead letter with no impact on the ground. Through extensive research on the ground, data analysis and cross-check, documentation, mapping and consensus-building, we hope to establish, in the longer term, a solid institutional framework with high-level operational capacity in terms of flexibility and pro-active response, as well as consistency, coherence and stability of services, which will be of benefit to refugees and asylum seekers, to Greece and countries of origin.
Besides, the immigration debate is shaped by public perceptions and media coverage. Too often, political leaders use specific patterns and trends to influence their general audience; from immigrants’ effects on the job market to the dangers associated with multicultural societies, public opinion tends to be shaped based on stereotypes, myths, prejudices and misperceptions, lacking an accurate understanding of migration-related issues. Thus, apart from promoting structural change at the political level, Zeuxis envisages reflecting on migration in its real dimensions, using facts & figures to support relevant argumentation, in effect prohibiting disinformation from gaining a footing.