User:Sarardlm/Singa (association)

SINGA is an international citizen movement aiming to create links between refugees and migrants and the host society, by creating and distributing tools for all. Through entrepreneurship, digital technology, encounters, community members generate a local, social, economic and cultural impact that promotes the construction of a common society.

Present in 7 countries and 17 cities, the association has experienced rapid development since 2015 and demonstrates the enthusiasm for a citizen movement promoting the reception of refugees.

Activity
"SINGA" means "link" in Lingala, Bantu language spoken in Congo.

The association's mission is "to support the inclusion of newcomers by providing innovative solutions and promoting exchanges and cooperation with the host society". The movement aims to rethink the public debate around asylum and refugees by valuing them as individuals, involving locals and approaching this subject from new perspectives. It strengthens "living together" by promoting cultural enrichment and stimulating the development of new activities in the area. These activities make it possible to fight against exclusion, poverty, racism or xenophobia, and to generate a more responsible and enlightened public repertoire on the subject of asylum and immigration.

SINGA organizes socio-cultural events and has various partners such as cultural structures and student associations in Paris: ISIT, the Institut libre d'étude des relations internationales (the Free Institute for International Relations, ILERI), Paris-Dauphine University or even at the École normale supérieure Paris-Saclay (ENS Paris-Saclay). On another level, the association ensures monitoring, impact measurement and "action research".

On this theme, in February 2015, SINGA co-organized a hackathon on the theme of asylum under the name “#Réfugiés Connectés" (#Connected Refugees), , the first on this theme in France , . This hackathon was supported by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) , the Fondation Free and the Maison des sciences de l'homme (Maison des Sciences de l'Homme Foundation, FMSH).

The structure also supports project leaders through its FINKELA incubation program. The common objective of these projects is to promote living together and to deploy the potential of the asylum economy.

SINGA is also at the origin of the CALM project (for “Comme à la maison”, in English, "Like at home"), a reception network for refugees in private homes nicknamed by the press as “Airbnb for refugees”,. The goal of this program is to contribute to the integration of these people in a logic of learning French and socio-cultural codes. This is a springboard time for these people. This internet platform was the subject of significant media coverage and mobilization following the revival of the question of the reception of Syrian migrants caused by the photograph of Alan Kurdi on a Turkish beach. CALM, developed thanks to crowdfunding, , has in fact more than 7,000 accommodation proposals in France two months after its launch , and more than 12,000 in 2019. In 2019, while 600 refugees have already been hosted by individuals, SINGA is launching a communication SINGA is launching a communication campaign called J'accueille (#jaccueille) in order to mobilize new hosting proposals.

Structure and organization
The association was co-founded by Nathanaël Molle et Guillaume Capelle en 2012, , later joined in its management by Alice Barbe ,. The association's board of directors includes several personalities such as the writer and journalist Leïla Slimani, Hamze Ghalebi, former president of SINGA and entrepreneur, Olivier Lebel (former Director General of The Red Cross), Thanh Nguiem and its new president is Roohollah Shahsavar, founder of the media outlet Les Lettres Persanes.

The association has mainly worked in co-working spaces such as L'Archipel near Place de Clichy in Paris, Cursus Nova in La Courneuve and La Ruche and is now located in the 11th arrondissement within the co-working space, created in collaboration with the association Coexister, Kiwanda.

Since its creation in 2012, the association has spread all over the world. It experienced a strong boom in 2017, present in Berlin, Stuttgart, London, Montreal, Milan, Zurich, Geneva, San Francisco, Luxembourg and Brussels. SINGA also has several branches and active communities in France, notably in Lille, Montpellier, Valence, Grenoble, Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Saint-Étienne and Nantes.

Awards
SINGA is one of the eight national winners of the 2013 “SFR Young Talents Social Entrepreneurs” competition. According to Ashoka France, Nathanaël Molle from SINGA is one of the "new social entrepreneurs to follow" in 2014, ,. According to the magazine L'Etudiant, they are "committed young people [who] get [...] talked about". She is also a laureate of the project to support associative initiatives "La France s’engage".

In 2015, representatives of the association were invited to the “Social Good Week” by the Secretary of State in charge of Digital Axelle Lemaire, Microsoft as part of workshops on “Digital Transitions” or even TEDxParis ; sign that the association is perceived as a social and digital innovator in France.

In June 2018, one of the founders of the association Guillaume Capelle was selected by NUMA New York, a training program for organizations whose technological project has a global impact.

In August 2018, it was Alice Barbe's turn to be selected by the Obama Foundation, which trains the leaders of tomorrow to develop their network and provide innovative tools in the field of international relations.