A HOPE MORE POWERFUL THAN THE SEA

Our world is faced with one of the greatest moral questions of our time: will we let more people die in boats and trucks and crossing deserts, or will we gather the political will to help them? Melissa Fleming is Head of Communications and Chief Spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and one of the world’s experts on refugees.

Chief Spokesperson for the United Nations Refugee Agency Melissa Fleming shares the heartbreaking, inspiring story of Doaa, a nineteen year old girl who survived four days at sea en route from Syria to Greece, losing her fiancé, but saving the life of a young child, on her quest for freedom. She will also weave in the broader history and politics of the raging refugee crisis based on seven years’ experience working with the United Nations High Commissioner for refugees.

Melissa Fleming is Head of Communications and Chief Spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and one of the world’s experts on refugees. She has access to first-hand information on the refugee experience and access to war zones and refugee camps. She is a go-to person for major media when refugees are in the news and has appeared on national television and in newspapers, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC World Radio, NPR, and CNN, among many others. She has given multiple TED talks.