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Stories of struggle, resilience and sustainable agriculture in Syria
By: Edwin Gilson
Last updated: Thursday, 10 April 2025
Food preparation in Northwest Syria. Photo: Syrian Academic Expertise
Two new podcast series, produced by SSRP researchers Dr Mirela Barbu and Professor Martin Spinelli, shine a light on the work of NGOs in Syria and the lives of Syrian women during prolonged conflict in the country.
The 12-episode series reveals the 'daily struggles and extraordinary resilience' of leading humanitarian organisations working in Northwest Syria.
In each episode, managers of NGOs such as Global Communities and Welthungerhilfe (WHH) share their experiences supporting populations affected by the Syrian Civil War and offer insights into climate-smart agriculture, infrastructure rebuilding and empowering the vulnerable through sustainable livelihood programmes.
The episodes highlight the challenges of political instability and disrupted public services, while also gesturing towards the possibility of a self-reliant future in Syria.
'Phoenix Stories' was funded by an EFF grant from the 亚洲情色 Business School, and was produced by Ruth Holroyd and hosted by Professor Spinelli of the School of Media, Arts and Humanities. Dr Barbu of the Business School was the Executive Producer.
Over 15 episodes, the podcast series is a platform for Syrian women (representing various governorates and ethnic backgrounds) to tell their stories of survival, identity and perseverance during conflict – often in relation to food and agriculture.
This series is part of the project ‘Harvesting Hope: Integrating Technology, Heritage, and Women’s Voices in Syrian Agriculture’, and was supported by a grant from the International Development Challenge Fund (IDCF).
The episodes were recorded in Arabic but English transcripts are available on the project’s . ‘Heart to Hearth’ is hosted by Sarah Burhan, translated by Asmaa Shehadeh and produced with the collaboration of Dr Shaher Abdullateef, Director of the NGO .
Both series are available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
These new series follow Dr Barbu and Professor Spinelli's initial 'Agricultural Voices Syria' podcast – funded by SSRP and the International Development Challenge Fund in 2021 – which provided technical support and advice to agricultural workers in Northwest Syria, filling a void left by state guidance during the Civil War.
You can read more about 'Agricultural Voices Syria' in our Spotlight interview with Dr Barbu.