We strongly believe that alone we can do so little, but together we can do so much!
We are looking forward to hearing from you!
"Today’s policy makers need to be aware that every thought, written article or any action has consequences. By placing newcomers and migration, in general, as problems, no systematic solutions can be found, but a public opinion and perception of migrants in Latvia is formed. Decision makers in Latvia need to be aware that every physical or verbal hate crime directed towards a migrant in Latvia is a consequence of the policies or lack of them pursued by our decision makers."
Miks Celmiņš
Director
Our Story
Make Room representation in Latvia was established in January 2018. In Latvia Make Room is a registered not for profit organization “Foundation Make Room Europe”.
Make Room is one of the leading not for profit organizations fostering effective inclusion of foreign nationals, notably newcomers with fewer opportunities – foreign students, asylum seekers and people with refugee and alternative statuses.
In recent years, Latvia has become one of the most popular destinations among individuals from across Europe and globally, to pursue a higher education degree, launch a business or a place of employment. In the past three years, the number of foreign students across higher education institutions in Latvia has doubled – reaching 12% of the overall student population, but most of the students who have chosen Latvia as a destination for higher education decide to leave after completing studies. Although the number of foreign students has increased, according to The Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LTRK), 60% of the medium and large scale enterprises in Latvia lack a highly-skilled and educated labour force.
Our mission
What do we do?
Make Room’s main focus in Latvia is to foster effective inclusion of newcomers, notably foreign nationals with fewer opportunities in a wide range of areas, starting from challenging the mainstream societal understanding to offering new employment opportunities.
- Raising Awareness
We raise awareness of the issues faced by the newcomers with fewer opportunities and notably bring attention to the much-needed solutions to support building an inclusive society across all levels – civil, public and private.
- Reporting Hate Crime / Hate Speech
We encourage newcomers to report, as well as, to document and follow up with hate crime and hate speech cases at the State, municipal and Security Police of Latvia.
- Generating employment, volunteering and entrepreneurship opportunities
We build connections between the newcomers and the private sector to generate new employment opportunities, short-term and long-term volunteering positions, as well as, offer guidance and support to launch their businesses, especially social enterprises.
- Support language learning
We support newcomers with learning Latvian, aiming to ensure everyone speaks Latvian, at least to an A1 level.
- Offering social mentoring
We offer social mentorship to foster effective inclusion within the Latvian society, to help newcomers to cope with daily obstacles, as well as, we are offering friendly, mental support.
- Advocating for inclusive policy reforms
We actively participate and propose structural changes and amendments to law, as well as, we advocate on behalf of the newcomers’ community at a national, and municipal level.
- Offering other practical support
We offer newcomers support to deal with day to day obstacles e.g. obtaining a residence permit, mediating conflicts between students and public and private institutions, supporting individuals in need of free food packs and/or face masks, translation or legal advice.