The Culture Collective is an initiative by USA for UNHCR to engage our community of supporters with excellent films, books, music and other forms of art and culture by refugees and about refugees’ experiences. The Culture Collective also offers tools and resources for its members to learn more and take action in support of refugees around the world and newly resettled refugees in our communities.
By joining the Culture Collective you will be the first to know when new books, films and other featured content is released – delivered right to your inbox. You will also receive information on new ways to take action and hear updates from and about refugee issues around the world and in our communities.
USA for UNHCR helps protect refugees and people displaced by violence, conflict and persecution. USA for UNHCR is the U.S. national partner of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and supports the UN Refugee Agency and its partners in providing lifesaving essentials including shelter, water, food, safety and protection to refugees fleeing violence and persecution. Established in 1989 by concerned American citizens, USA for UNHCR is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Interested in hosting your own book club with family and friends but not sure where to begin? Here are five steps you can take to begin your reading journey with the Culture Collective:
Step 1: Find a copy of Culture Collective’s featured novel
If you’re subscribed to the Culture Collective, you already belong to a community of people who care about refugees and the journeys they take to find a safe home. The Culture Collective regularly features novels that our community wants to read—stories written by refugees or documenting refugees' experiences.
Step 2: Invite people to join your book club
After ordering the Culture Collective’s featured book, the next step is to recruit members for your book club. These people can include your family, friends, acquaintances and even members of the Culture Collective! The more engaged you are with this community, the easier it will be to meet people and connect over content or actions that make a difference.
Step 3: Have an initial conversation with members
You have your book, a list of people interested in your book club, and feel ready to dive right in, but hold on—there’s still one more step you need to take before you begin. To make sure everybody is on the same page, have an initial conversation with book club members to introduce each other, set reading goals, and determine the location and next meeting for the book club.
Step 4: Read and download our discussion guide
If you’ve followed all the steps, you’re now ready to start reading. We’ve prepared a discussion guide that you can download and reference while reading or during your next meeting. The questions will help to facilitate an interesting and exciting discussion with your book club. If you have learnings or reflections you want to share, add to The Kite Runner discussion board or post about it on social media.
Step 5: Take action!
You just had your first official book club meeting and are excited about the next upcoming featured content from the Culture Collective. Take advantage of this momentum to take meaningful action in support of refugees in your community and the world.
The Culture Collective is different from other book/movie clubs because we believe in the difference your collective action can make in supporting refugees. We encourage you to visit each featured content’s landing page to see the many actions you can take—send a welcome message, cook cuisine, learn about a refugee crisis, sign an advocacy petition and more!
