In a world torn apart by wars, forced displacement and humanitarian crises, millions of people have to deal with profound trauma and everyday challenges as they struggle to rebuild their lives with dignity. Against this backdrop, arts and laughter can provide key humanitarian support, relieve the psychological burden, promote social integration and offer concrete hope for the future.
According to the UN Refugee Agency, in 2023 over 117 million people – 8% more than in the previous year – were forced to leave their countries of origin in order to escape from persecution, conflict, violence and human rights violations.
There are twice as many forcibly displaced people as there were ten years ago, partly due to the increase in current conflicts. The majority of them have experienced significant losses, physical hardships and numerous other stressors that can lead to psychological distress.
One cannot help but think of the thousands of children born during conflicts. This traumatic experience is bound to have a lifelong impact on them.
A report by Save The Children states that in 2023, there were 473 million children – almost one in five worldwide – living in conflict zones.
There is substantial scientific evidence showing that forcibly displaced people have a positive impact both economically and socially. As well as being a matter of human dignity, ensuring that they can enjoy their fundamental right to well-being is also in the interest of host communities. These communities have a duty to provide them with the best possible living conditions. On this front, it is important to oversee acculturation processes, i.e. – according to the current definition – changes in people’s culture resulting from contact with other cultures. If these processes are promoted and developed in a positive way, they have an impact on self-determination and self-efficacy on many levels, including socially, politically and economically.
The IASC (Inter-Agency Standing Committee) guidelines on mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings set out a number of ways in which governments and other social actors can support the mental health and well-being of forcibly displaced people, helping them to overcome trauma and paving the way to inclusion in new contexts. They include taking part in artistic and cultural activities, as highlighted by the Arts and health: supporting the mental well-being of forcibly displaced people report published by the World Health Organization in 2022.
A systematic review of the literature promoted by the WHO reveals that both active and passive engagement with artistic activities can improve the health and well-being of people who have been forcibly displaced, in psychological, behavioural and social terms.
Psychologically, engagement in arts and cultural activities promotes emotional and creative expression, reduces feelings of dissociation and encourages relaxation, hope and personal growth. It also boosts self-esteem, the sense of agency and the ability to handle everyday problems. Artistic experiences, especially those involving drama and theatre, also help people to process experiences. This is particularly true of traumatic experiences and grief. In addition, they support emotion regulation and productive coping strategies.
Socially, taking part in artistic experiences helps forcibly displaced people to (re)build a sense of everyday normality and a new cultural identity, while also facilitating communication and the voicing of opinions about various matters, including social justice. In addition, these activities promote social interaction, create friendships and a sense of belonging, build respect for cultural differences, and generally foster social integration, including with the host community.
From a behavioural point of view, it has been shown that taking part in artistic experiences helps refugees to develop personal skills such as empathy, leadership, communication, emotional expression and health literacy. Furthermore, these activities encourage the use of cooperative behaviours and strategies, reducing behavioural difficulties and promoting skill-sharing. On top of this, they help with the development of practical skills that are useful and in-demand in the labour market.
There are many programmes that do work in this field. The WHO report picks out one that has been developed since 2013 by the non-profit clowning organisation RED NOSES, in response to emergencies in refugee camps and other settings affected by crises of various kinds, such as wars and natural disasters. They focus mainly – but not solely – on children, taking into account the areas of greatest efficacy of arts for health, as indicated by the WHO (health and digital, the well-being of young people, population ageing, health and climate).
The Emergency Smile project aims to promote emotional well-being and greater social inclusion, while catering to the psychosocial needs of people in crisis settings. RED NOSES goes about this by sending specially trained healthcare clowns to crisis settings, working in conjunction with local organisations that are already operating on the ground. Its mission is to share the restorative power of laughter with those who need it most, in the firm belief that art and humour can serve as the cornerstones of a compassionate, people-oriented approach to care.
To this end, RED NOSES has trialled and developed various support formats, which can be adapted to suit specific groups.
The aim behind its clown shows is to bring joy, normalise failure and help people to genuinely reconnect both with their emotions and with each other.
The Humour Relief Workshops are designed for aid workers, medical staff and volunteers working in crisis settings. The goal is to improve emotional well-being and teamwork, thus enhancing professional environments and working relationships.
During “Circus smile workshops”, professional clowns teach children skills such as juggling, acrobatics and magic tricks in preparation for a show for their families and friends. This helps to take their minds off the hardship they are facing and shift their focus to learning something new that makes them feel seen, appreciated and empowered.
Meanwhile, during the RED NOSES musical parades, a number of clowns play music and encourage the people they meet along the way to join their roaming choir. They might travel over short, medium or long distances, depending on the circumstances.
In addition, RED NOSES supports aid organisations during medical interventions. For example, it accompanies and promotes vaccination campaigns.
Projects by RED NOSES reach children (including disabled children), unaccompanied minors, families, communities and aid workers in many countries experiencing crises of various kinds, including Ukraine, Turkey, Georgia, Morocco, Greece, Mozambique, Moldova, Serbia, Kosovo and Sudan. Reports and stories from the field can be found here: https://emergencysmile.rednoses.org/stories-from-the-field/.
As both the World Health Organization and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) guidelines state, participation in arts activities can serve as a key resource in settings affected by wars and humanitarian crises (alongside medical and emergency aid) and also in inclusion in new social environments.