On the occasion of the World Day for Cultural Diversity May 22, the Library of Alexandria hosted festivities to conclude a series of technical workshops to cultivate the artistic skills of Syrian children and young people. Organized by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees over the past year, the project was the first of its kind to focus on the artistic talents of the refugees, and not just professional skills needed for the labor market.

The workshops were organized in cooperation between the Egyptian Cultural Center and the Syrian services center Suriyana. Rafa al-Rifa’i, the cultural center’s director, told Al-Monitor, “The participation of a Syrian center in the organization made it easier to communicate with a large number of trainees.” She added, “Many of their long-held dreams came true in training and forming new artistic troupes.”

Syrian singer Tariq Dargham al-Swaydan expressed as much when he told Al-Monitor that after he had achieved “wide public success in Syria before the war,” he resolved to use his experience to benefit Syrian youth by participating in the workshop as a trainer. He said, “I deliberately aimed to steer young people toward singing and [allow it to] have an impact on them. I also wanted to give them hope and let them know that [the only choices] are not just to travel and escape to Europe. With many of the participants we really did achieve that, feeling that they finally had a goal.”

Darwish, one of the young participants in the singing workshop, told Al-Monitor that he had previously decided to go to Europe, but he reconsidered after the workshop. He said, “I thought, ‘Why go illegally when I can achieve something for myself here in Egypt, and, through my art, I can get to Europe [after] they get to know me and after they seek me out.’”