weave, th

Music Empowerment on the Thai–Myanmar Border

At the end of 2024, I had the chance to collaborate with WEAVE (Women’s Education for Advancement and Empowerment), an NGO supporting refugee communities on the Thai–Myanmar border. Together, we imagined a program where music could become more than just a pastime; a tool for healing, expression, and connection.

For several weeks, I worked with refugee youth and women through songwriting workshops, rhythm exercises, and group singing. The sessions gave participants a safe space to share their voices, sometimes literally, sometimes through the lyrics they wrote about their dreams and struggles. Alongside this, I also developed for nursery school teachers a side program, inspired by their request, for more music-based activities to support early childhood education. The overarching goal being to leave them with practical tools they could continue using long after the workshops ended.

The impact was moving. Young refugees wrote and performed original songs filled with resilience and hope. Teachers found new ways to connect with their students. And WEAVE expressed a strong desire to make this program a regular initiative, woven into the fabric of community life.

Today, the journey is far from over. I am working with a local club in Switzerland, hoping to prepare a fundraising event for 2026, with the goal of building a sustainable, year-round version of the program led by local facilitators in the temporary village in Thailand.

For me, this project is a reminder of what music can do when it steps outside of the stage. It’s not just about performance, it’s about giving people another way to express and understand themselves, to heal, and to be heard.

And that spirit will forever continue to guide me in every event I create.

Here are the links to My Case Study of the program and to support WEAVE’s Current Missions through donations.