ALIMAM
Alimam tells us about the challenges of being an asylum seeker in the UK; how it is illegal for
him to work and he cannot choose where to live until he receives his refugee status from the
Home Office. Alimam walked for ten hours to reach the infamous Calais jungle, where he lived for ten months before making it to the UK. He is now on the Advisory Panel of Conversation Over Borders.
MOSAYEB
Mosayeb is a lawyer and writer from Iran. Here he performs his own poetry, written for
Conversation Over Borders, about what language learning means to him.
EMILY
Emily, a volunteer with Conversation Over Borders, makes a vegan Ghormeh Sabzi with her
partner over Zoom. She discusses the value of cultural exchange and learning English through sharing experiences.
Artist Biography
Colette Batten-Turner is the Founder of Conversation Over Borders, an organisation facilitating conversation classes between volunteers and refugees and asylum seekers, to reduce social isolation and challenge public misconceptions about 'who' seeks asylum through building face-to-face connections. Colette holds a Master of Arts in Media Practice for Development and Social Change and specialises in the creation of participatory media, seeking to amplify the voices of those that are not usually platformed in the mainstream media.