who we are
SolidariTee is an international charity striving for empowering, long-term change in the treatment of all those forced to flee their homes. Students and young people are at the heart of our movement, but our team includes people of all ages and backgrounds.
Our student community
In the past 4 years, we've had over 1500 volunteers studying at universities in more than 10 countries. Our students organise events, raise awareness, and unite the student community in support of refugees worldwide.
"I joined SolidariTee because I wanted to be a part of changing the injustices facing refugees by supporting NGOs that provide legal long-time solutions. Leading SolidariTee’s NTU team, my highlights were a Christmas bake sale and an awareness online panel event involving NGOs, such as Equal Legal Aid, and refugee advocates."
Yasmin, Nottingham Trent Head Rep 21-22
I've been volunteering for SolidariTee since October 2019, when I started as a Student Representative at Cambridge. I joined the team because I have always been invested in the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers across the globe and saw SolidariTee as a sustainable and effective way to make an impact alongside my studies.
I enjoyed the role so much, especially the sales and fundraising aspect, that I decided to join the Central team as Shop Manager in June 2020 in order to maximise the impact I was having and to ensure that SolidariTee continued to raise money globally and provide legal aid to more and more people. In this role, I was lucky enough to deal with customers on a global scale as well as our worldwide teams and take a front seat in viewing the consequences of SolidariTee's work, while getting to work alongside some amazing and inspiring people!
While I have moved on from being a student, SolidariTee and its success will always be close to my heart.
Kyle, Shop Manager 20-22 & recent graduate, now working in the charity sector
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Video: an introduction to SolidariTee
SolidariTee concept video: March 2021
Our NGO community
Each year, we partner with carefully selected NGOs (non-governmental organisations), providing them with grants that enable them to fund the work they do, as well as a platform to share knowledge, ideas, training, and best practices from the humanitarian sector.
The majority of our NGOs are operational in Greece, where refugees and ayslum seekers are frequently forced to live in unsuitable refugee camps all year round, which are dangerous to people's mental and physical health.
Our NGOs help by representing people through the asylum process, reuniting families separated across borders, appealing unjust decisions, and advocating for a fairer, more just asylum system.
"Everything would be difficult without Fenix’s guidance. It will be like a person who is standing in front of an intersection and doesn’t know which way to go."
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– 26-year-old woman from Afghanistan, and client of Fenix Humanitarian Legal Aid. Fenix have been recipients of SolidariTee grant funding since 2019
Photo: Fenix Humanitarian Legal Aid team
Our Leadership
Alexa Netty, SolidariTee's CEO, has been leading the charity for over three years. Lexi has degrees in veterinary medicine, and in psychology, neuroscience and behaviour, and currently works full-time in charity finance. When Lexi took over the running of the charity she was in her 5th year of vet school, and she seeks to use her knowledge of trauma psychology and of 'one-health' - the idea that human, animal and environmental health are all interconnected - to create impact within the humanitarian and development sector. Lexi has consulted for several refugee-focussed NGOs, and frequently runs free training sessions across a range of topics including comms and fundraising to capacity-build the grassroots NGO sector. Lexi oversees our grant committee as well as the overall running of the charity, and can be reached at alexa@solidaritee.org.uk.
Louisa Cowell is currently president at SolidariTee, and was a member of the outreach team for two years before this. She has an undergraduate degree in politics and philosophy, and is currently working towards a master’s degree in political theory, specialising in the philosophy of asylum and citizenship. Louisa leads the student team at SolidariTee, including the central team and regional teams at over thirty universities, and oversees the core fundraising and awareness raising work of the charity. She can be reached at louisa@solidaritee.org.uk.
Our Mission
To further the provision of empowering, long-term aid to refugees.
We do this primarily through the grants we give to grassroots NGOs, which you can read about here.
To unite the international community in support of human rights for all those affected by forcible displacement.
We seek to educate and raise awareness of the injustices perpetrated against refugees and other vulnerable displaced populations worldwide. More than that, we want to raise awareness of the ways in which we can come together to change things. We do this through a range of events, as well as through our mythbuster and infographic series on social media.
To empower students to create meaningful change.
As the next generations of industry leaders, educators, parents and policy makers, we're equipping students with the tools and confidence to stand up for refugee rights throughout their futures. We seek to build our teams' confidence in having those tricky conversations with friends and family, and to provide opportunities to practice the teamwork, campaigning and advocacy skills needed by those wanting to stand up for what they believe in.
To model inclusive and intersectional activism.
From challenging voluntourism to environmental sustainability and volunteer mental health, we seek to demonstrate that change can be made in a way that is both respectful and impactful, without being exploitative.
Founding Story
SolidariTee was founded in January 2017 by Tiara Sahar Ataii, a then-first year student at the University of Cambridge. Watch Tiara's TEDx Talk: 'A Sustainable Solution to the Refugee Crisis', co-written by CEO Alexa, for a summary of the reasons we believe that legal aid is the most empowering, long-term form of aid we can offer.
Other Achievements
In 2019, SolidariTee received a Diana Award, which is presented to exceptional young change-makers who have demonstrated a capacity to mobilise new generations to serve their communities and create long-lasting global change. Tiara was also awarded the 2019 Cambridge Vice-Chancellor’s Social Impact Award.