Today is World Refugee Day. First declared on June 20, 2001 by the United Nations, the observance sheds light on the plight of those persons violently displaced from their homelands. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, in 2020, "A record 82.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes." This humanitarian crisis is felt in all corners of the globe, not only in the regions of open conflict which refugees are forced to flee but everywhere they seek asylum, still carrying the incalculable traumas of violence and displacement. Over the last ten years, a civil war has forced 6.6 million Syrians to flee their homelands. A tenth of the refugees have found shelter in neighboring Jordan, many in hastily constructed refugee camps which have quickly grown to city size. In Jordan's Azraq and Za’atari refugee camps, residents have found a glimmer of hope in the desolate desert. Thanks to the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Foundation, children in the camps have enjoyed professional table tennis coaching since 2018. In the Za’atari camp (pictured), Syrian youth have the opportunity to learn the sport and become coaches for the next generation. One such coach, a young man named Jado, described his experience. "The happiest moment for me in Za’atari camp was when I was chosen as a Table Tennis coach," said Jado. "I usually play for an hour after lunch, and three out of my six children are training regularly in table tennis, too." For Jado, a former soccer player in Syria, the commitment to athletic training has benefits in all aspects of life. "I have to develop the social skills of children in addition to their athletic and technical skills in table tennis," described Jado. "The social development of children also means to cultivate soft skills such respect, non-violence, and tolerance." We could all learn a few pointers from Jado, not just on World Refugee Day, but every day until such observances are at long last rendered obsolete.

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