Doro Blancke

I was born in Linz, Upper Austria in 1961, am a mother of two grown-up children and have been living in Styria for many years in a shared apartment, together with Mulham from Syria.

For 6 years I was active as a volunteer in the area of "people who seek refuge". Many wonderful projects have come out of this, such as the language project at the FH Joanneum Graz, Refugee Coffee, Let's cook together, etc. I was able to place young refugees in "sponsor families", supported them in education and training, and connected them with competent legal advice.

As a former honorary board member of Fairness Asyl, I was able to accept the Ute Bock Award 2020 from SOS Mitmensch together with my colleagues.

For years, I have been working very closely with representatives of other NGOs, such as Asylkoordination Österreich and Diakonie Österreich, especially in the areas of #StopDeportationToAfghanistan and #Fairlassen, BBU-Bundesbetreuungsagentur. The focus is on fair asylum procedures in Austria and no deportations to high-risk areas.

Since January 1st 2021, I have been the managing director of the association "Flüchtlingshilfe-refugee assistance-doro blancke", which was founded by long-time friends and companions to support my work. I am very grateful to all the board members and feel very close to them.

No matter where I am, whether in Austria or abroad, it is important to me to keep an eye on the dialogue in the interest of the refugees and to point out injustices and human rights violations.

A major concern is also to decimate the deliberately stoked fears of the "foreign". For this, dialogue, exchange and action against populism through objectivity and knowing the facts is of great importance.

What ultimately drives me again and again is the love for people, my belief in justice and being carried in the WE.