Dear friends, supporters of UNITED Network

 

A tradition of our end-of-year E-News, this edition brings you not only the main events and initiatives that shaped the past month, but also a word from our Director. It is an opportunity to look back at this year together, share a few updates from our side, and warmly wish you a good beginning of 2026—always with the hope of continuing to honour and support your invaluable work.

The Bondi Beach Terror Attack

Looking back at what happened through the past weeks, despite wanting to start with sharing about the end of our November campaigns and all its power, we cannot avoid but talking about what happened on December 14th in Bondi Beach, Australia. This terror attack showed once again the destructive effects of hatred, taking innocent lives, fooling people that justice and freedom can in any way reside in the annihilation of others, rather than in a mutual recognition and in a system of genuine accountability.

For this reason we must vigil and prevent further hate to spread, refusing to allow this tragedy to become another tool for division

 

Campaign is over. Resistance Continues.

From 9–30 November, our Exhibition at Nyolcésfél in Budapest came alive with stories, art, community, and care, thanks to everyone who visited, created, supported, and joined us online. Together with NEM! – Nők Egymásért Mozgalom!, Szaltó, OneState Embassy Art Collective, Common Jam, our partner C55, and curator Réka Novák, we turned this space into a home for everyday resistance and care-centered community building.

In parallel, our “We Have Resistance at Home” campaign travelled across borders through a series of Online Panels on international representation and activism, accountability, queer community mobilization, carework in migration, and intersectional justice, bringing together activists and practitioners to share tools, strategies, and lived experiences. These conversations reminded us that resistance is not a slogan but a daily practice rooted in solidarity, and that our networks—on the ground and online—are key to confronting fascism, antisemitism, and all forms of hate.

Thank you to our Network and online community for standing with us, for listening, for sharing, and for showing that we truly have resistance at home—and it looks like us. Last but not least, thank to the support f the European Practitioners Network Against Antisemitism (EPNA) and the German Federal Foreign Officer, who made it possible.

You can find all the content from the campaign on our Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin accounts.

𝗘𝗨 𝗠𝗶𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀: 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗮𝗰.

On December 4th, the 2nd lecture from our Working Group on the New EU Pact on Migration & Asylum took place online.
This time we went deep into the regulatory and practical realities of Europe’s asylum and migration systems—with two leading experts:

🎤 Romain Lanneau (Statewatch) – Legal researcher on migration, asylum, and new technologies in public policy. He’ll break down the regulatory and procedural framework shaping migration policy across Europe.
🎤 Réka Rebeka Rósa legal professional with experience in grassroots coordination and legal aid supporting asylum seekers and monitoring human rights violations on Samos, Greece. The event was another chance to understand better what's the situation regarding migration in the continent to find ways to strategise and take action against the inhumane policies of Fortress Europe.

 

EPIC Youth Summit in Budapest

From November 17-21, we brought together young changemakers from Italy, Spain, Portugal and Hungary to talk about youth participation, activism, co-creation and community building.
The Summit benefited from the energy, the connections, and the powerful conversations that unfolded as participants shared their stories, challenged stereotypes, and worked together on concrete ideas
A huge thank you to all our participants, partners and team members who made this summit unforgettable. This is what youth participation looks like and we can't wait to share the #epicyouth campaign, so #staytuned!

COP30: UNITED & MYF Delegates at the Climate Table

Through our partnership with the Make Your Mark Foundation (MYF), seven young climate activists from Brazil, Senegal, the USA, and Syria represented our movements at COP30. Selected through a transparent, diversity-focused process, our delegates went beyond attendance—stepping into roles as speakers, moderators, and facilitators across critical sessions on climate finance, climate justice, and youth leadership.
A central message: developed countries continue to fall short on climate finance, while civil society and grassroots organizations remain excluded from meaningful decision-making. Our delegates highlighted community-led and Indigenous-inspired approaches as proven solutions—yet they remain underfunded and unheard in official spaces. We'll be posting some videos from the delegates so don't miss the chance to share your take!

News from the Network: 9th of November Campaign at the The Romanian Institute for Human Rights

On 10 November, the Romanian Institute for Human Rights marked the International Day Against Fascism and Antisemitism with an awareness campaign in Bucharest for students engaged in internships, under the motto “A world without discrimination and intolerance!” The initiative invited young people to reflect on past atrocities and stressed the urgency of combating antisemitism, xenophobia, and racial discrimination in the context of current global conflicts, calling for a world rooted in freedom, dignity, and peace.
On this occasion, the Institute officially joined our European Address Book Against Racism.

A word from the Director

Dear Network,

Let me first of all begin with thanking you for this year.  We sincerely appreciate all your efforts throughout 2025, both as individual organisations as well as a network at large.

I personally remember all too well the challenging period between May and July when the secretariat had fallen under threat due to the Hungarian government. Yet despite the distress within those months, the memory which remains with me is one of unity; Of an organisation living up to its name; Of an organisation whose supporters showed up in a time of need.

Likewise as individual actors you have proven to be incredible project partners, delegates, campaign planners and general collaborators alike. It is a tremendous honour that we can count on the benchmark of civil action within our operations, and we can confidently say that it was both a pleasure and a privilege to experience your work the whole year around.

With the holidays just being two days away I hope you can use the upcoming time to relax and to regroup for the new year ahead.

From the secretariat’s side 2026 will mark yet again a new chapter in the organisation’s existence. With new initiatives being fostered in the beginning of the year as well as the departure from some previous familiarities.  All changes which will be addressed in January with a special newsletter to fill you in on our choices in detail.

Last but not least I would like to let you know that said new chapter will also unfold beyond my tenure. As of January 31st 2026 I will pass on the torch for a new leadership at the wheel of the Network.

This was not an easy choice to make but I hope that my resignation will foster a path for more democracy within the network and to equip you further to shape UNITED.

I once again want to sincerely thank you for this year and hope you can spend this time in the realm of your loved ones.

Happy Holidays and All the best,

Philip | UNITED