Fatima is originally from a village near Mosul but was forced to flee with her family from ISIS’s extreme brutality against the Yezidi minority community in August 2014. Along with thousands of others, Fatima and her family endured a long and arduous journey, first escaping to Mount Sinjar, and then to the Syrian border, before finally reaching Kurdistan. After sleeping in unfinished buildings for a few months, they were able to move to Mamilyan Camp, where they have had to begin rebuilding their lives.

After having lost her home and her support networks, and fearing for her family’s future, Fatima found day-to-day living to be very difficult. She says, ‘At first, I felt that I had nothing and that my life had no meaning. It was a very hard time for me and I didn’t know what to do. Then I found out that the SEED Center has an agriculture project where women work together to grow vegetables. As soon as I heard about it, I was excited to join this project. As well as making friends, the other women and I have been able to grow some of the food our families need to be healthy. Now I feel like I have something to focus on.’