Q&A with Freshta Karim

?? Name: Freshta Karim

?? Role & organization: Founder of Charmaghz

?? Where do you live? #Oxford, UK

?? And where do you call home? #Kabul, #Afghanistan?

?? How did the experiences of people who have been forcibly displaced first become important to you? I first experienced displacement at the age of 5, when the Taliban took control of Kabul in the early 1990s, forcing my family to flee to Pakistan. This was my introduction to the realities of being displaced and uprooted. Nearly three decades later, at 29, I faced displacement once again when the Taliban took Kabul in August 2021. While the experience of leaving my home as a child shaped me, it is this recent displacement as an adult that has deepened my understanding of what it means to be forcibly displaced. It has led me to reflect more on the resilience required, the loss, the grief, and the challenges that people go through when they are forced to leave everything behind—not just physically but emotionally and culturally as well.?

?? My professional journey: My professional journey began with a passion for storytelling and advocacy, which inspired me to become a child reporter in the national TV of Afghanistan at the age of 12. By the age 14, I had my own TV show, interviewing decision makers about their decisions impacting children’s lives and opportunities. After getting a degree in Public Policy from Oxford, I had the privilege of working with organisations like the Malala Fund, where I contributed to educational initiatives for Afghan girls. In 2018, I founded Charmaghz, an Afghan nonprofit that brings mobile libraries to Afghan children, particularly girls, to improve their literacy, numeracy and critical thinking skills.

?? What's your superpower, either real or desired? I often find joy and notice little beauties of life even in times of despair and misery. It's the little things that come to me and bring me joy, which I see as my superpower.

?? Tell us your fantasy dinner party guests! My ideal dinner party would include the Persian poet Sohrab Sepehri from early 20th-century Iran, whose poetry continues to move me; Elif Shafak, my favourite novelist, who constantly reminds us of storytelling’s power to sustain democracy; and my nephew, who shares my love for reading. We’d gather around the jasmine tree that my mother planted in our Kabul garden, that carries a lot of our family memories. For our meal, I’d imagine the jasmine tree as our chef, who would pour jasmine tea and take us through the tea ceremony, celebrating stories and memories.