Expressive Life Writing and Telling During Crisis: Addressing Urgent Needs in the Akkar Governorate, Lebanon

The Lebanese financial crisis has caused significant loss of incomes for households, creating a food security crisis. The Lebanese currency has been reduced in value by 80%. The result has been hyperinflation.

The current situation in Lebanon has created several acute challenges for vulnerable groups: increased resentment of - particularly Syrian - refugees manifesting in harassment and discrimination; Lockdowns provide additional cover for sexual abuse, and trafficking; The online provision of education faces barriers including digital divides between households and a cementing of gender roles in quarantined households whereby girls are doing more domestic work than boys.

The team of the Lebanese partner organisation for this project, Akkar Network for Development (AND), have previously delivered EW training through a focused psychosocial support curriculum to women and adolescent girls. In 2020, however, the new and increased combination of issues makes the need for adapting existing practice and developing new techniques urgent.

The aim of applying the Expressive Writing (EW) methodology in Akkar is to develop support that helps create a life plan, enhances coping mechanisms, builds personal resilience and gives the recipients a feeling of being supported. The research question of this project, therefore, is: Can we adapt the Expressive Writing methodology to these emergency/crisis situations successfully and if so, how can this methodology then be taken to scale and deployed in other contexts.